Sculpt a skull in air hardening clay

How to Sculpt a Skull in Clay

Step 1: Aluminium Foil Armature.

Using the entire roll of Aluminium Foil, squash and roll it up to create a basic skull shape, referring to the images on the last page of this PDF. Make it larger than the actual skull and then with the cardboard roll, tap and compress the foil into size, so that it is around 2cm smaller than the reference image.

Step 2: Clay Base.

Cut off 2cm thick strips of clay and wrap them around the foil armature. Blend the seams together and then smooth the entire skull with your hands and plenty of water.

Step 3: Nose and Cheek Bones.

Pinch the clay to create a nose ridge. Then push both of your thumbs into the clay under the nose to create cheek bones.

Step 4: Eye Sockets and Forehead.

Gently push each side of the forehead to create little dents. Then push each thumb into the areas where the eye sockets are, move them in circles until you have widened the eye socket to the approximate size.

Step 5: Temporal Bone.

Push your finger into the clay to create a recess where the Temporal bone and Zygomatic bone meet.

Step 6: Mandible.

Create the left and right jaw bones, using the template on the last page of this PDF for size and shape reference. Place them onto each side of the mandible and blend into the chin.

Step 7: Teeth.

Start by drawing a horizontal line where the mouth would be. Then, through that horizontal line draw a single vertical line in the middle. From that you can draw 16 vertical lines on either side, creating the 32 teeth in our jaw. Once you have done that, simply gouge out the edges of each tooth, creating a convex curve. Deepen the grooves between the teeth as well.

Step 8: Nose Cavity and Suture Lines.

With a Ribbon Tool, gouge out the hole for the nose, leaving a little bit in the middle for the Volmer. Then get a sharp Modelling Tool and draw in the lines on the top and back of the skull.