How to create a non-objective styrofoam relief sculpture

I received a phone call in my classroom one day from a friend asking if we could use Styrofoam for a project. She said she recently ordered a large shipment and each box came with a piece of styrofoam. “YES!” I said excitedly. I’m always happy to repurpose Styrofoam into art to avoid it filling up a landfill and never decomposing.

If you ever get a similar call or happen to have some styrofoam laying around, this project may inspired you! This blog post features a guided tutorial of how to sculpt a non-objective styrofoam relief sculpture. This sculpture explores important sculpture concepts for beginning artists, such as ASSEMBLAGE, NON-OBJECTIVE ART, and RELIEF. While exploring these concepts, artists gain a deeper understanding of the elements of art, specifically TEXTURE, FORM, SHAPE and COLOR. Furthermore, important principles of design are examined, such as BALANCE, UNITY, VARIETY, and more!

*HEY EDUCATORS! …COMING SOON! Ready to go lesson available for purchase*

MATERIALS LIST:

In this tutorial, the following materials will be used to create the non-objective assemblage sculpture: 

• Styrofoam sheets with 1 inch thickness
• Electric hot knife for carving styrofoam
• Hot wire scroll table (I really like this one from Dick Blick)
• All purpose joint compound 
• Hot glue & glue guns
• Heat gloves
• Acrylic paint
• Glossy Mod Podge *optional*

*Disclaimer* I am an Amazon Associates member and may earn a small commission if you purchase an item I recommend on my blog. I only recommend items I’ve personally used and loved.

ARTIST INSPIRATION:

Before beginning, I recommend exploring the art of LOUISE NEVELSON (1899- 1988) who was an iconic American sculptor who created assemblage art from found objects. One of my favorite quotes by Nevelson is, “When you put things together, things that other people have thrown out, you’re really bringing them to life – a spiritual life that surpasses the life for which they were originally created.” Her assemblage work, which can be described as 3 dimensional collages, were often painted in solid colors of black, white and gold. Her works greatly inspired this project!

TERMS TO KNOW:

NON-OBJECTIVE ART is artwork that has no recognizable subject. It is only made of lines, shapes, colors, and basic art elements. This varies from representational art (has a clear subject) and abstract art (which breaks down recognizable subjects sometimes to obscurity).

Another term to know is RELIEF. A relief artwork is one which has 3d parts protruding from a flat background.

STEP ONE:

Create thumbnail sketches of your design. Strive for 10 shapes only in each design. Include at least 1 area where shapes are stacked on top of each other. Some compositional choices to make include:

(1) ORGANIC OR GEOMETRIC SHAPES

(2) SYMMETRICAL OR ASYMMETRICAL BALANCE

STEP TWO:

Draw the shapes onto the styrofoam surface. This is not just a direct copy of your design, as these will be cut out and glued to another surface. A strategic approach will be needed to ensure all shapes fit, “manufactured” edges are used, stacked shapes are separated, and little is wasted. It is helpful to number the thumbnail sketch shapes and the shapes drawn on the styrofoam surface.

STEP THREE:

In a well-ventilated area with proper safety precautions, carefully use styrofoam cutting tools to cut out the drawn shapes.

*SAFETY TIPS* When styrofoam is cut correctly, it should be virtually smokeless. If you see smoke, adjust heat settings and cut with more speed. Cutting too slow will cause burning and smoking.

STEP FIVE:

Apply a coat of joint compound to the assemblage. Ensure that all styrofoam (included sides) is covered to create and consistent finish. Explore using a variety of mark making tools, such as palette knives, brushes, etc, to create a variety of textures in the joint compound prior to it drying. It dries fairly quick. Avoid putting it on too thick as this can lead to cracking.

STEP SIX:

Once fully dry, paint the sculpture with a solid color of your choice. A recommended color finish is to mix a TONE, which is a color mixed with gray. Using tones helps to avoid the “out of the tube” colors and provides richer colors.

It is likely that two coats will be needed to ensure an even finish on the sculpture.

My middle school art class created this project in 5 (45-minute) class periods. The final projects looked so eye catching, especially when displayed as a collaborative whole.

We only 2 styrofoam cutting tools, so students worked on a non-objective drawing while they waited their turn.