#465 In the field: Yellowstone, con't . . .

While visiting Yellowstone a few days ago, we were on a mission to experience animals in the dramatic autumn setting.   Among the many species we encountered was the Pronghorn.

The Pronghorn is often misnamed "antelope", although it is not related to members of that family.

Pronghorns are confined to the western half of the United States and living in Wyoming, I see them often.
They are very fast and have been clocked as high as 70 miles per hour.  They shed their horns yearly,
just as antlers are shed by deer, and both sexes have horns . . . females, or does seldom exceed 4 inches.

The Lamar Valley in northeastern Yellowstone provided open country and we saw many Pronghorn.

The rut was on, the bucks were interested in the does, and I had ample opportunity
to sketch, photograph, and observe them in their natural habitat.

Below, are images of Pronghorn taken in Yellowstone's Lamar Valley.

Below, is a page from my sketchbook.

Below, is an early stone lithograph of a Pronghorn.

Below, is a sculpture design idea for a pair of pronghorn bookends started after our return from Yellowstone.
The "in the field" experience was fresh on my mind and while working outdoors on the studio deck, I was in the zone.

Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott

#464 In the field: Yellowstone

After the Cody show last weekend - see the last blog for info about the show - 

we headed to Yellowstone through the east entrance.  We live less than three hours 

from the majestic park, have visited many times, and never tire of its beauty.  

The park is a great resource for observing, sketching, and photographing animals in their natural habitat.

This trip was, by far, my most successful and productive experience with one of my favorite subjects: 

the Shiras Moose.  At the end of our first day, we came upon a cow with two yearlings and a young bull
along the Lamar River.  Incredibly, we were able to watch them from a safe distance for close to two hours!  

Below, are images from our exciting encounter with moose in Yellowstone.

An incoming Rocky Mountain snowstorm cut our trip short, but tonight in the studio . . .
I looked at a moose study started two years ago, and in progress,
with fresh eyes and invigorated inspiration.

Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott

#463 In the field: Buffalo Bill Art Show . . . Quick Draw

I attend several museum sponsored, invitational art shows during the year,
and the annual September Rendezvous Royale show in Cody, Wyoming  

is one of my favorites.  www.rendezvousroyale.org

Held at the prestigious Buffalo Bill Historical Center, and surrounded by the majesty of the Greater Yellowstone Region, the celebrated art show, sale, and quick draw is one of the west's most popular art destinations. www.bbhc.org

Below, collectors love the excitement of a Quick Draw, and the Cody, Wyoming show presents a fast-paced and popular event for art lovers.  Painters and sculptors are given one hour to create a work of art.
The rules are strict:  Painters start with a blank canvas, and sculptors start with a blank armature.

Fifty painters and sculptors participated in this year's event.
The horn sounds and the artists give it their best shot!

Below, I start with a lump of clay and a drawing of my idea for a one hour creation . . .
a functional art sculpture of a kitchen pot hook;  a pig portrait is my subject.

Below,  the horn sounds and work is underway.

Below, collectors enjoy seeing the process.

Below, my watch reminds me . . . I have 31 minuets to complete the work.

Below, is the work completed in one hour . . .  entitled Cocina Queen Pot Hook.  
 The sculpture was popular and multiple castings sold at the auction that followed the Quick Draw.

Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott

#462 Western Visions 26th year: Works shown and sold.

Western Visions is the longest running art show at the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson, Wyoming.  

More then 150 painters and sculptors were invited to participate in the show 

which opened to the public on September, 13 and will close on September, 22.

Below, are the four works I presented at this year's exhibition.

Doughboys II 
12"H 6"W 4"D

 Branching Out
5"H 10"W 6"D

Wild Turkeys
graphite on paper
13 X17


Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott

#461 In the studio: The Briscoe Museum sculpture project, con't . . .

Currently in progress in the monument sculpture studio in Wyoming

is a project for the Briscoe Western Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.  

Please start this series of posts with #453, Aug. 18, 2013.

While creating the Briscoe Museum architectural bison relief panel,
I attempted to develop an impression of depth while maintaining clarity of silhouette.

