Wk1 – Art Experience – Plaster Casting: Or How I Learned To Do The Thing!

Honestly, I didn’t have too high of expectations for tgis project. I may consider myself to be a creative force… but with words, not with any actual mediums. It’s frustrating at times, as nearly all of my friends are actually talented artists, so I knew, going in, that whatever I made was not going to be as impressive as something one of them could have made. Regardless, I got my bucket, a box of Plaster, and walked the block and half to Junipero Beach with my younger brother, Nick.

If I may say so, being a former East Coaster, the walk alone gave me hope. It was so bright and sunny, and I had found a parking spot that was reeeeeeeeally close to my apartment, so already my morale was high. It didn’t take more than five minutes to cross the threshold of my front door and trek to the waters edge. Immediately, we set to work, using our hands to dig a good sized hole (why buy a shovel when you have good, strong hands?). Once satisfied with the depth, I positioned my hand in a way that I thought would produce the best possible cast, and had Nick fetch wet sand to pack in around my fingers and palm. Only moments passed before I felt confident in my mold, and slid my hand out, starting to work on the plaster itself.

One thing about the beach – it’s easy to misplace your belongings, because we lost(for a time) our stir stick. Luckily, we thought fast and found a sturdy bit of driftwood to make due, and began to stir the concoction l. When the mixture was at a consistency I was pleased with, I slowly poured it into my mold… and then we played the waiting game.

In the half hour it took for my sculpture to set, we called friends, took a short walk to the waves and set our feet in the chilly water, and drank mango juice out of our water bottles. Afterwards, I felt enough time had passed, and so I dug out my creation.

And, remarkably, I was amazed by the outcome.

It looks like my fingers are tentacles!

The creation was not a perfect mold of my hand, but I actually find the imperfections to make it more beautiful – where the plaster deviated, it looks like bubbles and suction cups are jetting out from my fingers, almost like tentacles. It’s really cool, and I think I’m actually going to keep this project!