making the footprints

below are some photos of the process of making the footprints with the three year-olds. Each child had a go at rolling out the clay, then Debbie traced their feet onto the clay. Then she cut out the shape of the foot. The child helped to smooth the edges of the clay and then decorated the foot with underglaze colours.

We also made some leaves and branches for the birds to sit amongst.

after the workshops

After the workshops, the birds are taken to the artist's residence. She writes the name of each child on their artwork using coloured underglaze. The birds had to be pushed into a curved shape, so that they will sit nicely against the curves of the totem poles and bird bath base. Here they are resting on the assorted curves of plumbing pipes, biscuit tins and plastic buckets.

Making the birds

The four year old children have made birds for the totem poles and bird bath. They roll out some clay. The artist Debbie, then cuts out the shape of the bird that they have chosen. The children use the photograph of the bird that they chose, to help them paint it. Some children have chosen to paint the bird in realistic colours and others have chosen to use their own colour theme.

The coloured underglazes that the children are using, are made of clay, minerals and pigments that can withstand the firing of the clay in a kiln ( 1060 degrees fareheit). Although the colours look dull when the children paint their work, after the clear glaze is added, they will be very bright.
Each piece will be fired in the kiln twice.
All the birds will be very bright and colourful after they have been glazed.

We used photographs of the birds that the children have been seeing in the garden, as a stimulus. Each child chose the bird that they wanted to make. Debbie sketched the shape and cut it out for the children and then they painted it with ceramic underglazes.

The Design and planning

The design for the bird garden includes three totem poles and a birdbath. These structures will be decorated with birds, branches, leaves and blossoms made out of clay by the four years olds. The background between these ceramic features will be filled in with mosaic, by the artist.
The garden will also have some mosaic pavers set into the ground with footprints on them made by the three year olds. These pavers will provide a stimulus and suggested path for the children to make their way through the garden.

The hollow in the birdbath base could be used for social interaction, and will be a quiet cosy space for storytelling with little toy birds. Nests could be made using twigs and leaves.