"Doppelgänger" - 2012

This piece was inspired by my 2006 piece, "Suspicion". As in "Suspicion", the two men look at each other alternately as if wondering about their life's paths, and how if the choices they've made were the right ones. It could be looked at from the "grass is always greener" perspective. By making the figure's faces as identical as possible, I further convey the idea of "other self".

The piece measures 30 1/2" x 26" x 8". This piece is sold.

A link to the movie is below....

The final shot of "Doppelgänger". This piece is larger than it looks here.

Before I added the fence, I took the following shot to show to a friend. You can see the head is turned on the man on the left.

Here I'm roughing out the legs and torsos. A rod will run up each leg, through the torso and up to the neck.

 

Almost finished with the carving. I like how their long legs came out. Also, if you haven't noticed, their bodies are mirror images of each other.

The hands, carved from basswood.

The shoes of the man in the suit.

The two figures, ready to be painted, are 21" tall, larger than any figures I've ever made. I designed the figures to each have one hand in their pocket. Their positions are flipped in this picture.

Making the pants for the suit. I'm getting better at this.....these were the right size the first time. Sometimes I have to remake the clothes if they're too small. It's easy enough to make baggy clothes, but my challenge is to make clothes that fit "just right".

After all the clothes are made, I dip them in my special aging liquid - water with a little raw umber acrylic paint. The clothes dry while I move onto painting the figures.

Just before I start painting....

The figures after they have been painted and aged. The man in shorts will hold a book in his hand......

...and the man in the suit will carry a attaché case.

The two heads are almost identical. I made a mold of one face to make the other face.

The bottom of their feet - showing the holes for the rods that control the heads.

The base in the process of staining. After this I will paint it, age it, and finish it with a application of paste wax.

The final images of each figure holding their appropriate prop. I made the "fence" from 2 aluminum tubes and a piece of scrap metal my wife found somewhere.

The mechanism - 2 cams and 2 levers. This was shot before I glued the top of the base on; I had to do all this work with the top off so I had clear access. BTW the cams are yet to be cut.

The mechanism from the back - one cam and lever for each head.

The movie..... watch full screen. 

Thanks for looking!

tom