Studio progress

here are some shots of new work in progress, Ive been swinging to a larger scale with these pieces, the female figure being the largest. This is my first attempt at building a large standing form solid. For some reason I was trying to avoid using any sort of internal armature but I finally had to out of necesity and relaized how much freedom that support gave me. I REALLY enjoy building solid on this frame that holds the clay up! Its so simple but it really amazes me. anyway i thought id post some shots of this figure on the armature that i created by drilling holes in a board and running dowels through. I'll post some more progress shots in the future.

Current Work

I thought I'd post some shots of some work in progress. Lately I have been working on incorporating environmental elements into my figures. I've been tightening up the modeling on these two which are doll sized. I think this is caused by the scale but also I think the routines and schedule of my classes influence me indirectly to tighten up when working. I'll post some color test progress soon when i get some shots.

1501 State St. Erie, PA

Here are Some Photos From our show in Erie on Sept. 27th. I didn't get very good photos of the Artwork But the installation and space came together nicely. It was allot of hard work in a very short amount of time with many unforeseen obstacles ;). We couldn't have pulled it off without solid teamwork! Exhibiting Artists: Derek Decker, Patrick Falzone, Cara Jung, Courtney McManus, Eric Thayer, Sean Wayling and myself.
Also a very special Thanks to our beautiful Bartenders Erin and Melissa not only for volunteering their time during the show but for their tremendous efforts helping to organize the opening. We couldn't have done it without you!

Photo Shoot

Just thought I'd post some work from my most recent Photo shoot.

New work

I've been thinking about the incorperation of an environment in my figures and this is one result. I want the pedestal to act as an extention of the individual, or a creation of theirs to reflect their personality. In a way, to demonstrate our cultures emphasis on the self, and deal with issues of individuality, insecurity, and solitary thoughts. Increasingly i have been enjoying the scale of the figurine, and feel like the association with toys works well with my concept. I want my figures to be like toys that have been played with; in a figurative sense. Thoes that pearch on a tower or are atatched to some base or burden, in a way would be playing with the creation of that object and would refrence a ripple effect of influence.

Mist Education

I Finished firing this piece yesterday and thought id post it. It shrunk more than I anticipated but over all I'm happy with the surface.

Pale Pail

I am planning on submitting this piece to the NCECA Biennial and I'm having a hard time selecting the best photo. Its probably a bit excessive for the blog but these are my top four.

I had some trouble with the lighting of this piece. the bulbs in our light-box are extremely strong! I had to take half of them out and I still had problems but I think these two shots were successful.

Architect/sleeper

Just shot some photos in the studio, so I thought I'd post my results.

Little People

Here are some small figurines that I have been working on. I'm hoping to make a figure a day and have a nice populating of people to test with and work from.

I fired these two with the stain last week. I was expecting to get quite a bit more tonal variation on the surface but I am not disappointed with the result. I think that the stark contrast is partly due to the fact that i applied the stain to the surface after it had been fired to ^1. By applying the stain to bisque ware I imagine more variation will be possible. I am considering adding some slight color to theses pieces with under glaze.

Mist Education

This week I reassembled this figure, and have been putting the finishing touches in. I still need to carve out the chair which I am slightly concerned about because it is bearing all the weight. I have chosen to leave a clay support beneath the chair when I fire it. I have also re-assembled it on a shrink slab which is on the kiln shelf i will be firing it on with layers of sand between each surface. If all goes well I shouldn't have deformation issues between the legs. I will be firing this piece in the car kiln because of the weight, although it isn't quite as big as it looks in the Photos (it's about 50% life size). the kiln shelf is a bear though!
I began carving the surface as well with geometric diagrams. You can sort of see it in the one shot of the back. In the future i plan to use color as well as carving to achieve a richer topical application. I have titled this piece Mist Education.

I've been busy with work outside of the studio lately, trying to catch up on time and work missed while in Philly. I've had a chance to hollow out this figure though, and did so by cutting it into 3 parts. The legs were a little tricky and I may approach my next seated figure differently but I certainly learned allot with this one.

