Clay Figurine Sculptures

In this article, I’ll list and explain all the steps for Clay Figurine Sculpture. I sculpt ceramic animals and once a month, I open custom ceramics orders. This is one of them. A customer wanted a white porcelain tiger figurine as a gift for his girlfriend. I sculpted this big cat with clay at home and then proceeded with the technical steps at the studio.

If you’d like to watch the whole process in video, in real time, I uploaded the process of another tiger on youtube.

Clay Figurine : Modeling

I work on small clay figurines : about 10 cm large, that’s about 4 inches. This allows for an easy management the clay body, I don’t have to hollow my pieces or let them dry for days. But this is challenging in another way : i have to be extra careful with details. Moreover, my sculpting tools are a tiny bit harder to come by. I also have to know animal anatomy and how they work. While I mostly make cute minimalist critters, I like to have my information right. I worked a lot in animal illustration so that helps 🙂

Modeling is the first step and it will be the basis of everything. A wrong shape will not correct itself with painting or glazing. So I have to get it right at this stage. The trickier parts are the tiny legs, ears and tail. They have to be really firm before I make the clay figurine stand, otherwise they’ll bend or break. I also have to level them while they’re freshly attached. The tail and ears are not supporting any weight but a clumsy sculptor like myself will misplace her hands at some point and bump into these ^^ I learned to be more careful but it really involves concentration and mindfulness. This is one of the pleasing aspect of clay sculpture : you have to be there, you can’t check your phone or talk. You need a 100% focused mind.

Drying and painting your clay figurine

After a 24 h slow drying phase, often in a lidded but breathing box, I will use a moist extra fine sponge to soften the small bumps, remove any micro bump or clay particles. And then the clay figurine is left to completely dry out before I add any underglaze. Once dry, the clay is whiter, it’s also extra fragile and will break at the slightest lift of eyebrow so : careful !

Underglaze is like a paint. So I paint all the details with a fine brush. Synthetic brushes are sturdier, moreover I don’t use animal products in my work. This tiger is to be white with stripes so I’ll just lay the pattern out and add pink cheeks. In order not to break the extra fragile bone dry clay, I’ll usually paint the ceramic figurine on a small wheel or custom made stand.

Many potters will add colors only after the first firing as to avoid breaking greenware clay, but in my case, i never had a moisture break at this stage. Probably because of the smaller size of the ceramic animals.

Underglazes never look like the final fired product, and they will react with the clear glazes. So a lot of tests are involved prior to making a figurine.

First Firing

Once painted, the clay figurine will go through its first firing, called bisque. In a professional kiln (you cannot try this at home in a regular oven ^^) it will spend a few hours at around 1000°C. Note that loading and unloading the kiln are delicate steps that should also be left to a professional ceramicist.

Glazing

Once bisqued, it’s time to glaze. As the ceramic figurine is still porous, I dip it in a clear glaze bucket. This will add a regular amount of fine powder on all the figurine surface. The water is absorbed super quickly by the clay and I will just have to wipe the parts that come in contact with the kiln shelf. Otherwise, the glaze will fuse everything together and both the ceramic piece and the shelf will be ruined.

Second Firing

The clay figurine will go through a second firing at an even higher temperature, around 1200°C. Once this is done, the small tiger is ready to go to it’s new owner ! I always make a small custom box and I use compostable materials to wrap everything safely. Bye little tiger, may you spark joy in another home ♥

Ceramics custom orders

If you are thinking about ordering a made to order ceramics figurine or custom handmade porcelain jewelry, please check the custom ceramics order info page. There’s a price list and everything you need to know about the process.