Nymph (hands)

Today We will look at the two hands on the broken grape vine which holds all of this together.

 For her hand, we will take a different approach from the Satyr where we first made the hand then wrapped the finished hand around the support. we will build her hand in place.
I have added some clay to the vine so the support rod is covered.
The bulk of the hand is added over the vine end.

The thumb is rolled out to match the size of her other finished hand and applied to the top of the vine and shaped to a thumb shape. Keep in mind that the fingers will flatten and get slightly wider as they squeeze the vine as will the palm of the hand.

 The hand is tilted to allow the fingers to wrap around the vine comfortably.
Each finger is made to match the size and shape of her other hand's corresponding fingers, attached to the hand, wrapped around the vine, and shaped.

 All the fingers are attached and shaped.

 The fingers wrap around the vine in a firm yet relaxed manner.
Nail beds are pressed into the ends of the fingers.

 Notice how the shin between the thumb and first finger bulges as it lies over the hard surface of the vine.

 The vine is finished awaiting the addition of grapes and leaves later in the process.

The last step is to cut between the hands so the rod will separate from the tube. This is done on an angle all around the vine so the ends will overlap and hide the seam easier.
A quick note about working clay on a support rod like we have been doing: The clay will want to separate from the rod as you work. This is a good thing. We want a slight air pocket between the clay and the rod if possible. This will let the rod flex as weight is applied but the clay will not travel as far as the flexed rod. Once the arms are cured, they will be superheated so they can bend as well. This will decrease the chance of stress fractures in the arms.
Have a great day!