Exhibition -- Limbic Resonance

Here are some photos from the Limbic Resonance exhibition which opened on November 15th and will continue through December 12th.  Opening night was great with about 300 people attending.  I got many questions and interesting comments.  It was a lot of fun.  My space was about 26 feet wide and there was about 16 feet in front of the figures, so there was plenty of room for viewers to walk around and see everything from all angles.

Yours truly

On the left is "In the Morning" with "On the Veranda" and "Near the Tree" behind it.  In the center is "After the Fall" with "On the Precipice" and "By the Lake" behind it.  On the right is "In the Evening" with "In the Park" and "Under the Cloud" behind it.

Some viewers walking through.  Kids absolutely loved "After the Fall".  They could not help getting down on their hands and knees for a closeup look.  They all wanted to fix him.

Individual shots: "In the Morning"

"On the Veranda"

"Near the Tree"

"After the Fall" (from the side)

"After the Fall" (looking down)

"On the Precipice"

"By the Lake"

"In the Evening"

"In the Park"

"Under the Cloud"

That is all for now.  I'll do another post relating what people had to say about the exhibition.

Print/Collage -- Home Variations

Here are two variations from a set of print/collages on the theme of "home".  Each variation varies slightly from the others and each has some similarities.  Each print/collage is about 12" by 14" and the colors are quite rich.  That richness does not come through as well in these scans.  These are variation 1/7 and 2/7.

Ceramics -- By the Sea

This ceramic sculpture is composed of multiple hybrid figures.  Each figure was made in two parts and joined together.  A baby was sculpted in clay and a plaster mold was poured around it.  The clay was then removed leaving the impression of the baby as a one-part plaster mold.  A two-part plaster mold was made from an existing shell that had been coated with resist.  A hole was drilled into this mold.  To assemble a shell baby, porcelain slip was poured into the mold of the baby and into the mold of the shell.  When the clay had firmed up, the excess slip was poured out and the pieces removed.  Slip was then used to adhere the shell to the baby.  The pieces were bisque fired, glazes were applied and each figure was then fired to cone 10.  Very tiny lights were inserted into the bottom of each figure to complete the sculpture.

Ceramics -- In the Circle

These three ceramic sculptures explore the possibility of "ambiguous narrative" interaction among very basic figures.  One is made from white clay and glazed in white, a second is made from very dark clay and glazed in tenmoku and the third is made from three different colors of clay and glazed with a clear glaze.  All three were fired to cone 10.  Each is approximately 6" x 8" x 4".

Ceramics -- On the Tree

This is the final work in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs.  I believe this piece worked best.  It has a deeply incised design which was filled with glaze after it was bisque fired.  It was then fired a second time to cone 10.  It is approximately 2 1/2" x 3 1/2".

Ceramics -- In the Spring

This is the eighth in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs.  It has both an incised design and one painted over the top in oxides.  After bisque firing, a layer of clear glaze is painted over the surface before it is fired to cone 10.  It is approximately 4" x 5".

Ceramics -- Among the Waves

This is the seventh in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs.  It has a design that is both incised and painted in oxides.  After bisque firing, it is finished with a thin application of clear glaze and then fired to cone 10.  It is 4" x 5".

Ceramics -- On the Sand

This is the sixth in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs.  The design is painted in iron oxide and after being bisque fired, a clear glaze is painted over the top before the work is glaze fired to cone 10.  It is approximately 4" x 5".

Ceramics -- Among the Bones

This is the fifth in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs.  It includes both an incised design and design painted with oxides and engobes.  It is bisque fired and includes a small amount of white glaze that is fired to cone 10.  It is approximately 4" x 7".

Ceramics -- In the Air and Water

The fourth in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs has a design painted with engobes (colored slips), bisque fired, and then covered with a clear glaze and fired to cone 10.  It is approximately 8" x 10".

Ceramics -- In the Mountains

The third in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs.  The design is deeply cut into the clay, painted with oxides and covered with a clear glaze.  It is approximately 6" x 6".

Ceramics -- In the Air

The second in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs.  The design is painted in oxides and glazed with a clear glaze.  The size is approximately 4" x 7".

Ceramics -- Below the Tree

The first in a series of expressive, environmental wall reliefs is called "Fallen Bird". It is approximately 4" by 6".  The design is incised.

Figure Drawing: Progressive Self Portrait

In my class we drew self portraits every weekend using a variety of media.  This was my favorite one.  It shows my image as it might appear at the ages of 20, 40, 60 and 80.  There are various things in the background that might contribute to such appearances.  It is pastel on 18 x 24 inch white drawing paper.

Figure Drawing: Sustained Gesture Drawings

A sustained gesture drawing is one in which the model holds the pose for a longer period of time and students are to draw as in a rapid gesture drawing.  The extra time allows students to provide more detail.  For this sustained gesture drawing students drew for five minutes then two things happened.  The professor asked students to use a hand and smear all the charcoal in the drawing they had finished.  Second, the model was asked to change his pose.  Students were given five more minutes to finish the drawing on the same piece of paper.  I think this one came out particularly well.  It is charcoal on newsprint.

10 minute drawing with smearing and double pose:

Figure Drawing: Mass Gesture Drawings -- Charcoal

At the beginning of each class we did a series of gesture drawings.  Their purpose is to activate the student's senses and to coordinate the eye and hand.  The poses are rapid, lasting a minute or less.  In a mass gesture drawing, the focus is on capturing the gesture of the figure through an exploration of the figure's mass.  In a charcoal drawing the mass is expressed through its volume.  All of these drawings were charcoal on newsprint.  I especially like this medium because of its expressive qualities.

60 second drawing:

55 second drawing:

60 second drawing:

50 second drawing:

60 second drawing:

50 second drawing:

50 second drawing:

60 second drawing:

55 second drawing:

Figure Drawing: Mass Gesture Drawings -- Vine

At the beginning of each class we did a series of rapid gesture drawings.  These are designed to get the creative juices flowing while also training the eye and hand.  A mass gesture drawing attempts to capture the gesture of a figure through an exploration of its mass.  Often this takes the form of shadow and light.  The use of vine charcoal simplifies this while also retaining some linear quality.  All of these are vine charcoal on newsprint.

60 second drawing:

50 second drawing:

60 second drawing:

55 second drawing:

60 second drawing:

Figure Drawing: Rapid Gesture Drawings

In our figure drawing class we warmed up everyday with a series of timed gesture drawings.  Some of these were very rapid, 10 second, drawings.  The purpose of these drawings is to get the mind and body loose and synchronize the eye and hand.  Some of them turned out well.  They are all graphite on newsprint.  These are my favorite ones:

15 second drawing:

10 second drawing:

15 second drawing:

20 second drawing:

20 second drawing:

Photograph: Idaho Welcomes the World

This photograph was taken with the Wirgin Auta.  I used Kodak Tri-X 120 roll film and a tripod.  The aperture setting was f/8 with a shutter setting of 1/50 second for both exposures.  Two exposures were taken and the film was allowed to slightly overlap.  A single photograph was made from these two negatives.  It was part of a project that was a response to the 1975 exhibition, "New Topographics: Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape."