Alison Krauss Sculpture

I posted a pic of my Alison Krauss sculpture in my article on my marble sculpture progress because it slowed that progress. While checking to see if it would come up in a google search, the nude sculpture comes up but not the photo with the caption "Alison Krauss Sculpture." Also my angel sculpture showed up in a search of "Alison Krauss Sculpture." So I'm writing this so the right pic shows up, hopefully. Here it is:

Alison Krauss sculpture

Alison Krauss sculpture

I wanted to take a break from carving marble so I started a fist sized sculpture of a face with the idea of limiting myself to 15 minutes to sculpt a face. I almost did it but I thought why not go ahead and see if I can sculpt a portrait sculpture of someone. I had started to sculpt Alison before and already had pics printed, so I went ahead and gave it a shot. Weeks later, this is it. I have her looking straight ahead because she always looks so calm and confident on stage.

I've said before I tend to add clay to fix mistakes or to change things. This sculpture is life size but started out fist sized. I had her face pretty darn close but when I went to add the rest of her head, things started changing and growing rapidly.

I've had this clay a long time I don't remember what kind it is. The clay I used for the hair is softer and green, so I faded the color in the pics to almost black and white. It is oil based clay so if I don't get some more interest in this, there has been some, this will get recycled into some other sculpture and live only as a picture.

Trow and Holden Review

I can't help but like Trow and Holden. I found them on youtube and their videos are short and sweet; they simply show you what their tools will do. The first page of their website has a picture of their crew and if you scroll across their faces, it gives you a little info on each of them. It's nice to see a company, a family owned company, have talented, devoted employees. I used to work for a company like that.

Trow and Holden is a masonry tool company specializing in hand tools. I have bought three chisels from them, a 1/2 inch heat treated point chisel, a 1 inch carbide tooth chisel, and a 3/8 inch carbide point chisel.

Keeping in mind this is a stone masonry tool company and not a stone sculpting tool company, I did have to make my point chisels pointier so that I could hold them at an angle so as not to bruise the marble. The chisels were so blunt ended that at an angle the tip didn't touch the stone, or bounced off. They do work great for removing lots of waste quickly. The steel chisel stays sharp. The carbide chisel is put together well but it is just too blunt for sculpting. I did grind it down some to make it pointier, but I can only go so far or I take away too much steel holding the carbide in place. I use it for very rough sculpting, but when getting down close to details and it's just too blunt.

On the left is the 1/2 inch point, center the 3/8 carbide, and a 1/4 inch point from a stone sculptor tool company. The far right chisel, although narrower, is pointier. I have sharpened it a lot and not kept up with keeping the sides to the same angle they were. Compared to the center chisel it is still far pointier.

I bought the carbide chisels to work on some hard dolomite. They do the job. I loved the tooth chisel till I broke two teeth. My fault. Carbide is very hard, but also brittle. I'm pretty sure I knocked it with another chisel. I am not very careful about laying my tools down and I either hit the carbide on another chisel when laying it down, or hit it when laying down one of my steel chisels. Not a mistake I'll make again. I believe the tooth chisel cost $80.

Trow and Holden know their stuff, I'm not knocking their chisels when I say they are too blunt. I'm sure they make them that way on purpose for stone masonry to knock of high points quickly and with less blows. But for sculpture, pointier means more precision. A point chisel is not for detail work it's for knocking off waste, at some point you want to be really careful about what you are breaking off, it's not like stone masonry where you are just trying to get a fairly flat surface.

The chisels I bought were high quality, so their price is justified. I ordered from them twice. I bought the carbide point chisel first and then satisfied with the quality ordered the other two.  One order didn't ship very quick. I called and they said since my order was on the weekend or something it didn't update or something. But it was shipped immediately after that. The website did say to contact them if an order didn't ship right away, so it's a problem they are aware of and will take care of if it happens, or they may have that problem fixed by now.

I recommend them for their quality but if you plan on using them for sculpting, keep in mind they aren't made with sculpting in mind. They also sell feather and wedges for splitting stone. As for a sculptor, their tools will work nicely for removing waste quickly. Check out their youtube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/user/trowandholden

What is an Artist's Statement

Artist's Statements are, in short, the what and the why that drives an artist to make what the artist makes. I don't have one. Mostly artist statements are bullshit. Sometimes they are not. I don't have one because I don't have the "big idea" yet. If I wrote one now, it would be bullshit. The idea for this article came from an art call from Rhode Island. It sounds like the panel couldn't agree on what they wanted so they included everything, which creates contradictions, so the person who wins that job, will have to bullshit his or her way around the contradictions. Or have connections, or both; bullshit and connections. And talent, yes.