I cannot stress enough, the challenge of sculptural relief work . . .
the sculptor must understand how much projection is necessary to cause the viewer to see rounded form.

Movement of the planes caused by the muscular masses and prominence of bony waypoints
must be understood and arranged by the sculptor to create the illusion of kinetic energy.

Below, by repeating the same visual surface elements, I sought a feeling of harmonious

relationships and planned pattern while interpretation of the composition as a whole.

Below, through partial projection from the main mass, I sought to "trick the eye" and

cause the viewer's imagination to take over and feel the bison's movement and power.

Below, are close up images of the rich surface and texture created in clay
of the bison's rugged and distinctive wooly coat.
Choice of patina for the bronze casting will heighten the dramatic effect of the active surface passages.

Below, the center bison head is projected 20" toward the viewer.
Foreshortening of this image occurred when photographing the high relief.

Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott

#460 In the studio: The Briscoe Museum sculpture project, con't . . .

Currently in progress in the monument sculpture studio in Wyoming

is a project for the Briscoe Western Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.  

Please start this series of posts with #453, Aug. 18, 2013.

Texture is the actual as well as the visual "feel" of a sculpture's surface.

The tactile quality of the large bison architectural panel was carefully thought out.
My goal was to emphasize and exaggerate the effects of chiaroscuro  . . . 

the presentation of light and dark on the figures.

Below, are images of bison . . . note the texture and "feel" of the animal's coat.

Below, are close-ups of the bison clay model surface in progress.

The rich surface and texture of the animals's coat, the rugged and distinctive quality of the

wooly hair which protects the creature from severe winter weather, had to be represented. 

The sculptor must realize that proportion, design, and form must be properly modeled before

surface and pattern is established.

Anatomy has been blocked in and is ready to continue the process of accepting surface and texture.

Below, surface texture has been added to the shoulder.

#459 In the studio: The Briscoe Museum sculpture project, con't . . .

Currently in progress in the monument sculpture studio in Wyoming

is a project for the Briscoe Western Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.  

Please start this series of posts with #453, Aug. 18, 2013.

A great inspiration and resource while creating the Briscoe Museum buffalo monument this summer occurred while visiting a local rancher and friend who raises and breeds bison.  I rode on the hay wagon during feeding time and had a safe place from which to sketch, photograph, and observe the magnificent animals.  One must remember that they are wild and are dangerous . . . an up-close and personal experience must be carefully presided over.

Below, are photos taken while sitting on the hay wagon during feeding time.  

I was able to sketch and take several hundred images to use as reference for my sculpture project.

Being there and observing was an invaluable experience.

Below, is hair from the bison . . . useful in the studio while establishing my plan for surface, texture, pattern, and completing the monument.

Below, is a wonderful mount of a bison skull in the design studio that I've had for many years . . . useful during creation of the monument for obvious reasons.

Below, is an image of the enormous architectural panel in progress.

Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott

#458 In the studio: The Briscoe Museum sculpture project, con't . . .

Currently in progress in the monument sculpture studio in Wyoming
is a project for the Briscoe Western Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.  

Please start this series of posts with #453, Aug. 18, 2013.

Phase Two of the Briscoe Museum project, a demanding and exciting commission that has been in production
in the studio this summer, depicts three running buffalo.

The ten foot wide bas-relief panel will be installed in a niche of the beautifully restored,
architectural deco masterpiece on San Antonio's Riverwalk  

Below, are two images of the clay maquette - or small study - that is the precursor to the large monument panel.  Measurements are taken from the maquette to enlarge the sculpture.
 As the work develops, modifications must be made to ensure the sculptor's desired effect.

Below, the monument is carved and blocked in using dense foam.
The foam is then covered with clay and modeled before being molded and cast into bronze.

Note, the foam leg being carved into lower relief as the monument progresses.

Adjustments continue and the tray on the lower right fills with foam and clay residue.

Relief work is demanding and the sculptor must understand how much projection is
necessary to trick the viewer's eye into seeing rounded form.

Below, are images of the monument clay model in progress.

Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott