How to Sculpt a Nose

Clay sculpture of a face

Sculpture is a long-standing tradition in art. For many hundreds of years, humans have been creating pottery and other types of sculpture from clay, stone and metal. Sculpting a head can be an intimidating task for beginners. The nose, being of an odd shape, can seem like an especially difficult part of the face. Still, if you look at the nose objectively, you will see that the nose is in fact just a rounded, pinched prism, with holes in the bottom for the nostrils.

Things You'll Need

• Clay

Instructions

1. Pinch the area of the face around the nose, and bunch together the clay. Form this raised collection of clay on the face into a triangle, taller than it is wide. This triangle should have a pointed tip that sticks out away from the face, forming a prism.

2. Round the pointed tip that sticks out away from the face, by pushing down on the tip gently with your thumb. As it is, this shape should look somewhat noselike, but you still need to give the nose nostrils.

3. Pinch the nose on the right side by placing your right thumb under the bottom of the nose and your pointer finger on the right side of the nose. Push your thumb up into the clay, forming a hole on the bottom right side of the nose. This is the right nostril. Round the edge of the nostril by gently pushing on the lip of the nostril with your finger.

4. Pinch the nose on the left side by placing your left thumb under the bottom of the nose, and your pointer finger on the left side of the nose. Push your thumb up into the clay, forming a hole on the bottom left side of the nose. This is the left nostril. Round the edge of the nostril by gently pushing on the lip of the nostril with your finger.

5. Shape the nose as desired. For a narrow nose, pinch the tip and the bridge a few times. For a wide nose, flatten the tip and the bridge of the nose by pushing down on the tip an the bridge with your thumb.

Tips & Warnings

• It is best to form the nose (or at least, start the nose) before forming the rest of the face, because it is such a prominent and important part of the face. If a nose is formed after the eyes and the mouth, you'll find yourself struggling to preserve the features you've already made, and you're likely to end up with a very flat or very unimpressive nose. After forming the nose, then shape the rest of the head to form eyes and a mouth.

• If sculpting a face from stone, the same basic principals still apply. You'll need to create a rounded prism shape, with holes for the nostrils. The most major difference between this and clay is that the nose will need to be shaped by digging into the stone with the stone-working materials.

References

• You Tube: Face Sculpting