This post has been created to support an in-person art teacher workshop at Bendigo Art Gallery.
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Intro and Inspiration

One of the most popular art materials with the kids I teach is paper magic clay. This stuff is light, colourful and so sensory satisfying to work with. It’s equally accessible for little fingers and those with more refined fine motor skills. It comes in so many colours, it can be mixed to make new colours, it’s magic remember, and you can add dye or washable marker to change it’s colour too. You can add to it once it’s dry, stick it to paper, draw on it, stick things to it without glue, paint it and wrap it around armatures. It air dries in hours, I like to leave it overnight. It’s not the cheapest clay, I still love using real clay for larger projects, but this is perfect for miniatures. It is low mess and light so it’s easy to transport.

One of the most exciting and successful projects kids love to make is miniature food. So combining a popular theme with a popular material is a recipe for success! Now you may think food as a theme is a little lightweight and not as rich an opportunity to connect with artists and art styles, but as you’ll see below in my lesson plan- I’ve suggested over 14 artists across the globe who can be used as inspiration and researched by older students, and I could easily have added more.

Here are some interesting discussion points:

Artists have ways of making us see things differently from the large installations like Claes Oldenburg’s giant cherries and Yayoi Kusama’s polka dot pumpkins to the detailed miniatures of Tomo Yanaka and Tapasya Prabhu. They create a great contrast and starting point for discussing scale.

Artists help us look at the everyday in a new way- from Andy Warhol’s Soup Cans to Jae Yong Kim’s shiny ceramic donuts installed in patterns on gallery walls.

Artists have ways of making us feel- The nostalgia and excitement for our favourite foods like in the work of Jenn Robeson, to the disappointment of a dropped icecream by Charlotte Coquen. They play with our emotions, such as the rich decadent delights of Anna Barlow to the elevated mundane of Stephanie H Shih.

They make us question everything. What happens when the artistry of food looks too good to eat, and in the case of Shayna Leib’s pattiserie, they are too good to eat! Is it still food or something else? Can we appreciate it not as food but for its detailed elements of form, shape and colour? How does it make you look at food differently if you can’t eat it? Can you purely delight in their huge or tiny scale?

Below I have outlined a suggested lesson plan with video demonstrations and references that can be adapted to whatever ages are being taught. I hope you find it inspiring and useful.

Lesson
Mini Clay Food

Lesson Structure
Acknowledgement
Mini Lesson/Demo: Food as Art, Videos
Clay Play- Explore feel, explain clay can be shaped and textured, colour mixed and drawn on.
Independent Task: Making
Pack Up
Reflecting/Sharing/Feedback

Cultural and Historical Context
From Pop Art of the 1950’s and 60’s to Contemporary Artists of today

Art Styles and Connections
Pop Art, Miniature Art, Ceramics, Sculpture, Contemporary Art

Artists
Pop Artists- Claes Oldenburg, Andy Warhol, Yayoi Kusama

Kenny Pittock- Melbourne Naarm Australia

Michelle Bounpraseuth- Sydney, Australia @ mechelleb_

Jenn Robeson- Toronto, Canada

Stephanie H Shih- Taiwan/NY

Anna Barlow- London

Shayna Leib- America

Kaori Kurihara- Paris

Jae Yong Kim- Seoul/NY

Charlotte Coquen- Rouen, France

Tomo Tanaka- Japan. Miniature Artist

Tapasya Prabhu- Mumbai, India. Architect and Miniaturist

Art Elements and Principles
Colour, Form, Scale

Prior Knowledge- Questioning- Tuning In
Favourite Foods?

Pop Artists you may know?

How does it make you look at food differently if you can’t eat it?

Does it make you look at the enjoyment of the form, shapes, colours?

Do you delight in their huge or tiny scale?

Learning Intention
We are learning to respond and interpret the world around using colour, form and scale.

We can respond to the work of other artists and our own self-expression.

Success Criteria
I can manipulate 3D materials to explore representational colour and form

Demo Shaping, Texturing and Detailing your clay. YouTube Shorts
Go Bananas

Orange

Cupcake

Sandwich

Pizza

Apple

Lettuce

Extension
Build up and stick on paper. Like this Vegie Patch or these 3D thongs added to a painted or collage’ background

Easily stick in googly eyes, feathers for creatures etc… without the need for adhesives. Like these farm animals , sea urchins and Toad from Mario Kart

Magic clay can be used to explore colour mixing or exploring colour and organic shapes like simple coral or Sea Urchins
Colour Mixing activity based on picture book Mixed by Aree Chung

Presentation

Add to dioramas or collage’, keyrings or jewellery. Like these Sardine can dioramas, apple tree 3D collage, Beach scene and coloured coral and clams.

Practice Considerations:

Snap those lids shut tight. “I want to hear that click!”

Suitable for all ages.
Dries in hours so work within one lesson.
Works wet on wet and wet on dry.
Can be added to once dry.
Can be drawn on with markers.
Colours can be mixed and marbled- colours will change colour.
Will stick to paper when wet without adhesive.
Clay can be coloured with washable markers or dye and colour massaged in.
Can be rolled and stretched around armatures- such as tin foil to make material go further.

OH&S: Non-Hazardous. Free of wheat, gluten

Storage:
Air Dry clay- keep pieces separated while drying as they will stick together.
Protect from squashing or misshaping until dry.
Keep in airtight lidded containers.
Paper Magic Clay has a 16-month shelf life.
Attempts can be made to revive drier clay with bit of water or vinegar mixed in.

Sustainability: Empty containers make great storage for mixed paints, glaze, beads and buttons.