Look at the PowerPoint on the Element of Form and then complete the fill-in-the-blank for a reference.

1. The Element of Form

2. Form A form is three-dimensional and encloses volume. Like shapes, forms can be geometric (cubes, pyramids, box like, cones) or irregular (eggs, pears, horses, people, bottles). Form, the volume or mass of objects, is the most important art element for sculptors. While sculptors and potters work with form, painters work with shapes. Painters often use shading to make shapes look like forms. Alberto Giacometti, Man Pointing, 1947. Bronze

3. Pieta c. 1498-99 Marble Michelangelo Sculpture - A three-dimensional work of art, or the art of making it. Such works may be carved, modeled, constructed, or cast. Sculptures can also be described as assemblage, in the round, and relief, and made in a huge variety of media.

4. As an art form, sculpture differs from painting in that it exists in space. It can be seen, touched, and often viewed from all sides. Sculpture is concerned with actual space. Not all sculptures can be viewed from all sides. Relief sculptures , for example, are similar in some ways to paintings. Their three-dimensional forms are attached to a flat surface. Like paintings, these works are designed to be viewed from the front. The Entombment of Christ 1449 Stone relief Donatello

5. Sculpture in the round is any freestanding work surrounded on all sides by space. Not all freestanding sculptures are meant to be seen from all sides, however. Many are designed to be viewed only from the front. The Thinker 1880 Bronze Auguste Rodin

6. Place yourself in the position of an artist about to transform an idea into three dimensional form. A number of important questions must be answered before you begin. For example what material will you use-clay, wood, stone, metal? What tools and processes are best suited for the material selected? St. George c. 1416-17 Marble Donatello

7. Artists use a variety of different processes or techniques to create sculptures from the materials they choose. These processes include modeling, carving, casting and assembling . Duane Hanson, United States, 1925-1996 Football Player, 1981 oil on polyvinyl In the process of assembly, the artist gathers and joins together a variety of different materials to construct a three-dimensional work of art.

8. Modeling is a process in which a soft, pliable material is built up and shaped into a sculptural form. The artist uses a material such as clay, wax, or plaster. Bernini. Angel with the Superscription. 1667-69. Terra-cotta

9. Carving is cutting or chipping a form from a given mass of material to create a sculpture. Carving is a subtractive technique, because material is removed until the sculpture is completely exposed. Michelangelo Moses. 1513-16 Marble

10. In Casting, a melted-down metal or other liquid substance is poured into a mold to harden. This method allows the artist to duplicate an original sculpture done in wax, clay, plaster or some other material. Edgar Degas The Little Dancer 1881. Bronze

12. The sculptures are part of the architecture. These figures form the columns of this cathedral.

15. More...

16. This gargoyle is an eagle head made of stainless steel. This is a sculptural ornament on the Chrysler Building in New York.