The Grizzly Bear Days of August

My main focus of energy, during the month of August, has been the carving of a mother Grizzly Bear and 3 cubs for the Norton Children's Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky.

I continued to carve the forms of the baby bears that are on their mother. This area is particularly tricky - the bear cubs playing have to relate, somewhat nose to nose. The mother bear's front foreleg is under the right paw of the cub clinging to her back leg. I want the mother grooming the cub clinging to her right forepaw, but I also what a good view of her face on the left side, so I can't turn her head in. (A lot of things to consider in a complicated piece like this.) I have to be careful when I am carving one paw not to take off someone else's. I write "mother's leg" and "cub's paw" on various parts in crayon, to keep myself out of trouble. Also, I am using a hammer drill to open up the negative space under the mother's head, as a grinder is difficult to get in there.

This is the progress of the baby on her belly, that is play fighting with the first cub.

Here is a view from above that shows the 2 front feet and the head of the 2nd cub with a bit of the standing cub's face, mothers face and bottom of mother bear's paw.
This view shows the 3rd cub, that is getting cleaned by his mother. The black marks are lumber crayon. These are areas that I am considering carving further.

Meanwhile, Don continued the mold process for my Terre Haute commission. Don used clear plastic, rather than bubble sheet, to make the part line for the hands. Here, he is drawing the outline with a marker, so that he will get a tight fit with the clear plastic shim.

He uses pins to hold the shims in place until he fastens them with a bead of rubber compound stiffened up with Polyfil 2.

He has finished applying the rubber mold compound to all 17 pieces. Next, he trimmed the edges of the molds so that they would register well inside the plaster mother molds. This trimming process also makes it easier to demold the pieces and make the wax castings.

We attended the "First Friday" series of gallery openings in Louisville. This is Max, a budding artist who had set up on the sidewalk. I hope we see more of Max and his work in the future.
An art appreciator, enjoying the perfect weather.

Hot glass was being manipulated at Flame Run Studio on Market street.

...and, away from the intense pace of the city art scene, life goes on as usual for this resident of Paradise Bottom.