"Departure" 2012

I've had this idea in my sketchbook for a while. It's a piece where the figure has an impossible load on his back. In an attempt to balance and secure his cargo - the figure pulls on the ropes, and his load up top shifts from side to side. The piece measures 7" x 31" x 10".

Click on the images for a close look.

A closer shot. His arms pull on the ropes.

A view from the back . The motor is hidden in one of the small boxes. It took a while to come up with the configuration of all the elements, and even more time figuring out how to secure them all together.

The top part that rocks from side to side. I used a lot of my favorite found objects here.

So many possibilities - these are the found objects that made the initial cut for this piece.

Here I'm working out the puzzle that is the assemblage of found objects - a very complicated puzzle.

I added lead to the arms, which makes the pulling motion more realistic. After that, I covered up the lead with a homemade mixture of sawdust and wood glue.

Ready for paint. You can see the wires that run up inside his legs up to the motor.

His body after painting and aging - ready to be assembled.

I really like this shot. It shows the 3/16" metal rods and the wires that run up through his legs.

Close up shot of his head. I love his expression.

Adding the figure to the base.

All the weight rests on this found chair, held on with 2 screws.

A detail shot of his shoes. I used an old telephone box as the base. It was already painted black, but I added the metal pieces.

Here's the video - I just edited it together - I never thought it would take 6 years....

Thanks for looking!

tom

Obsolete Show Announced!

I'm very excited to announce my show of new works will open on September 8th at Obsolete in Venice, CA. I will be showing with painter Tyson Grumm, whose work perfectly compliments my own. This will be my second showing at Obsolete - and if the first show is any indication, if should be a smashing success. If you are in the Los Angeles area you should stop by for the opening.

I will be posting more pieces from the show soon.......

"Swim the Sea" the movie......

I made a movie of "Swim the Sea", it can be seen here and/or here. I tried to post it right on this page but the quality was not good. Enjoy.

"Swim the Sea" 2012

Since I created 5 new figures for our Boxcar Fair video (in 2011), I knew eventually I would incorporate them into new pieces. The High-Diver, (of course this is the swimming version), is first. It seemed an obvious choice to create a fully articulated automaton using this figure.

This piece measures 21" x 33" x 12", and is sold.

Click on images to make them larger.

This wonderfully distressed case was given to me about 5 years ago by 2 good friends in Philadelphia. It must have been sitting outside for a few years - it is perfectly aged, but it needed some nails and glue to hold it firmly together. I thought it would be perfect to house my swimmer marionette. I really wish I could find more pieces like this - I love the look, and all the wood (poplar I think) is very smooth and splinter-free.

BTW Ernie and Brian (2 friends in Philadelphia) have a wonderful eye (eyes?) for all things distressed and beautiful. Check out their furniture, etc here.

 

In it's past life, someone put a coat of turquoise paint on the bottom part of the case. Here I'm stripping away the paint - the color was way too intense for what I wanted this piece to be. I got most of it off, and later, antiqued it down with a wash of raw umber.

Three small lights were put in which will add a warm glow to the underwater scene. A top piece will be added to cover all of this.

The back of the case showing where the mechanism will be hidden.

Testing the layout of the motor, cams, and levers. The piece is powered by a 6 RPM gearmotor, which will move the cams via a 1/8" polycord belt.

The cam stack, before the cams are cut. There's a 3/8" bearing on top and bottom, and a pulley underneath which you can't see in this image.

The 5 levers, each with precision bearings that reduce the friction on the cams.

Here's how I make sure all my levers are perfectly balanced. (Note - I put a piece of masking tape over the hole.) Pieces of lead are added to the short side and holes are drilled in the long side. I figure there will be less wear-and-tear if the levers are balanced. All of the levers I've made in the past were balanced like this.

The 5 cams, all cut and ready to go. You can see the spacers on each cam too.

The cam stack ready for instillation. I saturated the edges of the cams, which are made from lauan, with thin CA glue to make them more durable.

Test fitting the decorative carved basswood pieces before painting.

The decorative pieces after painting. I wanted to create an underwater cavernous feeling similar to the video.

I've never shown this rig before. When we shot the Boxcar Fair video, the marionette had to be operated from the side because it was underneath the main set. I made a trigger-like mechanism that made her arms and legs move simultaneously. Unusual, but it worked great.

Here I'm testing the placement of the figure. Luckily the case is the perfect size for the figure - and visa versa.

I made the mechanism's base hinged on the case so I could gain access to it quickly. This raises the figure up, as you can see. I had a pole on the other side to catch the case and hold it in position. When working on a piece like this, I'm constantly building and testing. I probably tilted this open and closed dozens of times.

Final arrangement of the mechanism. The motor moves the cam stack via the orange belt. The cam stack is held in place with a washer and pin.

The detail of how the levers are stacked. I use a 1/4" steel rod and cut 2 notches for each "E" clip that hold the levers at the proper height. Another standard procedure learned from working on past pieces.

Detail shot of the levers on the cams.

The polyester strings for the figure go up inside the column on the right side of the scene.

I'm about 99% finished with the piece - I plan to add a quote to the "book" up top. You can see how the lights illuminate the scene, and also see the final finish on the base. I will post a final image when it is shot.

Here is a close-up of the swimmer in action. I also will post a movie soon....

Thanks for looking!

tom

New piece coming soon.....

Something is happening in the studio...... And it involves the swimmer marionette I made last fall.

More images to come soon.

 

Professor - 2012

A commission from a recent college graduate to be given to his professor, and family friend. He wanted the figure to look like he was teaching, and I think it came out well. It measures approximately 6" x 18" x 4".

Click on images for a larger view.

I started out, as I always do, with an overall drawing. Then it was on to making the torso and legs. Everything is carved from basswood, and pieces are joined with brass rods, held in place with CA glue.

The torso, legs, and shoes are finished, and here I'm working on the position of the arms. I've also chosen the perfect base - a small box that looks like a set of books.

I thought I would show the progression of how the left hand came to be. I sometimes like to go back and see my process myself.

His head is sculpted from polymer clay. To get the head right I looked at a few images on the web, and I think it came out pretty good. Of course anything I create is going to be in my style, so this is a stylized version of the real professor.

The finished body, ready to be painted. At this point I also make the clothes.

The finished piece - he is holding a book labeled, "Business",  (he's a business professor).

A closer view.

His shoes.

While working on the professor one day, the sun came streaming into the studio, and I thought it would make a beautiful image.

More pieces to come........................

A New Drawer - a trade with artist Mike Davis

A while back, artist Mike Davis, a friend of my wife's, asked if I ever do trades. I rarely do, but my wife loves his work so much I thought it would be a good idea, and also an interesting exercise to interpret another artist style - and for them to interpret mine. By the way, I really like his work now too! I posted a link to his website at the bottom of this post.....

Mike was interested in a Drawer which I haven't made since 2003. I like making the drawers because they involve a lot of relief carving.

After checking out Mike's site, I began to get inspired. I loved this image of a sandhill crane and I decided to put it on top of the drawer.

Here is a closer screenshot of the crane, I love the colors.

I first began by laminating 4 layers of pine together. Since I wanted the head to come forward and not just be a flat 2 dimensional feature, I had to build the wood up.

After rough cutting it on the bandsaw, I was ready for carving.

 In the middle of carving - lots of wood has been removed.

The head after carving and sanding. The beak will open via a string run around the back.

I took many design cues from Mike's wonderful surreal imagery. All the elements on the drawer appear in Mike's work. Here I'm halfway through the bas-relief carving. I secured the drawer fronts together by adding a plate on the back, held in place with screws.

  

After many hours of carving, and some sanding, the drawer is ready for paint.

I'm in the middle of painting here. Never before had I made a drawer with so much detail, but I wanted to emulate the richness of Mike's paintings.

The hand carved from pine. I like bas-relief because you get to play with creating a 3D look using a 2D plane.

The hand, painted and aged - but before it's sanded and waxed.

The finished hand, (it looks different because of the lighting).

The drawer all finished and ready to be shipped. The piece is 16" x 27" x 5". I will post a movie of how it works soon.

A closer view of the front. I added small brass pulls to the front of each drawer.

You can see here how the painting wraps around the top and bottom of each drawer - I'm a detail person if you didn't know by now.

Detail of the snake, a poisonous one by the way.

A fiery zeppelin - a sometimes recurring theme in Mike's work.

A closer view of the sandhill crane's head. The beak opens when the bottom drawer is pulled open.

Since I had a set of glass eyes sitting around the studio and I decided to add them for a bit of realism.

The back of the head, showing how I ran the string - that operates the beak - up and around. The string runs through a series of very small screw eyes. Basically when the bottom drawer is pulled open, it releases the tension on the string and the beak drops down because of gravity.

Our wonderful Mike Davis painting! Oil on board, 27" x 33" including his custom made frame. We love it! I especially love the tornado in the background. Paula told Mike I have a fascination with tornados, which I do. (And no, the frame is not warped, it was the camera doing that.)

Detail of painting with a cryptic message - can you figure it out?

A closer  view, so much detail.

More detail - the actual painting looks 100 times better in person. Check out Mike's amazing work at http://mikedavisfineart.com/

More soon.................