Monday, December 28, 2009

Designing in clay...


..as a further step towards creating more carvings of my own design  I am taking the carving advice given to me by three well respected carvers (Marv Kaisersatt, Fred Zavadil, and Joe You) and am starting my next design in clay.
   This summer I had the pleasure of seeing a local artisan (Phillippe Faraut) work clay in his studios, he is an amazing artist and most happily shared some of his techniques.  So the wife and I trekked to the local Ceramics supplier and picked up some tools and 100 lbs. of clay.  I spent some of my most recent free time building two sculpting stands and with the recent holiday stretch I have been able to take some vacation and got around to creating this gentlemen on the left.  I am by no means an expert when it comes to working in clay and would only rate myself as a rookie.  Using the knowledge gained from my studio visit and employ some of the recent knowledge I gained by studying anatomy I was able to create him quite simply and yes I now know what a "Zygomatic arch" is and it's location.
The clay being utilized is VERY pliable and easy to mold without having some of the 'memory' and stiffness found in other clays.  It is true though that if I would like this to be permanent I would have to have it fired (unlike some other products that can be baked).  Since clay is not the final medium but rather wood then permanence is not a factor.  You may have noticed that the piece is not completely finished but can be easily completed in a matter of about an hour.  The progress shown in the picture took about 3 hours of fun time.
    As far as the design goes I did nothing special to prepare but knew the headshape and basic essence of the face.  I let caricature and anatomy steer me the rest of the way.  Once completed I will transfer a side profile to a block of my finest basswood and let the chips fly...I'll try and post pictures as progress is made.

Thursday, December 24, 2009

A look into another carving mentors world...

For all of you who know Marv Kaisersatt's work the CCA Website is hosting a slideshow of the infamous apartment.  If you know me you know how much I admire this man's work and the effort he puts forth.  The images show only a portion of his work.  I have on a couple of occasions been able to have a couple of conversations with him and he has been a big influence in the creation of "my style of carving".

http://www.cca-carvers.org/marvs-apt/marv-apt-slideshow.html

So if you have a chance, DO check this out as it will give you some insight as to the artistic effort he puts forth. 

I would send a personal thank you to Marv for all he continues to give to the rest of us, our art has been forever blessed by your contributions.

Friday, December 11, 2009

CCA 2010 Seminars...

...the CCA has announced the instructors for their annual seminar to be held in Converse, Indiana in 2010.  More information can be found at the following link:

                   http://www.cca-carvers.org/cca_seminar.html

Stay warm out there!!