Thursday, July 31, 2008
August 2008 Tour - Day 2 Arches National Park
I took in the park as well
Well I'm set up in the Frank Howell Gallery and tomorrow I start my appearance. Check back in for updates.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
August 2008 Tour - Day 1 Moab Utah
Got to Moab Utah tonight and I'm so blown away by the amazing scenery. Huge, massive, Sand Stone cliffs, the Colorado River, and the entrance to Aches National Park. Man I wish I had a week here. Here are a few of the photo's I took tonight.
Have another 400 miles of travel tomorrow to Santa Fe. Check back in tomorrow.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Ain't No Cowboy - Starting the Cowgirl
I'll figure it out eventually... lol Well travel the next couple of days to Santa Fe and my appearance at the Frank Howell Gallery there. (Check right column for gallery info)
Monday, July 28, 2008
Ain't No Cowboy - Scaling things up
Today I took measurements of Lea Annes head and face and then photo's of her front and from the side. These will help when I start to work in clay. I then started working on the saddle again. Using my printing program I scaled Lea's face and the saddle to match the scale of the piece I'm creating. After printing out photo's I started to re-work the saddle a bit. I added copper for the horn of the saddle, so that it won't be falling off all the time.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Ain't No Cowboy - Foam and Saddle
Once the foam has set up from Thursday evening, I get ready to carve away excess foam from the armature on Friday. Pictures below show the progress of this process. Foam takes space that lots of heavy clay would take up.
I decide I need to create the saddle first. Here is the saddle I'm creating for this piece. You can see a ruler with black tape on it. The black tape indicates the head measurement. Doing that in the photo helps me to scale the saddle. This saddle dates from 1934.
I plan to create the saddle in wax. It's more durable than clay. I have to do the saddle seperate from the figure so I come up with an idea for a saddle tree made from a soft drink bottle, wood dowels, and cocking foam.
Now I let it sit overnight to set up. Saturday I photograph the saddle, and print out photo's to work from then I put duct tape over the bottle just so the wax won't stick to the plastic. I start building the saddle in a abbreviated form of building the saddle tree.
Now I add the leather (wax of course) to the tree. I then check to see if the saddle is going to work out.
Well this is the last entry till I get set up in the Frank Howell Gallery in Santa Fe New Mexico next week. Going to be busy getting ready for a month on the road.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Ain't No Cowboy - Another Model
Now I lay the armature onto it's back and put a none stick sheet under it. I lift the armature up by making a clay support. Then using canned cocking foam, I spray under and over the upper part of the body of the cow girl. I now let it sit overnight to set up.
I then had another friend of mine (Lea Anne)pose for the cowgirl piece. She had a different look. So I had her pose in a couple of different poses. Now It's up to me to pick from the two models and create the best "Ain't No Cowboy" I can.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Ain't No Cowboy - Starting with air
Once the subject is decided on (refer to yesterdays entry) I start making the armature to hold the clay. Instead of using wire cutters I use a pipe cutter. This keeps the ends of the copper tubing round and clean.
Once the main frame is created I then match foot positions with those in the photo's I took the day before. then I add the armatures for the arms and head.
Tomorrow I start adding clay to it. I'll have to brace it better first.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Ain't No Cowboy - A new cowgirl piece
Soon after Ennis was hit with a very powerfull thunder storm. 60 mile an hours winds hit us. Here is the video of that fun thingy.
Well that's it for tonight. I'm going to bed before the lights go out again.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
At the Painted Pony Gallery
Here are photos of Bronc Stomper as it was at the beginning of this day, showing the main and the starting of the tail. I also had the halter on the horses head. You can see the beginning of the sage brush near the back leg.
I heated the wax up to where it was starting to melt and using a metal tool, I scooped the wax out and added it to the stem of the sage that I created before, surrounding the leg of the horse. I do this so that the leg will be strengthened in the bronze stage.
I didn't work on the wax much today because I spent most of the time talking to people who came in during the day. Here are shots of the wax at the end of today.
Sunday will be the final day of my appearance at the Painted Pony at Big Sky Montana.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Foundry Tour - Northwest Artcastings Bozeman Montana
Hope you enjoyed this tour. Check back in this week and see what new and almost wondrous things I am doing.
Coeur d' Alene to Ennis
Friday, July 11, 2008
Devin Gallery, Coeur d' Alene Idaho - first day in gallery
Pictures of Kelin wearing my hat. She works in the gallery and we became good friends. Kinda looks like a cowgirl to. Me giving her a sculpting lesson in the last photo.
Not going to be in the gallery on Saturday. Will be heading back home Sunday afternoon. I just want to thank Skip and Debbie, the owners of the Devin Gallery and Joe as well as Kelin for their overwhelming kindness to me while I was at their gallery.
On the way to Coeur d' Alene Idaho
Here's the final leg of the trip. Ontario Oregon to Coeur d' Alene.
I'm at the Devin Gallery in Coeur d' Alene Idaho through the weekend. Then I head home on Monday.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
At the James Harold Gallery July 5th to the 6th
I started the 5th of July working on the quill work on the Indians legging, in the piece, War Medicine. I added fringe to that legging as well, but just realized I didn't take a photo of the fringe. Quill work is what the Indians made before they had beads. Actually they still make quill work on shirts and leggings. It's very time consuming and expensive. They take Porcupine quills and boil them and dye them different colors made from organics and minerals. When the quill is taken out of the hot water it's ply able, so they flatten them and weave them on sinew strands. You might want to do a google search for how they made quill worked decoration.
I then spent the rest of the day working on parts of A Good Trade (formerly known as
Down from the High Lonesome). Madalyn Bodell stands behind the clay. She's the director of the James Harold Gallery in Tahoe City California.
You can see in the second photo, I'm starting the mane of the horse. That was as far as I got on the 5th.
I spent the 6th working on Bronc Stomper. I adjusted his head in a more downward position, and then added the batwings of his chaps to his legs. I also added the bottom cuff of his pants as well as a spur on one boot. That took all day to do. So that's an abreviated 2 days.
I won't be in the Gallery tomorrow. Technicaly this was the last day there. I leave Wednesday for Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. I may be going to a clients Indian Museaum in Reno tomorrow. I'll take video and photo's if I do. So check back in tomorrow night.
Friday, July 4, 2008
At the James Harold Gallery July 4th
Happy Fourth of July everyone....
I'm finding it hard to do anything but sculpt and talk to people. Forgive me for the shorthand version of what I'm doing in the Gallery, during my appearance there.
I start adding cloths to the cowboy on Bronc Stompin. I've decided to go simple with a cotton shirt and scarf. He'll have 1880's style pants and suspenders. I start with the upper half of the cowboy first to establish his personality.
As you can see, when I start his face, I start with the eye sockets first. This gives me the anchor for the proportions of the rest of the face. I gradually add muscle and eyelids. Then I add the hat, the stamped strap or chin strap.
Well that is what I did from the 2nd of July to the 3rd. The following is what I did today, the 4th of July.
I had a friend (K.C. Brennan) from near Carson City Nevada stop by with her husband.
anyone who knows her calls her Mrs. Brennan. You see she's a school teacher. She is an artist and collects Victorian Clothing. Was great to have her and her hubby stop by today.
Well I decided to revisit my Sacagawea piece today. I've been bothered by the dress and the beads on her neck so today, I took off everything on her dress.
I then had new material that showed me much better how the Doe fur on the yoke of the dress was supposed to look like. In the center of the yoke was the tail of the doe (or deer), and the fur of the doe ran as a border between the upper yoke and the lower part of the dress. I then sculpted Cowry Shells as decoration. I decided not to put the necklaces on this time. I wanted to keep a cleaner look. Simpler is sometimes best.
I found out, through research, that the type of Cowry Shell, told a lot about the abilities of her trader husband. Cowry Shells with a flared lower area were considered very valuable. If those were sewn to the dress, it indicated that her husband, was a very good trader. So I sculpted the flared type of shell.
Well that's if for today. Getting ready to eat ribs and watch the fireworks. Happy 4th once again to you all. Stay cool.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Arrive at the James Harold Gallery in Tahoe City California
Well that's it for today.