Many who know me, have heard me say that working in sculpture improved my drawing. While I don't know why; it is true. Just like it is healthy for a painter to do some drawing to help maintain this skill; doing sculpture for me is an extension of that principle. I am fortunate to have the opportunity to do this work, because foundry costs have kept me from doing more of it on a "speculative" basis.
This is a sculpture of two Boykin Spaniel's to be cast in bronze. This piece will have the two heads joined at the base and they are lifesize. The subjects are mother and daughter, so I am positioning the heads with the mother taller and looking down while the daughter is looking up into it's mother's eyes.
I am going to post to this blog as the project progresses and I am omitting the preliminary drawings. A sculpture in clay (or wax) during the creating process is in a constant state of flux. You add and remove clay as the piece takes shape and you will see this as the images follow the progression. While I intend to stick close to the preliminary drawings, some changes are inevitable.
To avoid boredom, I will show the armature and initial build up of clay and then go right to the first subject's head in a more completed stage. At this point, although the changes will be many, they will be in such detail that at first these changes may seem invisible. The interesting thing about a sculpure like this is that while these little changes taken individually may seem insignificant, taken collectively they will have a dramatic impact.
Let the work begin:
The armature begins with two separate bases. This will let me work on these girls individually and allow the freedom to work around each head without an obstacle. The bases will be tied together later when the faces are completed.
This is the base for the mother but it outlines the positioning of the daughter's head (base).
Now the daughter's base is positioned over the mother's base so you can see how the two will be eventually joined.
The armatures for these pieces is made of half inch threaded pipe and fittings. This is a matter of a strong foundation and while they are simple in structure they must be scaled carefully so the armature does not get in the way of the sculpture. An example of the consequences of not taking the time to do this right might be the pipe sticking out beyond the nose or at the base of the skull.
Now comes the building up of mass. I am simply cutting chunks of an oil based clay off of slabs and knead it onto the armature. Although I am only trying to get some basic form. This is more of a matter of having enough mass in a crude form. Much will be carved away as I work toward a likeness and expression.
Now I begin to look at the details - keep in mind that these are Boykin Spaniels with not shortage of ears. Also note that the foundries do not like to have features that are less than 3/16's of an inch thick. I intentionally make the ears in this case very thick and will gradually remove clay as I make them thinner. They must be strong enough to hold the shape but thin enough (without violating the foundry limits) to have the proper appearance. Except for their faces, Boykin's have very curly hair so the initial thickness will allow me the opportunity to create texture to achieve that appearance.
While it is beginning to take shape, you can see immediately the need for change in the mother. The eyes are set too high, the skull is too long in proportion to the muzzle. A closer look will point out needs for other changes to the features. Keep in mind that this is not just a Boykin Spaniel it must look like a specific Boykin which is why from this point forward I am working at the clients home where the subjects are constantly present for reference.
Follow this blog if you want to watch as these two ladies take shape in clay.
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