#615 In the Studio: Clay sketch of a foal

This morning, I started a clay sketch of a foal.  After several hours work, I'm confident that I like it,  will complete it,
and use it in an upcoming show.  Quick clay sketches can have honesty and vitality, but spontaneity is not possible
without planning and structuring.  Having a good plan and design enable the sculptor to make the sculpture intuitive
and spontaneous . . .  a thorough knowledge of the animal's structure and anatomy is a must when working quickly.

Below, is an image taken this morning after two hours work on the model.  

Note:  The gesture had previously been determined and the armature was built last night.

Typically, when working on a clay sketch,  I establish the design and dynamics of the sculpture in morning light
 as quickly as possible.  Being energized with coffee helps!  I will usually leave the work after the block-in and
 go to other projects and return to the work in the low light of dusk.  

No lighting is as important to me as dusk and evening light.  This time is magic in the studio and I tweak the design
 under a single source, low natural north light with all artificial lighting off . . . careful to retain spontaneity.
 A single light source enables me to see form.  I deplore flooded light when modeling and do not use it in the studio unless I'm building armatures, etc.  If I work at night or if it's a dark overcast day, I work from a single-source, low wattage bulb. . . there's no fluorescent lighting in my design studio. 

Below, I check the silhouette against back lighting and note the arrangement of positive and negative shapes.
I'll live with it awhile and continue making adjustments with closer modeling of the head before going to mold.   

Go to the BLOG INDEX on the right for more information.

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

#609 In the studio: Flexible molds

A flexible mold is the term commonly used for a rubber mold and is the type of mold used by most sculptors today.  

For an in-depth discussion about flexible molds, please go to blog #572,
posted October 8, 2014 and blog #574, posted October 15, 2014.

Blog #572              Blog #574

Flexible molds have a varied longevity or "shelf life" which refers to how long the completed mold will last in years.  

Note: Some sculptors refer to shelf life as "library life" or time in storage.  My molds have been made in the studio by 

Trish for over 25 years and during that time, while using Black-Tuffy, Smooth-on, and other products, we've experienced numerous mold failures or loss of mold usage due to the rubber liquifying and turning to an unusable goo.   

Keep in mind, the possible short shelf life of these products is printed on their labels and after losing

some of our older molds before the edition was cast, we've changed to a newer, more stable product. 

Inexplicably, we have 20 year old molds made from Smooth-on that are still good while some have failed after less than 4 years of use!  Most of the old ones, however have failed.  For the past six years, we've been using a product called Polytek
(see blogs #572 and #574) and so far, have experienced no mold failures.

       http://www.polytek.com

The sculpture shown below, entitled Takers of the Anasazi Sun was introduced and sold at
 Prix de West in 1994 and another one was cast and consigned to Knox Gallery in Colorado.

The sculpture is listed in the book about my work - Spirit of the Wild Things - The Art of Sandy Scott -
as an edition of 35 but only two were cast before the Smooth-on mold failed after less than 3 years.
The clay model of the work does not exist nor is there a wax replica of the piece in existence.

http://Spirit of the Wild Things

While works such as the sculpture show above will never be cast again, another older work has been given new life.
In 1999, I created a sculpture entitled, Promising Pup.  After only a few castings, the mold failed but a wax replica
of the clay model was retained before the mold had to be discarded.  Last summer, I totally remodeled and
reworked the wax and Trish molded it into a similar but new sculpture entitled, First Season Promise.

Shown below, is First Season Promise in clay and Trish starting the mold.
More about flexible molds in next Wednesday's blog.

Shown below is view #1 of the new bronze, First Season Promise which will be introduced at two upcoming shows:
The Briscoe Museums's Night of the Artists on March 28, 2015 and
The Cheryl Newby Gallery's The Power of Three show which opens April 25, 2015.

More about both shows in upcoming blogs.

http://Night of the Artists

http://Cheryl Newby Gallery.com

First Season Promise
11"H 15"W 9"D



Go to the BLOG INDEX on the right for more information.

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

#583 In the Field: Birds of the North Country, con't . . .

This blog is part of a series of posts about

our island studio and cabin located on

Lake of the Woods in Ontario, Canada. 

The series starts with #568, posted

September 24 of this year.  There are

many earlier posts about the cabin that

can be seen by going to the blog index.

