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I took several photos walking by my sculpture. Who do you think won? The shadow or the wire?
Can be seen @ Mfah glassell studio school exhibition - temporary location:
2450 Holcombe Boulevard
Houston TEXAS 77021
United States
2nd floor
55"X 30" X 29"
I have been hanging my wire sculptures/shadow drawings from the ceiling. This is fine if I am installing them somewhere that has a cieling with mechanicals that I can hang from. In most facilities they will not have exposed mechanicals so I am designing a clear plexi glass wall mount fixture to hang my pieces from. I will hang the fixture from a typical picture hook.
Design of fixture
The past few weeks I have been in a poetry in practice workshop. The focus is making poetic works of art, using poetry in art, using words in art work....... and using art in poetry. Poetic expressions happen when you leave space - for the poetic expression. The group was led by Laura A. Wellen an art critic, curator and art historian. We spent one day in the MFAH library looking at poetic art books selected by the head of the library. At the end of the class we collaborated and made a book for each person in the group and the museum requested a copy for their library. I made 12 original mono-prints from my "happy dog" series and wrote a poem. The poem is to be panted (not read) in the voice of a happy, calm relaxed dog. Each edition of our book will get one of the original prints and a copy of the poem. The title of our book is "space between". The 12 artworks and poem I contributed are below.
"space between"
El Trene de muerte
I took this photo at a wood working shop outside of San Miguel where they create beautiful wood tables. Surrounded by beautiful planks of unfinished wood lay this forgotten antique paper mache figure. As he lay in an almost fetal position on the train like shaped table with his crudely amputated limbs he bravely tells the story of el Trene de muerte, or the monster. I could not bring him back with me so this photo will have to do.
El Grito (my grand dog) guards prisoners Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton (at least I was told it was Hillary) on a mural of the death train. We saw this on our way to the lake-
This conjures up so many sculptural visuals.
Panorama view of mural
I found this video on youtube. I think it was pre- adding the addition of the prisoners.
- playing around with my latest bronze castings. These are solid bronze. They ar so versital- they look great on a pedestal, hanging on a wall or leaning against a wall. They evoke such great memories.
Detail of little boy (1-2 years old) sucking his thumb as he waitied with his family after he was baptized in the beautiful church.
something in the water
Watercolor screen print
30"X22"
The inspiration for this piece is a photo I took in San Miguel Allende @ the Sanctuary of Atotonilco
My photo after photoshopping big the father out.
I plan on doing another one this summer called
" in the hands of the father".
Heating the piece to apply the patina hot. I heat it until it turns amber then brush on the patina until I get a finish I like.
Before patina
Front right side
Right side
Front left side.
My screen print plate- drawn in water color inks.
Detail of plate
below are my photos that have inspired these drawings.
My photograph taken in San Miguel Allende - Santuario de Atotonilco, the Sisyen Chapel of The Americas. Notice the fathers hands - allowing his son to be independent but safe.
In this photo I have edited out the father except his hands. The father can also be seen between banister columns.
Chasing is the technique used to decorate metal work.
First I have to cut off the metal left after cutting off the sprues.
This photo shows the hat before I cut the sprues off smooth.
Here they are cut off smooth. I cut them off with a angle grinder.
The next step is to repair the texture of the felt. - another day.
Ready to dip
Dip #2 slurry and fine silicone
Detail after dip #3 of hat on left
Detail after dip #3 of inside hat on right
Detail of bird tail after dip #3
After dip #3
After dip 5
Close up view of pigeon/bird 1/2 way through the dipping process.
After dip 8
Close up of hat
Dip 9
Detail after dip 9
Dip 10 is slurry only. This will dry into a nice hard porcelain like shell.
Next, I cut off the top of the cups and pT them for n the furnace upside down.
In my he furnace upside down so the wax Will burnout.
Wax melting out of the pieces.
