Process: Rolled out strips of clay, thinned out the edges, and ruffled the strips to mimic the delicate and flowy fins of fish.

Process: Poured baking soda into a baking tin as a soft bed to protect the delicate shapes of the clay fins while baking. Otherwise, the clay fins would flatten and lose its shape.

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Process: Placed the unbaked clay sculpture into bed of baking soda, sprinkled baking soda over it to ensure the piece did not move and get disfigured while baking.

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Process: Covered chipboard and painter's tape armature of the wolf's head with paper mache to even out and strengthen the surface.

Process: Poked indentations to glue the pen ink cartridges after firing, making sure to make the holes a little larger to account for shrinkage.

Process: Applied thin strips of painter's tape to attach tapered pieces of chipboard to mimic the movement and texture of bird feathers. Gradually built up the strips to create lots of detail and texture throughout the body and wings of the bird.

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Process: Sliced my owl sculpture into 3 segments with a wire clay slicer, carving each out with a loop tool so the walls were ~0.5 in thick all around, using my fingers to check the thickness in each segment.

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Process: Sliced my deer sculpture into 5 segments, ensuring that each segment had enough structural stability to stay intact while I carved the inside and thinned the walls to ~0.5 in. Afterwards, each segment was slip/scored back together.

Process: Slits were carved into the piece before firing, and the tulle and stringed beads were attached into these slits. The neck slit also symbolizes the pain associated with beauty.

Process: Covered a foil and wire armature with paper mache to create a sturdy base to later gesso and attach air dry clay to. Utilized a paint brush to achieve an even application of glue over the paper mache, ensuring quick and even drying.

Process: Screwed metal rods into wooden board to create sturdy base to attach the wire armature to. Applied melted plasticine clay to mimic mud. Wire mesh covered in clay created the brim of the man's hat and serape, as well as the flag.

Ideas: Highlight the pioneering of vaqueros in Texas cowboy and ranching culture. Composition of the piece intends to frame the vaquero as a pioneer, gripping a flag whipping in the wind to symbolize charging forward and paving the way for Texas cowboy culture. A longhorn follows in tow, the longhorn itself symbolizing Texans as well as cattle drive culture.

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Process: Foil and wire armature was covered in paper clay, and a slips/score technique was used to attach horns and scales all over the body. Flashy colors, phosphorescent paint, and glitter mimicked the flashiness of marine wildlife.

Ideas: Demonstrate how getting older can come with rediscovering the beauty of small wonders in life by utilizing a deep sea creature as a metaphor for these hidden wonders. Similar to how a deep sea animal is often out of sight, these tiny wonders can sometimes only be found if you look for them, yet they can play vital roles in preserving our mental health.

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Process: Chipboard armature was covered air dry clay, primed with gesso, and painted with acrylic paint. I painted the back of a glass pebble to mimic an eye's cornea, and I placed fairy lights concentrated behind the eyes so that the eyes glow in the dark, mimicking the eyes of a predator hiding in the brush of a forest.

Ideas: Communicate the dangers of toxic relationships that have unhealthy dynamics resembling a predator and its prey. I used the bunny to symbolize someone victimized by a toxic relationship, with the wolf acting as someone holding an unhealthy amount of power.

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Process: Created a hollow chipboard armature to minimize the weight of the bird's body, allowing for it to levitate mid-air over wire stilts. I attached scrap metal and pieces from old cameras and Arduino kits with hot glue.

Ideas: Phoenix symbolizes rebirth, and its upward ascent composition-wise demonstrates how, as time goes on, humanity makes more technological progress. Phoenixes, an archaic symbol, combined with the modern symbolism of wires and camera lenses demonstrates how much technology improves in one person's lifetime and how individuals can contribute to progressing technology.

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Process: Stacked the papers with sheets of cardboard in-between to increase volume while reducing total weight of the piece. Attached pen ink cartridges with E6000 to ensure they attached to the ceramic body of the owl properly.

Ideas: Warn the viewer the dangers of overwork and how it leads to burnout and loss of passion and motivation. Particularly use visual messaging of schoolwork and overcaffeination to communicate this theme.

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