Meanderings of a Maine Artist... sculptor Cynthia Smith

Upcoming Bronze Projects ... With Clamp, Gourd & Driftwood

1/30/2015

0 Comments

clamp project #2

dried gourd - view1

driftwood - view 1

While waiting for some patina supplies to arrive, I am gearing up to start on several new bronze casting projects. Last year I did a piece titled 'Upon Reflection' that utilized an antique wood clamp for its foundation. At the time, I had contemplated a variety of approaches to the potential set ups of the clamp itself. I visualized it as a sort of playground or jungle gym for some small figures. As soon as I finished the piece, I set my sights on acquiring more clamps so that I could explore other variations on that concept. I acquired another clamp and have decided to set it up at an angle. The next step will be to decide on how many figures will be interacting with the clamp, and where and how they will be positioned.
I also have a couple of "found" objects that I intend to cast. One is a decorative gourd that was was forgotten after the Thanksgiving holiday. When I checked to see if it had gone soft with rot, I was surprised to find that it had actually dried out and hardened. It has both an interesting surface and shape, with a nicely curved neck and stem. I may try find some additional similar gourds to create a grouping in bronze.
The other found object that I will cast is a piece of driftwood that, like the gourd, has an interesting shape and surface quality. Its 'V' shape and 'feathered wing tips' suggest a avian form of some sort. The process of gating this piece will challenge me in much the same way that my sculpture 'Seadrift" did (see my blog entries for 6-25-14 and 7-6-14), because of the variations in thickness, the angles, and detail of the textures. But, as I have said before, I like a challenge. Stay tuned...

'Upon Reflection'

dried gourd - view 2

driftwood - view 2

0 Comments

Bronze Sculpture ... Chased, Drilled, Tapped and Stacked

1/12/2015

0 Comments

The next steps in working toward the completion of the bronze piece that I discussed in my blog entries for 11/12/14 and 12/15/14 involved finishing the chase work on the base and then preparing the parts for attachment. The textured top surface and sides of the 5 1/2 inch wide bronze disk base had just a few very small bronze air bubbles that needed to be removed. The underside had 3 gate attachment points that needed to be ground down and smoothed. After drilling a hole through the center of the disk, I buffed all of its surfaces with a medium grit Dremel buffing wheel.
My plan was to attach the disk to the figure portion of the sculpture with a threaded rod and nut, so my next step was to use a tap and die to create a threaded hole in the bottom of the small disk at the base of the figure. The tricky part of this was to make the hole deep enough to allow the rod to be inserted securely without it breaking through the top surface of the small disk. Fortunately, the curved structure that the figure was attached to was in the center of the small disk, and because of that I was able to drill to the depth that I needed.
I knew that I wanted to elevate the piece, but I wasn't sure how high I wanted it or what I wanted to mount it on. I had a piece of 5/8" thick wenge that I decided could be used for this purpose. Wenge is very dark wood and I felt it would provide an unobtrusive visual 'lift' that the bronze needed. I cut it into a round that was about 3/4" smaller than the bronze disk and drilled a central hole with a recess on the bottom that would allow for the attachment of the nut to the end of the rod. I branded it with my initials and gave it a couple of thin coats of satin polyurethane. Finally I cut the threaded rod to the length needed to extend from the figure through the bronze and wedge base disks, and connected the three pieces. I may eventually change the wooden part of the base, but, for now, I am opting for simplicity. Next I have to make a decision about patina... possibly green... blue-green... hmmm?

Mounted sculpture is 11 1/4" tall and 5 1/2" wide.

0 Comments

Upcoming Bronze Projects ... With Clamp, Gourd & Driftwood

Bronze Sculpture ... Chased, Drilled, Tapped and Stacked

Author

Archives