Heating the bronze. Once it is warm it is put in the crucible.
glowing hot bronze just after it was poured into the piece.
All three pieces after the bronze has cooled.
Breaking off the shell with a sledgehammer and chisel.
Most of the shell is broken off 1 hat. It looks like a very successful pour.
The second hat.
Fowl
I break off enough shell to know how successful the pour was. That takes a couple of hours of intense physical work. The pour of the two hats is great the bird body poured great but the feathers (delicate twigs) did not pour. - another lemonade situation I will have to figure out how to fix. There is still a lot of shell to be broken off first. In order to save my shoulder I will take these pieces to legacy fine art foundry to finish cleaning off the shell.
The ceramic shell is removed, the pieces has been degated ( the removal of sprues and cup). Now to create the texture that was damaged be the sprues and cup.
I made a little progress using the oxyacetylene brazing set up atGlassell TXRX. I still have a lot of work to go.
I have added considerable tail feathers and feathers around the feet called leg muffs. the piece has been sandblasted and now I need apply the Patina. That will be in a separate post.
I have decided to make a separate post for completing the hats.
Yesterday was our final critique for this spring. Glassell arranged a lovely catered lunch, we dined on plates from Nell Harrell Gottlieb's historical work, and Alison De Lima Greene was our critic. Alison stayed until 5:00 sharing her perspective and visiting each of our studios. - pinch me.
Alison de Lima Greene and sarah fisher with nell looking on.
And wore them both.
My foundry boots and heels. These are great times to be a woman.
"Fragility- kalidescope" Started a new piece.
I purchased a 20" diameter round piece of plexi with beveled edges primarily to use with "gust". I decided today to paint watercolor turtles on it much like a kaleidoscope in layout.
Pictured below: This was 5hrs. of painting/drawing. I started by laying out on a piece of paper the spacing of the turtles.
You can see my layout of the turtle spacing under the plexi.
2 hour s later.
Next I soaked my paper for 20 minutes. I made the decision to put it on the press on the wet side hoping to get a watery look.
The overly wet paper caused the bleeding shown above. When I saw the bleed I was at first disappointed that it didn't cause a more evenly distributed blur. And at the same time I felt excited by the accidentle result. This is a big no-no in the printing world but as a person who draws and is interested in mark making, movement and energy it exciting to me. To quote artist and friend Camille Warmington it created a ghost circle, such a poetic term.
I will let it dry and study it next week - time will tell if this is a success or a failure.
Detail of plate.
fragility - kaleidoscope
30" X 22"
I have given it a week and I think it is a keeper.
It has actually given me an idea I can't wait to try.
One in a thousand hatchlings make it into adult hood. Once they make to the waters edge it is a swimming frenzy to get to deep safe waters.
"fragility- swimming frenzy I "
15" X 11" water color mono print (there was no ghost print).
"fragility- swimming frenzy II "
15" X 11" water color mono print (there was no ghost print).
"fragility- swimming frenzy III "
15" X 11" water color mono print (there was no ghost print).
"fragility- swimming frenzy IV "
30" X 22" water color mono print
(there was no ghost print).
One of my early pieces from the piece pigeon project
Glue stick and talcum powder on black paper.
I worked on a sketch (monoprint) for a sculpture. This is inspired by a photo of my cousin Andrew Irvin - Concert master of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. I saw the portrait of him on Facebook and commented how much I liked it. He said I could use it to inspire my work.
I did this one first- I started in water color then added litho inks.
I decided to do another - trying to get more of the movement of his hands playing big the violin.
I think it has more energy but it might be too abstract to see the image.
The next one I will reverse the drawing - my cousin is a righty.
The marshmallows looks just like I imagined in bronze. They cast beautifully.
The " s'more memories". Series consist of Individual bronze marshmallows and 4 arrangements of sticks and marshmallows
Loaded up in my Jeep.
Giving my elevator pitch to Rainey at our BLOCK XVI exhibition.
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