Photograph showing sculptor's hands working the clay to place the right half of the jawbone (mandible) of a human skull. The left side of the mandible will also be modelled laterally before the lower jaw is joined at the mandibular symphysis (joint between the two halves of the jaw). This is an early stage in the process of anatomically modelling a human head. The head is viewed from the front (anterior view) as the sculptor works from behind (posterior view) primarily by touch.
This image forms part of a series of work titled "Stranger than a Wolf" showing the gradual anatomical creation of a human head in clay. For the entire process (forming the cranial bone structure and placing the facial muscles, features and skin) see related images. As a reference, a male human skull was chosen from the Panum Collection, Copenhagen. Sculptor Ellie Scheepens was asked to reproduce it with attention to comparison and touch, and without viewing the front of the head and face (anterior view) at all. This unique method of forensic modelling was directed throughout the process by artist Heather Spears. Concept: artist, writer and educator Heather Spears. Sculpture: Ellie Scheepens. Photography: Orsolya Benkóczi and Isaac Carter.
