Review: Carter High School Ceramics Tools: A Sculptor’s Equipment.

Having been in an art class for my entire time here at Carter High, I have familiarized myself with the tools that the school has to offer. From fettling knives to Exacto blades, I’ve used almost every tool at least once, and I have grown to enjoy using them. The tools in the art room are not only a pleasure to use, but they have aged beautifully with care and experience from the past students. Some of these tools have assisted sculptors who have gone on to produce beautiful pieces in their careers. Good-quality pieces are definitely easier to create when using good-quality tools and materials. Some of the tools that the school has to offer would be the versatile fettling knife, the serrated rib-tool, various wood-tools, many texture stamps, as well as wire and needle tools. The fettling knife, being the most used, helps sculptors shape and carve into the clay, as well as smooths out the surface. Serrated rib-tools however, are crucial to the process in that they are needed to score and slip pieces (a process in which watered down clay is used like a glue to attach separate clay pieces). These tools and processes have assisted me personally on many projects I have done throughout my time in Art 1 last year, as well as Advanced Sculpture this year. For example, my first clay project: a mug that I had made and sculpted eyes into, I had used the extractor to create my mug shape (an extractor is a large machine used to extract raw clay into different shapes to be sculpted). And then I used the fettling knife to cut and create the eyes found throughout my mug. Both of these tools were very easy to use and produced high quality results for my skill level. Moving aside from my earliest project, my most recent piece is a raku style animal sculpture. For this one, I primarily used either wood-tools, or an Exacto-blade. The wood tool helped me create smoothness, as well as texture where I needed it. And the Exacto-blade allowed me to carve deep into the clay, where the wood tool would not have produced such deep and clean cuts. An overall statement on the school’s selection of equipment would praise their reliability, versatility, and their wide range of different tools to use in any situation. Some more particular individuals may point out the age and condition of a few of the tools, I’d excuse this however because being in a school for any extended amount of time would obviously create some wear and tear. The conditions of the tools are surprisingly good for being in a school environment as long as they have, as it is common for students to misuse school materials, so with only a few being damaged, the condition is impressive. Thus, these art room tools have lasted years, assisting students in everything from cups, to full scale sculptures, and hopefully, they will continue to last through the years.