How to dry a clay sculpture
Mud modeling is an excellent practice for children and adults. We are all capable of modeling, however we do not always proceed in the best way and sometimes the sculpture is broken for unknown reasons. One of them is the bad drying of the piece, which in many cases is the cause of it exploding in the oven. It is essential that you know how to dry a clay sculpture in a homogeneous way to guarantee the stability of your works. (Photo: Mónica Lou)
You will need to:- Mud
- Rags
- Plastics
- Water
- Tweezers
- Gums
one
Keep the tender mud while you work the piece . Do not let it get hard or wet it massively, because the clay will lose consistency.
two
Do not get your hands wet . Spray the piece before working if you see that it is a bit hard, but wait for it to absorb the water before handling it. The mud should not be pasty and slippery.
3
Each time you cover it, sprinkle it with water in a uniform way and cover it with a plastic well attached to the sculpture to prevent air from entering and drying up. Close the plastic with tweezers or a rubber so that no air enters below.
4
Beware of wet rags . Most people cover the sculptures with a cloth moistened with water and a plastic bag. This system works if you work almost daily and the cloth does not dry. If you are going to spend a lot of time, it is preferable that you do not place the rag, since once dry it will continue to absorb the water of your sculpture, drying it before time.
5
Once the sculpture is finished, do not hurry and let it dry progressively . Do not open it suddenly and place it near a source of heat (the sun or a radiator), since the temperature and humidity change will be too sudden. Leave it "badly covered" during the first days, placing the plastic on top but without closing it well. In this way, it will gradually dry up.
6
After one or two weeks, remove the plastic and leave the sculpture on the air for two more weeks . Think that although it seems dry on the outside, it still contains moisture inside.
7
Once this is done, your piece is ready to be inserted in the oven. I hope you have a good cooking!
- It is preferable that you use a wooden base that does not swell with water.
