365/2013 - Day 260

progress on the AFHH guy

This afternoon I wanted to put down the first layer of plaster cloth on the Atomic Fireball Happy Hour guy.  My main goal was to just secure the wadded plastic and masking tape.  I know there will be many more layers and repairs ahead.

Then later this evening was the monthly meeting of the Northville Art House Exhibit Committee.  I love being a part of this committee!  We had another productive meeting and lots of discussion -- it went very well.

The hard working Exhibit Committee.

365/2013 - Day 259

I've come to that point for today

That point I said I was going to have to listen to myself about...I am pretty happy with what I have done so far today and I am not going to push it.  I didn't even know I was going to be working on this guy today.

I liked the Atomic Fireball Happy Hour guy at the time I made him, but I didn't love him.  I always knew he would eventually need to change.  I wasn't happy with the placement of his ears, the insect-like look of his face/eyes/nose.  I like his color and I love the base...but that's about it.

his "before" shot from earlier this year

oh snap -- note to self -- don't pick him up by the antler and try to lift him over other things in the messy, messy studio

look -- this thing snaps right off -- after that happened I started to notice all of the other hairline fractures and bumps and dings he has -- he really needs a makeover

saw marks on his ears

maybe you can't hear me so good

adding cut up heavy plastic outer wrappers from paper products to round off his head shape

I like him better already!

Time for a break.

back at it later this evening -- "don't make me cut off your eyes!"

Although he looks a little cartoony right now, I like him much better without those big dark eyes.

Padding his nose -- oh yeah...much better.

Still a LONG way to go, but I need to listen to that voice that is saying "enough...I'm done for tonight."

This guy is no kind of creature in particular...he is just some sort of antlered/horned beast of a Happy Hour guy...the Atomic Fireball has kind of disappeared.

365/2013 - Day 58

done, done, done, and done!

I managed to pull together four pieces for the upcoming show.  The plaster cloth snake, the Atomic Fireball Happy Hour guy, the manikin, and the stuffed spikey creature.  Until they are in place at the gallery, they are feeling a wee bit shy.

Whew -- I need a break!

365/2013 - Day 40

wow -- FULL day of work

I set a plan for myself for this weekend.  I know what I need to do and in what order.  This was a non-stop work day and I am glad it is over because I am really tired now.  LOL.

Today I focused on the Atomic Fireball Happy Hour guy, the manikin, and the marsupial guy.

AFHH needed the most attention.  I had to go and get floor flanges and pipes for his legs.  When I got back home I went shopping in the basement and found the perfect base for him -- I came across a lamp I got from someone's trash pile during the summer.  I took off the electrical parts and knocked the base loose with my rubber mallet.  It took a lot of drilling with the Dremel tool and repositioning the flanges and trying again and drilling again and repeating all the steps but I finally got it right.  Now I just hope that the plaster cloth will cover the flanges -- they are rusting and the color is coming up through the plaster cloth.  It will just take extra gesso and paint but it will all work out.  What I am worried about is getting the plaster cloth to adhere to the flanges and wooden base and not crack at the seams.  I can always cover it all up with paper and then paint but I'd like it to work in the plaster cloth stage.

LOL -- look at all of those holes!

Then it was time to start thinking about if I really wanted him to have fingers or just give him rounded off paws.  I was hesitant to drill the wooden balls and I knew the holes would be close but what the heck -- I gave it a go.  I had a bag of wooden skewers left from another project and they were a pretty close fit with the holes that the Dremel made.

He looks so wacky -- like he has magical waves coming out of his hands or something.  Next it was time to choose a length for those fingers.

I set him aside and moved on to putting a base on the manikin.  He has that built-in base and he does stand up but the way I have him posed he is a teensy bit tippy.  If you just have him on a table top or shelf he is fine...but I was worrying that he could accidentally get bumped in a show setting so I decided to add the extra base.  It makes him more stable.  I am just not terribly skilled at drilling and I didn't want to mess up what I had already done to him.

figures, doesn't it???  just that much too long!