I've started a new piece with new clay. Last weekend i adjusted my clay body by increasing the redart, and adding Nephaline Syenite to lower the temperature of vitrification. i also added .5% barium carbonate to prevent scumming. Ive tested the clay at 08, 06, and 10 and it seems fine structurally.
So this is the first piece I've made with this clay. I made quite a bit of progress this weekend and have some ideas for the texture of the skin. i thought id get as much done as i can before heading to Philly for NCECA this week.

I bisqued this piece this weekend and it fired off fine, no cracks. I think im just gonna fire it in reduction raw body, and then wax it.

Just an updated look at this piece. ive put the hands on and am finished with the over all sculpting. just need to hollow out some areas and start the next piece.

Pale Pail

I Began a new piece this week an have been making good progress on it. I am really enjoying these figures and have lots of plans for their progression. Every time I get excited and start talking about my plans for new works I tend to move in a different direction before I get to it, but in this case I think I have found a good way to merge my ideas and address the issues that accompany them.
I plan to place these figures on clay pedestals so as to bring them into focus as a completed work and address the issue of their scale and its relation to clay mocketts. I see allot of potential in drawing on, and sculpting into the pedestals to absorb some of my more abstract ideas and use it to help identify the Figure that it is supporting. I have always been interested in the idea of supporting structures, and i am very interested in this idea of depicting the structure of ones personality on the base. I am interested in the contrast between the formal nature of the figure, and the abstraction of the base.
The figure being a focal point would be like a first impression, and the base could serve to narrate the development of a relationship with the figures personality. I think there are many possibilities and options to explore with this figure/base relationship and i think i could have allot of fun with it. This seems like a good tack in steady wind!

Ocean Breeze and Palm Trees

So I spent my spring break in Panama city, FL- just like the swarms of spring breakers; free from college for a week getting drunk on their parents tabs. My experience was slightly different though, as I was staying in town with Pavel Amromin to conduct an interview with the Artist. It was a refeshing experience to have the opportunity to stay with Pavel and experience a slice of his life rather than simply asking him a string of questions for an hour in his studio. I will elaborate more in the article but ultimately the experience gave me a welcome burst of energy!

Stuck on Brains

After struggling with the limitations of bah-relief wall pieces, and the toils of translating drawings into sculptures, i have decided to focus strictly on the 3 dimensional figure. This decision was a response to the realization that I have been forcing content and narrative on my work and that i was trying to tackle to many elements at once. By simplifying my efforts i have found a greater sense of freedom when working, and feel more confident about what i am making. I think i am getting closer to finding my niche here in grad school.

Today I reassembled the figure, I forgot to mention that when cutting the figure up, I drew a small registration line prior to cutting so that i could realign the pieces when reattaching. I am now ready to put arms on the piece, which i will build solid.

hollow

This weekend i cut the figure I am working on into 3 pieces so that i could hollow them out. i cut one seam at the waist line and a second at the neck. I carved out the pieces making sure that the walls were of equal thickness, and then smoothed the interior to compress the clay and add interior structure.

I finally got a chance this weekend to start something new. I've been thinking about doing a series of figures that exemplify the heroism of the working class. i have also been interested in doing an installation of figures that form a crowd but are oblivious to each other, and perhaps preoccupied with technological communication to demonstrate the social disconnect of our culture. this particular figure is going to be a mechanic. i plan to have him carrying a tire on his shoulder which will frame his head in a halo.

I plan to come back in with a cone 04 clear glaze on the metalic parts of the revolver, the eyes, and possibly the backpack. I think i will also wax the face with bees wax.

Im just about finished with this piece, i colored with slip and under glazes. The piece is hollowed out with only one seam which is hidden beneath the bandana.

Im Firing The updraft test kiln this weekend ( cone 1 reduction) hopefully ill get some separation between the white and dark areas on this piece. ill post a photo when its done. Im also bisque firing the Architect along with my press molds from slip casting.

I like my brain cells :(

Anne's crows stink! there covered in paint thinner and kept me out of the studio.