Thesis Show

 

I thought it was about time to post some shots of my studio progress. It has been getting a little crowded in my studio working on two pieces at once but I have been making steady progress with my thesis show on the horizon.

Progress

I thought I'd post a shot of Travis before I cut him up.

Armature

Here are some shots of a new armature I built. I have decided due to my current schedule and upcoming deadlines that I need to being working on two pieces at a time. It's going to get pretty tight in my studio but I think it will come with its share of advantages. I also worked out some of the kinks in my last armature design.
I rotated the post 90 degrees to slim it's profile when working from behind it, which also helps to better support the insertion rods. I hamered flat the ends of the rods by forging them using one of the burner ports of an active fusion pot kiln around cone 1 as my heat source. I clamped a piece of angle iron to a cinder block to function as a marring surface, which worked out quite well. I need the ends to be flat so that I can clamp onto them for easy twisting removal.
I included a photo of a wooden handle I fabricated to serve this purpose.

Finished

Ideas for the next "SAW" film!

I thought I'd post some shots of my assembly process as I finished up the construction of this piece. I was lucky to find this hospital lift which allows me to suspend the figure for the attachment of the feet. I cut a slot out of a level board which I have placed beneath the figure which will support the feet and allow me access to the underside so I can attach the bolting mechanism. Once the figure is standing straight, I lower her onto the feet by releasing the pressure from the piston. I then back-fill the gaps with PC-7 epoxy between the feet and the cuffs and allow to dry.

Update

Here are some shots of my latest piece as I hollow it out. I have chosen to cut off the feet and cold connect them post fire, to avoid their deformation during firing.