Balancing Act

Before I carried on carving the remaining two spheres, I really needed to drill and stack the balls on top of each other to ensure the segments and angles resembled my idea! In order to make the sculpture safe I drilled into the bottom stone and inserted a pin into the studio floor. The second sphere was offered up using the 'Lewis pin' which made life so much easier. The Lewis pin is a split steel pin on a lifting eye that gets inserted into the drill hole. When the stone is lifted the weight of the stone forces the pin to lock inside the drill hole enabling it to be safely lifted, giving me a nice straight lift. This method enabled me to hoist the stone above the bottom stone and connect the two together with another stainless steel pin. As this was only temporary, the pins remained loose and there was no resin glue used. The third stone however was a little tricky! I could not use the Lewis pin in the top of the stone to lift it as this would have left a visible hole in the top! Instead I used the straps and gentley lifted the stone trying to ensure it was cradled and balanced at all times. The problem you always have when lifting  a stone with no edges is the possibility of it slipping out of the straps. Encountering any lifting problems now is always good, as it's best to be prepared and have all the problem solving done before installation. Now that it's all together I can begin to draw onto the remaining two spheres and then dissemble...which should be fun!

To follow the production of the Cobtree Sculptures visit the site - http://thecobtreesculpture.blogspot.co.uk/

Seed Stack!

 

To follow the production of the Cobtree Sculptures visit the site - http://thecobtreesculpture.blogspot.co.uk/

Anatomy of a leaf

I have been quietly carving and playing around with the depth of the leaf veins today, sanding and filing as I go. I haven’t wanted to go too deep or create undercuts in places as the surface of the stone will collect debris and water when it sits close to the ground. However, I don’t want the carving to remain flat, so I’ve been trying to simplify the junctions of the leaf veins and the midrib of the leaf. The surface also needs to be comfortable to sit on and I am keen on making the stone very tactile to the touch.
To read more about this project visit; http://thecobtreesculpture.blogspot.co.uk/

Room with a view

This was the view from directly outside the workshop this morning.
Today the sunshine and light was beautiful and the first touch of frosty air whistled around the yard, numbing my fingers and leaving the steel chisels almost unbearable to touch. As much a I wanted to stand and take in the view, I needed to keep moving to stay warm. It proved to be a good productive day!!

Lighter than a leaf!

It has been exceptionally windy again today and with the studio doors wide open there was no shortage of leaves blowing into the workshop. Pretty ironic considering I was starting work on the Cob Leaf stone which will form part of the larger leaf cut out stone sculpture. 
I have to be extremely careful when lifting the stone so as not to damage the carved profile edges! At one point I will also have to flip the stone completely to drill a fixing hole on the underside!!! The stone will sit on a smaller block and will be 450mm off the ground. I want the leaf pattern on the top surface to be weathered to allow for the free running of water of its surface. So far I'm really pleased with the profiles around the side of the stone and may finish them with a rough grade paper finish. The profiles will help me sharpen and give form to the leaf pattern when I start carving the ribs and veins onto the top of this very dense and hard Irish Blue Limestone. Here's hoping the wind will not be as fierce tomorrow as I want to be doing a lot of grinding which will throw up and create a lot of dust!!
To read more about this project please visit; http://thecobtreesculpture.blogspot.co.uk/

Sculpture Foundation

Oh I do love walking through the grounds of the Cass Sculpture Foundation at Goodwood this time of year. We managed to stay dry for the 2 hour excursion around all the work on display, despite the weather forecast. There had been some tranquil and meditative moments and encounters with artworks as we appeared to have the place to ourselves. It was a real pleasure seeing Peter Burke's 'Host'. At this time of year his collection of human figures stood still while the leaves on the trees fell quietly to the forest floor. It was also great to see some carvings by Jon Isherwood again (below). It made me want to be even more playful and experimental with my own carving. 

One while I wait!

I have had a few delays in taking receipt of the stone for the Cobtree Commission and it has created a few headaches. However, as eager as I am to get stuck in, I have had to start a new small carving to keep me ticking over. I know as soon as the stone arrives on Monday I will have to leave the small carving and get on with the big stuff! But I couldn't resist!