My biggest sculpt yet...WIP

 It's time to finish my pieces for the Wallowa Valley Festival of Arts in Joseph, Oregon. Hubby says I should enter the chicken pastel I posted in my previous post so now I have two more to add. I am also adding one of my abstracts, but I'm going to do some touch up before I post that one, so now I'm working on a sculpt I've been wanting to do for a long time. I have a friend in Wallowa Valley that snagged some very cool and very large gourds, this one happens to be 26 inches tall. She offered to let me buy a couple as she has plans for the rest. I originally started on a Santa with this one, but I just couldn't bring myself to finish it, so here I am, working on an Indian mother and child. I peeled off the face of the santa, which will need a new and very large gourd. :-) I'm using more than one gourd in this sculpt, the arms will be made up of two gourds each.

Here are the forearms. Look Mom, no hands! Actually, I have to wait for the top of the arms to dry before I add the forearms and since I'm not completely sure of the way the hands will go I am waiting until I attach these gourds and let the clay dry before working out the hands. For now I will work on the head and the baby that will be cradled in the mother's arms. The most exciting part of this will be the design I'm planning for the mother's dress. I'm working up a stylized version of Nez Perce designs to finish the piece off with. I only have a couple of weeks left so I'd better get to it! I'm hoping to have more pieces before the show, which is in June because they've asked me to demonstrate my sculpting so I want to have a variety to share. Gourds are so much fun to work with, the possibilities are endless don't you think?

Ready for the art show?

Here are my entries for the art show this week.
You can't really see the paint shading very well and I do need to seal this tonight, but This Indian head is on a bottle gourd with a pine needle base attached with brass star brads. I tried to keep it simple so this is the way it will be.

So here we are and hopefully all done. Now, to choose something for the silent auction. Have a great night!

WIP

Almost done with this piece and it's a good thing as the entries have to be in on Wednesday. I have to bulk up the hair and finish the top of the hair, as well as figure out the base. This is done with Creative Paperclay over a bottle gourd. He's patterned after the Nez Perce Indians, which are indigenous to this part of Oregon.

Stand up for America and Freedom!

We as Americans are facing a tough time. But, with our usual grit and backbone we can get through whatever comes our way. I love to create Americana figures, especially out of things found in nature.

This Uncle Sam is created from a Y in a tree branch and detailed using air dry clay. He stands on an old cedar plank and is 19" tall. All my own design and work, he comes signed and dated. Have a peek at him on ebay.