Let me show you the contradictions in the art call, in italics and bold, their own words: 
The work should help deepen student thinking, perhaps with a concept that addresses the overlap of the sciences, and their relationship to the human.  My thoughts, in red: Which human? Just thought it funny the experts can't write a correct sentence.

“Chemistry is the central science", and by extension, all of the subjects studied within the North Science District are derivative. This inter-disciplinary aspect should be considered in artists' proposals.  Remember the overlapping of the sciences, but put chemistry first. And they are repeating themselves with "overlap of sciences" and "inter-disciplinary aspect."

The panel is seeking an aesthetic and intellectual work of art that is not simply decorative or figurative. Ok . . ., deepen student thinking, overlapping of science and relationship to some non-specific human, chemistry is first, and don't make it too decorative or figurative.

The work should reflect and enhance a sense of place. It should “make mimetic reference to the activity that’s occurring in this zone”, as one panelist said. Mimic activity without much figurative work, and reflect place. So should it take up much space? The winning applicant will have to bullshit for this one panelist, he or she got his own quote, which doesn't help convey what the hell they want.

  

And here it is, the importance of an artist statement: 

The artist statement will be considered an important part of the application and should reflect serious thinking.   Don't worry, they obviously don't know what serious thinking is. But I bet if you have lots of bullshit, it will fool them.

They are willing to spend $458,000 and can't even decide what the hell they want. 

Anyway a few movies come to mind about artist statements; I've mentioned before The Artist and the Model, in which the artist tries to find the "idea." Another movie that is just plain fun is Cashback, the artist in that one can stop time by just thinking about it, and there's a love story. On the art side, he's gifted, and he draws and paints the human form. Specifically he finds the female form out-of-this-world-beautiful. So does the artist in The Artist and the Model. That artist explains that the female form is so beautiful that woman must have been created first and couldn't have come from man. Ok, he creates some big theological problems with that idea, and has nothing to back it up, but it makes for a funny story, and it's his artist statement. In the movie The Next Big Thing, the artist deliberately does not have an artist statement and says art speaks for itself. He creates abstracts, which say nothing, so it's appropriate. 

Why would my artist statement have to reflect deep thinking to win the job? Here's my deep thinking on the subject and I guarantee you it wouldn't get me the job, plus my work is completely figurative. Would it help if the artist blathers on about art history and where his or hers fits in, or how other art has influenced his or her work? People are going to look at it and no one, ever, anywhere, will ever read anything about it once it goes up. Visual art speaks for itself, that's why it's not a book. 

Maybe my artist statement should go like this, which is inspired by Mark Twain who wrote something similar about his own work, here goes: If anyone ever tries to moralize, or read into, or imagine what I was trying to say in a work of art, he should be beat with a stout tree limb. My art is to look at. And that's probably more deep thinking than those panel of experts are used to.

Marlbe sculpture progress

Here's what I'm working on now, and here's my website if you want to see other stone sculpture, and better, more detailed photos of this sculpture: http://clay-tablet.wix.com/clayworkman   I plan on posting progress on here to motivate myself to hurry up and get this done. Sculpting stone is slow, at least for me, and it's easy for me to procrastinate chiseling on stone.

Here is the clay model sculpted in an oil based clay. This is not detailed because this clay is kinda soft and I don't really need details in the model. I'm more concerned with where body parts actually are instead of where my brain thinks, or forgets where they are while I'm sculpting the marble.

On this side her leg is off the elevated block and so is her hand. The other side they are on the block.

Here she is as a block of marble. You can see the pencil outline of her on the side of the marble. The block is 21 inches long. Since her left hand and leg are off the small elevated block in the sculpture, I'm also going to sculpt her forward in the block of marble leaving blank space past her knees, but her hair will be on the forward edge of the sculpture, probably hanging over the front edge of the sculpture.

I spent my weekend getting the bottom flat, and sanding it, still some to go, and sculpting the model. Done for today, more sanding tomorrow. Maybe make the first cuts into the stone?

Day 3: bottom is sanded to 60 grit, will make if finer when I get closer to finishing. No reason to sand too fine just to find out I scratched it up while sculpting on it. The block is also squared up. Tomorrow April 15, I have to do my state taxes. Told ya I could procrastinate. So probably won't do any work on the stone.

Day 4: Taxes done. State website sucks.

