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I use joint compound a lot, but I mix it in with Cell-U-Clay brand papier-mache (and I add in other things like dirt and paint or ink), and I place this over an expanded foam substrate. This results in a fairly soft surface (it is not a self-supporting shell) which doesn't possess the brittleness of straight gypsum. The problem I see with aluminum screen is that you must make sure you get genuine aluminum, so that you can sculpt it into shape; most screen these days is plastic and won't hold a shape. As long as the screen holds its own, I think the joint compound will work, but it will have a tendency to crack and chip. The papier-mache admixture would reduce this tendency (as well as reduce the weight, if that is a concern). The expanding foam I use comes in a can and is sold in hardware stores ("Great Stuff") for insulating the cracks around doors and windows. I just have so much fun sculpting with it, because it comes out kinda random and you end up creating all sorts of "happy accidents" (as painter Bob Ross would say).
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