Saturday, February 11, 2012
First Steps To A Wall Installation
My sketchbook is getting filled with drawings of elongated forms that often have knobs, forks, and horns. I am turning some of these into small ceramic sculptures that will eventually be installed as a random scattering on a wall.
In the photo above, in the bottom left corner is an oil clay model on a 5"X 7" MDF panel. The white block next to it is a plaster mold cast from one of the oil clay models. Above that, to the left is a plaster mold filled with clay. Next, shows the extra clay cleared away from the mold surface. On the blue board are the clay sculptures after being removed from the molds.
From here the sculptures go into the kiln to be bisque fired, then glazed, and then high fired. The ones that survive this torturous trial will become part of a large wall installation.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Aurora 2011: A Thing To See And Do
Aurora 2011 is one such event. This year it's being held in the Dallas Arts District. 97 light and sound installations will turn the 19 block area into a night of color. The big power switch will be flipped on this Friday, October 28th at 7:30pm-12:00 midnight. Here's the Art and Seek post.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Just Below the Skin comes to a close
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Just below the Skin a River Flows
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Coming soon to the Mighty Fine Arts Project Room
JUST BELOW THE SKIN A RIVER FLOWS
February 21 – March 22, 2009
Reception 6-9 pm, February 21
This new project is basically a layman’s representation of the epidermis stratum (human skin). It is constructed using a stack of old watercolor paper, a pair of scissors, a hole puncher, a color copier, some nails, a bit of string, and a 9 foot long wall.
The project began when Veronica Tosten asked me to do an installation at Mighty Fine Arts. Instantly an image of a multi layered splattering popped into my head. Usually this sort of spontaneous imaging is just a reactionary response to a new project or material. Usually I enjoy the sensation and then dismiss the image as being a flashy, thin one-liner. But this time I wanted to explore what subconscious response created this image. What internal links were connected when this opportunity presented itself?
This project also had the unique bonus in that I had three months to play with it before the installation date. This gave me and the image time to ferment, to spend equal amounts of time at the drafting table and in the backyard daydreaming. The image grew organically as it sifted through daily input…
finding a stack of my father’s watercolor paper… sorting through the estate of an old dear friend… watching another friend cope with her second risky pregnancy… visualizing good health… discovering all my scissors dull and rusted… organizing 1000 Asian auction catalogs… flocks of grackles in the backyard, swarming of bees… body armor… fishing line… sanded wood… art lectures… art fairs… art blogging… coping with public dyslexia once again…
The result is a wall installation that is a hybrid of influences and experiences, a free association construct, a kind of diary portrayed in a low-tech, obsessive format.
It’s the continuous struggle that we all make just to keep inside of our own skin.
Mighty Fine Arts