Day 5: Six hours of chipping away stone. Most of the waste around her knees and right side is done. This marble is a bit harder than other marble I've sculpted, my diamond cutting blade takes forever, I might as well just chip away rather than listen to the noise of that. The marble is not so hard that it dulls my steel bits.
            I can't help but think of the lyrics to the song; I fought the law and the law won. "A'breakin rocks in the hot sun . . ."  Breakin' rocks is a punishment, here I am doing it for fun. That's me, if there's a hard way to do something, I'll find it. I come from a  working family. My Dad has worked full time since he was 12, in fields,  and cutting logs with cross-cut saws, etc. He's in his 80's and still cuts his own firewood. My uncle (at least one of them) used  to go cut oaks with a cross-cut saw, split them, and then hue them square and sell them to the railroad for railroad ties. My last name means builder. I think fitness clubs are ridiculous. And they are a placebo to some. I know several people who think they are in shape because the work out a few hours a week. Try sawing and lifting a sledge-hammer eight hours or more a day. It may not bulk you up, but you will be strong. Anyway, here I am procrastinating breakin' rock. Bye for now.  

Day 6: After plenty of procrastination and other obligations; one hour of chipping and cutting around her left arm and left side.

Day 7: One and a half hours of chipping around her head, left and right arm.

Day 8: Two hours sculpting, form is beginning to show, a little.

Day 9: About two hours sculpting. I got an email reminding me to deliver my juried art piece to the Hockaday Museum of Art in Kalispell, except I never got notified that I was accepted. I went to their website and found my ballerina foot sculpture titled "On Pointe" was there. So that was good news. This sculpture is not part of their collection, it is for a benefit art auction. If you want to see that sculpture hit the link at the top of this article.

Day 10: Fixed a scratch on the foot sculpture.

Day 11:  After two hours sleep drove 120 miles to Kalispell. Had a large Red Bull drink on the way up and a small one on the way back.  Tiny museum, tiny collection, or maybe they have more in storage and rotate pieces for display. I don't know. Probably. Now I just want to sit around and relax after that drive. Have to get my mind back into wanting to chisel rock.

Day 12:  Five hours of chiseling. Frustrating trying to get things in proportion, I only get one shot at that. I'm working on the chest, head, and left arm in relation to each other. Here's a pic.

This is about 23 hours total. I've noticed the same thing about stone sculpting as clay, different people sculpt at different rates. I have used very little in the way of power tools. I cut a few cuts with a diamond saw blade. The rest has been chipped off. What you don't see is all the missing stone. I suppose as I get more used to this, and trusting my judgment, I'll get faster.

Day 13: Fast is not important to me right now. That's a lot of stone and I'm not going to screw it up. Spent one hour.

Day 14:  No work, giving my feet a break, I'm on them all the time.

Day 15, and 16: One hour a day.

Day 17: 3 hours, which is way under what I wanted to accomplish. On the upside, nothing is wrong and I can keep going. I did watch a lot of Netflix. Watched:  El artista y la modelo, or in English that's the Sculptor and the Model. An 80 year old sculptor starts sculpting this model that his wife finds living on the street during WWII in France. It's filmed in black and white and is pretty much pointless but while watching it you will think there must be some point, so you keep watching, but no, no point reveals itself. I won't spoil the ending, and if you watch it and find a point to this movie let me know. I understand his drive to create a masterpiece, but that isn't the point of the movie, not if you know how it ends. I would post a pic of my progress but there is hardly any since the last one. The breast, left and right arm, and head are more defined, that's it, oh and a little more around the ribs and belly.

Day 18: Two and a half hours, but lots of use of the diamond cutting blade, so that made up for some time.

Day 19: Nope.

Day 20: Two and half hours. I have found that when parts are roughed out and bulky I have a hard time seeing the sculpture beneath the stone. Right now her legs look too short because they are bulky, but they aren't too short. Looking at the drawing on the side, and even measuring confirms they are not too short, but they do look short. Optical illusion.

Day 21: Zero

Day 22: Four and a half hours.

Day 23 One hour. Picture at day 23. Thirty-nine hours of work.

Day 24: Four hours and Forty-five minutes.

Day 25: Two hours and 40 minutes.

Day 26: One hour and 45 minutes. 

Day 27: One of those days back up there I didn't do anything on it, instead I made a 20 sided die out of soapstone for a guy I work with. What a pain that was. The die was a couple of inches across, my hands cramped up holding that little stone and tools to grind, sand, and polish with. 

Day 28: Two hours, so not motivated. On the other hand nothing gets screwed up when not working on it. 

