Project #4: Combined Forms
- Abby
- Apr 28
- 5 min read
"Combined Forms:
Using the definitions of Linear Form (wire) and Planar Form (cardboard) we will create 1-1.5ft linear and planar asymmetrical geometric forms in class. Investigate potential textures to create contrasts in the individual forms. The 2 forms will be COMBINED into a dynamic formal composition! Your forms can be geometric, organic, reference a text form, or...
A general definition of Form:
refers to the visual and physical structure of an object
is three-dimensional
cannot exist without space, and space is an aid to the perception and appreciation of form.
Linear Form – a one-dimensional object is nonexistent in the environment, so a linear form is one which possesses an exaggerated dimension of length and longer that it is high or wide. In linear form space is articulated with a minimum of mass by a long thin element following a forms contour.
Planar Form – When width is added to length, and thickness or height a minor aspect, planar form results. The planar form is composed of long, wide, and thin shapes that articulate the space. We won't adhere to a mathematical perspective to define the planar form as a flat surface. Any curved or otherwise irregular surface that has two exaggerated dimensions may be classified as a planar form."
Originally for this project I had no idea where to start. I also hadn't done much work with cardboard or wire for something like this. My biggest problem was to figure out how the wire and cardboard forms would interact, so I just started drawing. Around the time the project was first assigned I had been watching a lot of Avatar: The Last Airbender which was what my primary source of inspiration ending up being, although I had no particular character in mind. With the show in the back of my head the idea of creating some kind of bender may be a good way to combine the wire and cardboard. I ended up really liking this idea from the start and decided to run with it.
When I had started drawing I hadn't decided which part would be wire or the cardboard. Although I knew that I didn't want to try to pour to much detail into the person, I wanted to leave it very simple. Also, in this sketch I was undecided if I wanted the figure to be bending water or fire. In the end I figured that creating the person out of wire would be the way to go, and to make the element out of cardboard. After testing what I could do with the cardboard, I decided my figure would be a firebender. Creating sharper shapes with organic lines would be easier than round ones.
Creating the figure took quite a while and a lot of patience. As my first attempt left me with an oddly proportioned figure, the torso was too long, shoulders just entirely disproportionate, the hips were too long and just not quite the shape I wanted, the head was too small, and the neck wasn't quite long enough to make sense. So, after much cutting, reshaping, and reattaching later I finally ended up with a wire skeleton I was happy with. The next problem that came was that it was very 2D and not very sturdy. I wrapped wire all around the skeleton to "put meat on its bones" if you will. This was also mildly frustrating as I had it in the pose I wanted as a skeleton, but when wrapping the wire around I had to adjust the various limbs to do so and then reposition them. I had almost forgotten about adding hair entirely, and that's when I decided that less was more due to the frustration of attaching it in the first place. This ended up working out very well as having to many strands would have felt out of place and distracting.
The cardboard aspect presented its own challenges, but despite them it was less frustrating. It was more about taking the time to figure out what I needed to do to achieve the look I wanted. At first, I was just going off of my own personally memories of watching fire, but I kept feeling like something was missing. Stock photos of fire became a wonderful reference, and it helped to steer me more towards what I wanted. It also reminded me how weird flame shapes can be and that there isn't really much uniformity in them.
One of my biggest challenges was creating the fiery look I wanted in a way where the cardboard could still defy gravity with minimal support. The original base for the fire was very 2D and didn't require much to hold it up, the worry was more for as I kept adding flames. This is where the thinner silver wire came in clutch. I was able to create the support and an illusion that the cardboard was floating through lacing the wire through the corrugation channels within the cardboard and on the limbs of the figure.
Another challenge was just manipulating the cardboard in a way that looked like fire. The longer I spent on it the more I discovered. I added more cardboard cutouts in various shapes and sizes that would be bent in many directions, hot glue and paper tape was key in attaching these extra pieces. Peeling off the top layer of the cardboard made the cardboard much easier to twist than just scoring the top layer to manipulate it. Then using those same "flaky" pieces I had peeled off I could get thinner elements to place throughout that could have tighter twists and forms. I also ended up making smaller pieces of flames and attached them to the tails of the silver wire above the main structure to really make it feel more dynamic.
Asymmetry was another big factor in how dynamic it was. The way the fire coils around the figure leads the eye throughout. I also really like the contrast between the cardboard being a rather solid form and not being able to see through it and the wire figure being much more open even down to the pose. The figure doesn't maintain a closed off or guarded pose, but rather an open one. While it is rather asymmetrical from all angles it maintains balance throughout. Which I think is because of how the fire moves around the person. Even on a side view the fire fans out to balance with the bottom of the piece.
Overall, I'm very satisfied with how this project came out. I think all of the frustration with each material was worth it. The cardboard turned out much better than I was expecting, and I could have kept adding to it, but everything must come to an end at some point. The process ended up becoming rather calming by the time I was done. Although this project does feel like it is held together by a lot of hot glue, paper tape, and hope.
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