While the weather is cold...

While the weather is cold and there is snow on the ground - I decide to work up some models for small sculptures.  A couple of the pieces are designed to fit in existing stone which are sections cut from larger stones.
The first sculpture is entitled "Uneasy Dreams" which will be carved from the stone above.  It will be placed on a somewhat smaller, angled block, the figure will be hanging over the edge of the lower block hence the "uneasy" quality.  The inspiration for the piece are the stones themselves, I was looking for a way to make use of this scrap stone and concept came to me.

A rough sketch of the sculpture...

A quick water clay sketch of the figure.

This scrap of stone is to be "Earth Dreams".  I know, all this dreaming, don't ask me, I'm doing what is in my head.  This will be an earthwork piece though I envision her in the middle of a mound though that may change.

This is the rough sketch of the sculpture intended.

I am doing water clay for this model as well.  The head and chest are built up clay around a wad of damp paper towels.  I have a wooden dowel that will offer support to the head and keep it from falling over.

features are added..

and refined.

one arm is added...

then the other...

then she lies down..

then she gets her hair.  More refinement to do though.

While I haven't shown a photo of the stone, I also would like to do a little tiger cub in the Sylacauga Marble.  It is white with black striped marbling, should be interesting.

Lights reflected in double pane glass.

Carving Conversation's legs and Starting Predator and Prey

This rock will become the legs of the piece I have been working on entitled "Conversation"

I moved the stone in with my crane truck, setting the stone upright .  The toes are overlapping for additional thickness and strength.  This view is looking down at the top of the stone.  I don't have much wiggle room, the feet will barely fit in this stone but it was the closest in terms of length, width and depth to what I need.

I draw on the profile of the legs.  Though the legs will lie horizontally, it is easier to do the bulk of the carving with the legs upright. 



I am leaving the large corner until the rest of the sculpture is carved.  The weight will stabilize the stone.  When I have partially carved the legs I will move it into relation to the head and shoulders of "Conversation" and finish the carving there. 



While working on the American Lion I looked at a lot of reference material, photos, videos, etc.  As a result I became interested in working on a concept I had a few years ago.  In the two blocks above there are drawings on the stone.  On the left block there is a drawing of a gazelle, on the right, a cheetah.  The working title is "Predator and Prey" or "The Miss" as the cheetah has just missed the gazelle as it zooms off in the other stone. 

First, the stone with the Cheetah is moved closer to the studio and the drawing reinforced.

The cat will be right at the face of the stone.  I begin by carving the profile of the head.  This is how I began carving stone back in 1991.  I started at the nose and worked my way back into at stone.  I have made a very shallowly cut line for the body.  If I haven't made the body long enough (I hadn't) I can recut a longer body line.

I establish the profile of the right front leg - I have also added length to the body.

I cut wide on either side of the leg to give myself wiggle room.  The paw is pretty much firmly placed at the end of the block.

I concentrate work on the head of the cat.  At this point it starts to look more like a cougar than a cheetah so I listen to the stone - cougar it is, chasing a deer.



Establishing and detailing the head first helps me to find the rest of the cat - head leads to neck, neck to shoulder, etc.  I am documenting the progress with videos -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daZCn7IUCVk

and this-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsWwxANFd0M

An impression of a leaf in ice.

Cutting the top of the Lion, Conversation continues and a marble sculpture

 

 

This is the back of the American Lion sculpture. The streaking is from rain washing the dust from the top of the stone.  I have angled the top of the piece so that it slopes toward the back so that rain will run toward the back and away from the carved area in the front and side. Unfortunately the rain is clinging to the stone and running around to the side of the sculpture and going down the Lion's leg.  I need to cut the stone so that the rain is channeled away from the side of the sculpture. 

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I have marked in black crayon the area I need to cut to direct the rain toward the center of the block.  I will then make a deep cut down past the carved area of the sculpture so that the rain will be diverted from the Lion.

This is the top of the stone.  I am going to slope this toward the center of the stone so that rain will run off the back away from carved areas.



I'm cutting stone from the top of the lion while standing on a ladder.  Here is a video -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaZl9FlZp8Y

Seems like a long way down.

The small angle-grinder was not long for this world (transmission gave up the ghost) so I switched to the large angle-grinder.

A view of Conversation from above.

I beveled the edge of the far side of the sculpture. 

Rain has dripped from the ledge overhead, the work I am doing on the top will eliminate the dripping in rain ( or at least most of it).

Working on Conversation.



Photo-morph of Conversation with plants and representation of stone legs.

A model for a marble sculpture working title -"Little Girl".

The rough outline is marked on the stone and sections removed via angle grinder.

Me cutting the marble girl.

Frost crystals on a plant by the creek.