Day 29: Four and a half hours. Her legs are mostly defined.  

MY GOAL: To finish in less than two weeks from now. Completely finished to a polish.

With two weeks to go I'm going to put the last two week's days in parenthesis to keep track of those two weeks.

Day 30 (1): Two and a half hours.

Day 31 (2) Two hours.

Day 32 (3): One and a half hours.

Day 33 (4): Today sucks, all the time. One hour. SIXTY ONE HOURS (ABOUT) TOTAL. I think I can get done on time. Next two days will be finishing up the rough sculpting; down to her form. After that it's just prettying up and squaring up, and sanding. A lot of work.

Her legs look a little short in this photo, it's the camera, and the bulkiness that remains. The lower part of her leg looks short too I just noticed. Her heel is not that low, her toes are about even with her hip, doesn't look like that in the photo. My camera distorts too much.

Day 34 (5) Had other things to do.

Day 35 (6) Four and a half hours

Day 36 (7) Two hours. I'm not going to make it in seven more days. Too much rock to remove that is in difficult places, plus I still have to do her face. Right now she's just a block-head.

Day 37 (8): Feet were killing me, did nothing.

Day 38 (9) Four and a half hours.

Day 39 (10)  Two hours.

Day 40 (11) Nothing

Day 41 (12) One hour chopping the waste in front of her knees; 32 cubic inches of stone in an hour turned to little chips. I did use a diamond blade to make a few cuts and knock off  a few hunks, still took an hour.

Day 42 (13) One hour chipping away under her knees. Kinda boring.

Day 43 (14) I don't know I lost track. I know I didn't make my self-appointed deadline, by a long way.

Day 44, 45, 46, 47, 48. Nothing, took a break. I'm actually itching to get back to it. I take a few whacks at it once in awhile just walking by.

Day 49: One and a half hours.

Day 50: Four and a half hours. I mentioned the movie The Scuptor and the Model and said it was kinda pointless. I read an NPR review of the film, they also thought it was kinda pointless. It keeps popping into my thoughts. I guess I can relate it to it more than I thought at first. I can relate to the frustration of trying to find "the idea" to sculpt. And how others perceive me, the model didn't quite get what was going on. He shows her a sketch by Rembrandt as the finest picture ever drawn and they talk about it and she sees what Rembrandt was trying to convey. I think Bernini was the greatest sculptor that ever lived. Not the greatest man, but greatest sculptor. He could convey an idea, beautifully.

Day 51: One hour

Still along way to go. Her legs are still a little bulky, making them look a little short. I hope that's all it is.

I have not given up on this but I did take a 15 minute break to sculpt in clay and this is what I ended up with:

Alison Krauss portrait sculpture

Alison Krauss sculpture

This definitely did not take 15 minutes, it took a lot longer. I initially did take a 15 minute break to see if I could sculpt a complete face in 15 minutes. I came close, but since I had this almost finished face I thought, why not try to sculpt someone specifically. I started with a fist sized ball of clay, the final product is probably slightly larger than life. And before I got this done I got a commission to do this:

alabaster rose sculpture

Stone sculpture carved in alabaster and soapstone (green).

And just as I was starting to sculpt on my reclining nude marble sculpture again, I got another commission for a marble rose. 

Here is where I am now on the marble nude:

If I were dishonest I would say I changed my mind and want her arm down by her side, but I broke it off while chiseling between her body and arm. I am amazed how much this does not piss me off. Part of the reason, I think, is there is no warning; it doesn't start teetering, nor does a crack appear like in a cartoon and you panic as it spreads. No, it just plops off. Also, I'm not done anyway so it's not a total loss, I just have to sculpt another arm. You can see where the new arm will be in the blue lines, her hand will be down by her foot. I think it looks better, or will look better, now her arm will not be in front of her face. The fun of sculpting stone.

January 10, 2015. I'm still going to get back to this sculpture. Right now I have three commissions to do and a day job and general life to interfere. Hopefully this will be the year I go to sculpture full time.

September 22, 2015  Keeping track of time was demoralizing, so I gave up on it and just worked on it when I could.  Done. 150 hours total, I'm guessing. So a month's work, if I worked about 40 hours a week.

What a difference huh? I intentionally picked a difficult pose to sculpt. Since this is one rock, except for the flower which is alabaster and soapstone (leaves), there were some difficult places to reach. Under her back obviously. Between her foot and leg, and under her legs. I figured if I could do this, I could do anything in stone. Now sculpting lace has my curiosity, might work that in sometime, on something.