Floaty Ring

R. Ruggles sculpture in progress, Scuba-saurus tube and hand pose

Using aluminum foil, I made the armature for Bubbles intertube. In working with polymer clay, one wants to avoid making the clay over a 1/4 inch thick. Anything thicker than that tends not to cure while baking in the oven.

I made a doughnut shape out of foil and covered it with clay. Keeping the ring open so I could slip it over the neck, the head is too big to slide it thru the opening. After seeing it in place realized I wanted it to sit lower down the body and needed a larger ring diameter. I temporarily posed the arm to see it rest on the intertube and be happy with the composition.

The silly flippers on the feet began to take shape too. But, of course, scuba flippers always look ridiculous on land. You may also be wondering why is there a hole in her belly? I had wanted that to be an area that lights up like a lamp with a heart inside. Now that the piece is taking shape, I prefer to fill it in and make it a chubby belly.

Posted in