Okay -- time to start the plaster cloth!

The clutter and mess on the table was driving me nuts so I cleared it off, changed the table coverings, and started fresh.

I was not looking forward to keeping track of all of those fingers -- they go in specific holes because my drilling is so uneven.  Then it dawned on me that I could leave them in place and work on each finger, one-at-a-time style.  Duh.

Now...on to blending/covering the flanges and attaching them to the base.

That was a very lengthy process...and a very wet and messy one, too.  I cleaned it up and set the whole thing aside to dry (partially) overnight.  I will try to do more with it tomorrow...at least see what else I can do with it.  For now, I am happy with the progress.

Next it was time to put the two bases together on the manikin...another wet and messy job that will need to sit overnight.

Last (for today) -- I needed to add an inside seam to the marsupial's pouch.  I can't get my hand all the way down to it so I had to poke at it with longer, reachy things...scissors, Sharpie, etc.  I got the seam done but it isn't as smooth as I'd like it.  I may try again tomorrow to smooth it out.  I also worked on the bottom edge of the torso/column.  This is another let it dry overnight project to see if the seam is going to crack.  Again, I can find workarounds for it but I would prefer it to be taken care of in the plaster cloth stage.  Tomorrow I also need to give most of the entire marsupial guy more layers of plaster cloth just to toughen and strengthen it.

 And here are the three guys resting for the night.

Whew -- I didn't feel it at the time, but now I am really glad I stopped work when I did.  I am BEAT.

365/2013 - Day 35

not quite there yet, but definitely getting closer

I have been avoiding getting back to work on the Atomic Fireball Happy Hour guy -- I needed to fill out his face in front of his ears and a bit by his jaw.  He also needed eyes.

Since I don't have any taxidermy eyes for him I looked around in the studio for something I could maybe build an eye with.  I grabbed some bottle caps of various shapes and sizes and then I remembered the little toy capsule that came in the chocolate eggs Sue and I got today.  The tops of the capsules were great!  But the cats had taken one of them and it took a while, but I found it!

I was trying to coax my Universal collaborators to join me but I wasn't feeling them so I at least started the prep work of cutting the plaster cloth triangles and getting the area ready and getting the hot water.  I also played around with the idea of using this wonderful striped cone that Ingrid Dijkers gave me from a project she did that she didn't need anymore.  I love it as a hat on this guy but it also makes the piece four and a half feet tall and -- for various reasons -- I don't think I can deal with the problems involved in transporting something that size right now.  I even tried making a mock up of a smaller version...nah...it is the stripey cone that makes it.  I will find the right project for it eventually.

I wanted to use more plastic bags, etc.  I tried wadding the pieces up again and taping them in place but nothing was working.  I couldn't get the sides anywhere close to even.  Then they arrived!  I/we took the wads off (my right) side of the head and I/we snatched up a wad, pulled off the tape and just balled the plastic up a little.  Using one hand the plastic was held in place while my other hand picked up a larger plaster cloth triangle and got it reeeeeally wet and just laid it on top of the wad and held my hand there for a few seconds...no smoothing, just holding it and feeling how it felt...then the plaster cloth was smoothed out and I picked up another piece and did the same thing in a slightly different spot to anchor the plastic wad.  With this handful I got more of a sense of the round feeling I was looking for.  Hmmm... 

Then we did the eyes differently than we've done them before.  I/we just held the capsule top in place and started laying and smoothing the tiny plaster cloth triangles...anchoring and smoothing as the cap was covered.  Normally I would sit and cover both caps and set them aside to dry a little, filling in the underside, too.  But I decided not to fight the urge to do it the other way and just gave into tonight's way of doing things.

I wasn't able to take any photos of the making of this side -- I was too busy listening -- but here is how it turned out.

Wow.  It still needs some work in spots -- but wow.

Here is the other side.

Again...there are still areas that need to be blended in.  I am really very pleased with the way this turned out tonight.  And it is fairly symmetrical again...yay!

This guy is truly a collaboration...I mean it.