Much of my in the field experience and reference is gathered at the 

island studio located on Lake of the Woods.  Starting with blog #578, 

the birds of the North Country including those who remain during Ontario's frigid winter weather have been explored.  The focus 

of this blog is the different species of owls who stay

during the winter in the vicinity of my island studio.

Although we've never wintered at the cabin when the lake is frozen over,  my thoughts often go to the animals who are able to withstand the bitter cold winter months.  Owls are among the creatures who are
able to adapt to a world of wind, ice, and snow.

Among the different species of owls who remain in the frozen North Country in the Lake of the Woods region
are the Great Gray Owl, the Snowy Owl, the Northern Hawk Owl, the Northern Saw-whet Owl,
the Boreal Owl, the Barred Owl, and the Great Horned Owl.


At left above and below are photos of the Great Horned Owl.

Owls are members of the order Strigiformes, are mainly nocturnal predators, have
 distinctive forward-facing eyes which gives depth perception much like your own eyes,
 and a facial disk which helps the bird hear . . . much like a satellite dish.

Owls have the best night vision of any creature on earth allowing them to hunt in the dark.
 Interestingly, one of an owl's ear holes is higher than the other which helps the bird find prey. . .
owls have superb hearing and vision.  The tufts of feathers on some owls are not ears . . .
the ears are behind their moveable facial discs allowing hearing from different directions.
Also, an owl's wing feathers have soft, frayed edges which permits silent flight while hunting.

Below is a photo of a Barred Owl. . . a species without ear tufts.

Below, is a drawing of a Great Gray Owl . . . an enormous, secretive Northwoods owl who more than any other,
defines the Lake of the Woods coniferous forest.  I've experienced the Great Gray only a few times
while in residence at the island studio.  Once, at dusk I heard its distinctive deep hooting and was
finally able to locate it in a pine tree.  On another occasion, I saw the beautiful bird
cruising through the woods on the wing while grouse hunting.

Below, is a head study of a Great Horned Owl.  The drawing was created at the Brookgreen Gardens Aviary
and was the precursor to a sculpture demonstration for students in the workshop.

Below, is the clay model of the workshop demonstration depicting a head study of a Great Horned Owl created at the
 Brookgreen Gardens Aviary.  Also shown, is the bronze casting of the demo entitled, "Wind in the Woods".

Below, is a little acrylic painting of a Snowy Owl created in Alaska during a canoe trip on
the Noatak River recently. The Snowy does not nest in the Lake of the Woods region where my island
studio is located but moves in from its nesting area in the arctic tundra during the winter to feed.

Oil on panel

Go to the BLOG INDEX on the right for more information. 

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

#89 In the studio: The Lander, Wyoming Grassy River Studio . . .

We are back in Lander, in residence and at work in the Grassy River Studio.  Since 2005 this has been our headquarters.  We were located in Fort Collins, Colorado the previous 20 years where we eventually ran our own cold foundry and had our metal poured in Loveland.

In 2000 we bought a little ranch house on 8 acres along the Popo Agie River north of Lander and built the monument studio, guest house, log design studio and main house in that order.  In 2009 we moved into the main house.  I know it sounds complicated but it's not near as complicated as is was actualizing it.

At work in the the new design studio

Standing on the deck overlooking the Popo Agie River.  Popo Agie (pronounced po-PO-zsha)
is a Crow Indian name meaning "tall grass river" or "grassy river". 

Go to the BLOG INDEX on the right for more information.

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

#2 In the studio: Whitetail deer (untitled)

We are at the Lake of the Woods studio on a cool, breezy summer afternoon.  Sandy just completed a new sculpture of a bounding whitetail deer. Although it looks as if the photo was shot in the fall, the glow in the distance is actually a stunning  Canadian sunset setting the trees ablaze.

Trish will start the mold in the morning.  This sculpture is the maquette (study) for the larger version that will be introduced at the Autry in February.

We will be returning to our Lander headquarters soon to get ready for the Wilcox Gallery Wildlife and Wildlands show in Jackson, Wyoming Sept 12-30.  The show coincides with the Western Visions Show at the National Museum of Wildlife Art. Sandy will be there Sept. 15-18.  Then its back to Lander to antelope hunt and then to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming the following weekend.

Go to the BLOG INDEX on the right for more information.

Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture, Whitetail deer, clay models. . . © Sandy Scott and Trish