My relationship with "focused on the finish" is a love hate relationship. With this mornings light hitting it just right I am feel'n the ❤️.
"focused on the finish"
alabaster
2015
Gust
Casting two more hats spring 2018
Friendsergy - patina
Getting ready to apply a patina over the gold leaf. I am working out of TxRx today.
After I applied a very strong liver of sulfur patina the first piece is drying in the sun as I work on the other pieces.
The gold leaf is still a little much but you can see hints of the liver of sulfur starting to show.
Here you can see the liver of sulfur (dark spots) toning down the gold leaf even more.
I am not finished but sometimes it is best to step away for a few days and then decide what to do next. This is one of those times.
Finishing "friendsergy"
Using a pneumatic with a metal brush then 3m polishing wheels.
It is very hard to keep bronze highly polished so I have decided to add a gold leaf. The gold leaf will highlight the texture that gives the pieces life.
Adding patchy goldleaf so that spots of the dark bronze will show through. This added texture will add to motion and energy of the piece.
Detail
New sculpture - from start to finish.
nearly finished piece
shake shake shake - wire I
18"T X 12"W X 36"D
The first mornings work
Filling in the nose and more contour lines.
Afternoon's work - Building up the forehead, jowls and neck.
Day 2 - adding a body and legs.
Head on view. - reinforcing some wires for support.
Right view - a little squished. I will fix it later.
Left view- Still needs work but it is a start - she is a little pudgy.
Day 3- more reinforcing and bending. She is slowly coming alive. coming along.
Day 4 - I am liking this and wondering if I should stop or keep building.
Playing with the water spray and trying to decide if I have over worked the piece. And yes, it is over done. Tomorrow I will cut out some of the wire.
Oh yes, I Over did it- too much 🙃 must remove wires in the hind end.
Finished piece I think.
This sculpture is part of my shake shake shake works series .
This is a screen shot of Kitty last Easter at the dog park. I took it from Griffin's video of Kitty shaking off water. This screen shot is the inspiration for the first wire sculpture.
This is one of the experiments I did to creat the water spraying off her coat as she shook.
Front view- see the water spray as her head shakes one direction and back legs shake in the other direction. It is amazing how dogs can move in two different directions at the same time.
Every dog needs a ball.
"friendsergy" Polishing
Hearing protection ✅
eye protection ✅
Leather protectin gear ✅
This is the first layer of polishing- metal brush.
Next I will use jewelry polishing wheels-6 different grits.
= mucho work.
New sculpture
New sculpture in the works. Some of my favorite lines in the piece. #lines #artusa #sculpture #wire #contemporaryart
Wire sculpture in process
lifting spirits
lifting spirits
11 3/4" W X 5 3/4" D X 7" T
bronze
The beginning of this sculpture was serendipitous but now that is is finished I have decided to give her the title "lifting spirits".
Photo shoot
Still struggling with the title of work as I shoot the piece.
Serendipity- patina
I used a wire brush attached to my pneumatic tool and shined her up.
Almost finished
I purchased some 3m polishing disc that fit my pneumatic and continue polishing.
High gloss
The final stage is to seal the patina, photograph her and document her deminsions and lastly determine the title of piece. I need suggestions-
i am considering "holla holla", "raise the roof", "katinka katinka na na na"
Headstands - ready for patina
The first headstand
Headstand #2 - piggy tails
Headstand #3 - pony tail
I am considering a high gloss finish or my standard white. And I am debating whether I should put them on a concrete blanket similar to the happy dog bed but much thinner. Decisions decisions ............
headstands and serendipity - molds
Once the sculptures are cast in bronze and chased I take mine to Legacy fine art foundry and have them make me molds of the pieces. I could do this my self but it is very time and space consuming. First they make a silicone mold then they reinforce the silicone with a mother mold which is plaster.
The 3 headstands and serendipity molds held together with giant rubberbands.
The first headstand mold opened. The dimples are registers to make sure the two sides are properly lined up. This mold includes the sprue system that would be used to get the bronze into the piece.
Head stand #3
Head stand #3
Serendipity
I will keep these in a safe cool place in order to make reproductions of my originals.
Devin Borden Gallery- Paul kittelson show
I try not to miss Paul's shows because they always make me feel good. His ability to find beauty in simple everyday objects and materials is beyond clever. Below are a few of my favorites.
For better pictures of Paul's work here is a link to his website www.paulkittelson.com
This is aluminum siding and concrete
Fellow artist Daniel Calderon and a student of Paul's commented that the above piece references aging or life. With this comment in mind I re- looked at the piece. Now when I see this beautiful work I am reminded how important it is to stay grounded. With a stable footing the twist and turns, and the ups and down life offers will not throw you off balance but will be what distinguishes ones life as exceptional. There really is a beauty to a life well lived. This will be a delightful sculpture for someone's contemporary collection.
Of course I loved this piece: wood grain with a hint of disco ball some of my favorite ingredients.
I do have a weakness for works on paper and the natural curve of this piece makes it a work on paper and sculpture.
The opening was very crowded and it was hard to get good photos. Please post any photos you have on our sculpturehouston Facebook page.
My Art/Sculptor bucket list
I just added to my art bucket list- to have a sculpture in an underwater museum.
I went for a run this am and heard Jason deCaires Taylor: An underwater art museum - teeming with life, Ted talk on my podcast app. I immediately came home and sat at my computer to see the talk with the visuals. Links to the pod cast and the actual Ted talk video are below as well as some photos I took as I watched the video.
ph neutral cement ✅
texture✅
nature✅
definitely sustainable living✅
It is a shame our Texas coast is not crystal clear for snorkeling. We could probably still use some art/coral under our waters. Maybe there is a way to make it visible with special lighting????? Where there is a will there is a way.
Picasso's sculpture @ MOMA
My son sent me this article from The Washington Post- In a MOMA retrospective, Picasso’s sculpture is still full of surprises - The Washington Post
https://apple.news/Aav06bpF1SdyTIuouEj4pIQ
Screen shot of the article
The link at the end of the article takes you to the MOMA site and a link to take the tour. I saw it on my phone. It would only take a little arm twisting to get me to go see it before it closes.
MFAH Cullen sculpture garden features Glassell emerging artist
Didi Garza and Will Isbell Glassell sculpture die hards and part of the museum block program have work exhibited In the Cullen Sculpture Garden. To see more of Didi's work check out her website. http://www.didigarza.com/
Cullen Sculpture Garden
Detail on Will Isbell's piece.
It is so refreshing to see the MFAH supporting Houston artist.
Fairy tale chair patina
I finished this chair in 2012. I put a dark patina on it so it would fade over time like you see old wood in nature. I walked by it this morning and feel pleased to see the outer edges fading nicely with and the cracks staying dark. Ten more years and it might be ready to sell. 😳 old faux Bois is the best faux Bois.
Metal work
Serendipity's fingers needed a little work.
After I cut off the sprues her fingers were not as long as I wanted them. (Thank you David Medina for for help with this).
Then they were too long and I had to grind them down.
Fingers are finished.
Then they were just right.
If these fingers could talk the stories they could tell.
Here she has been sand blasted and is ready for her patina.
I am thinking of a high polish bronze
Insightful I and II by American artist Patrick Palmer.
Are these big heads and soulful eyes cool or what?
I came home from Art Basel early to make Patrick Palmer's open studio Saturday night. My intention was to get one of Patrick's heads to commemorate Curtis' 2016 retirement instead I purchased these two for me. Patrick will have another open studio December 12th at silver street studios.
Insightful I and II