Carving the Grizzly and Ely SOLD!

This is the left side of the bear. I have been removing stone from the rear leg of the mother bear. Under the mother's foot you can see (if you really use your imagination) where the cub clinging to it's mothers leg will be.

A great deal of stone needs to come off around the bears back legs. The block is also too long and needs to be cut down. At the bottom of the stone, on the right, is a quarry dog hole, which will need to be cut out. These holes (there are two for every block) are made for quarry dogs, metal tong-like devices which are used to lift stone out of the hole. Cutting out the hole was awkward as the bear curves under and I needed take out just enough to get rid of the hole. I kept thinking I was done, but the hole was packed with gravel. It just went on and on. I finally got it, though.

I am using an angle-grinder with a diamond wheel to make cuts into the stone. I make a series of cuts (you can see these cuts under the wheel of the grinder) and then break them off with a hammer. Sometimes, I cut the sections off with the grinder by cutting across at a right angle.
I use a hammer to break off cuts of stone.

A little piece of stone (lower right) got in my eye while carving. I thought that I'd share this with you.

Great news! Ely sold at Yew Dell Gardens!

These are blackberries. I never realized that they had these coverings. I searched for what these coverings might be called, but had no luck. They look cool, though, like Sundew plants.

A New Commission and a Museum Exhibit

I was just awarded a commission for Terre Haute's Hux Cancer Center. Over 160 people applied for this $42,000.00 commission.

The sculpture is entitled "Light of Hope and Healing" and is composed of an adult man, adult woman, little boy and little girl
standing atop a pedestal of black granite raising their hands toward a lighted sphere. The granite represents cancer and all the negative emotions that accompany it; fear, despair, hopelessness. The lighted sphere symbolizes the positive emotions which help us overcome cancer; hope , joy and courage.

Don and I were invited to submit work to 2 exhibits at the Ownensboro Museum of Fine Art in Owensboro,KY. The two exhibits are entitled Holidaze, which is a gallery exhibition and Holidazzle which is geared more as a craft exhibit with more affordably priced works. To move the work we rented a Ryder truck. It has a lift gate which made moving the work much,much easier.
Ely is getting loaded into the Ryder truck. Don's posture was so like Ely's I had to get a photo of it. Don's piece River Vessel was loaded next. Don has several small pieces ($280.00) of bronze and stone in the Holidazzle exhibition. I also have a bronze(Persephone Falling) in Holidazzle as well.

Don and Tony Hardesty pick up River Vessel to place it on the cart. The sculpture will be placed on top of it's base at the entrance to the Museum.

Ely is escorted into the Museum.

This is a close-up of Jimson Weed I found it in our lower field.

This is an ultra close-up of a morning glory in my sister Liz's yard, thought this make a nice contrast to the Jimson Weed.


This pretty guy (or girl) is a jumping spider. I found it in the lower field.