We are in the middle of what some would call a holy season of Lent, leading up to Passover, and then Easter Sunday. This solemn time of reflection in faith caused me to seek sculpture that does the same. In this month's article we will showcase the work of traditional "liturgical art," as well as not so traditional art based on the faith or with a message of faith. When reviewing different artists it is important for me to hear the description of the art. A titled work and descriptions add life to the piece, gives it meaning and creates a rapport between viewer, art, and artist. Equally, there is an urgency in my discovery of the process of each individual artist. I want to know more about their own faith. What drives them to spend so many hours creating these images? Is it of necessity that they driven to create? Do they feel a message must be conveyed? Is there a spiritual dance between them and the Great Creator as they mingle passion, art and faith? Here are the answers of five passionate and spiritual artists.

Artist
Angela Johnson
www.ajsculptures.com
Art quietly speaks volumes. At this Easter time it gives me joy to share my pieces, Because of Love and Lazarus, Come Forth. The most fascinating aspect of art for me is what can be communicated from the artist to the viewer. Every artistic decision of compositional design is determined with the desire to share a perspective, belief or quality about the subject being created. In the sculpture, Because of Love, it was my desire to portray the incomprehensible act of love of Jesus Christ is suffering the weight of the sins of the world. The majesty and power of His love is portrayed and embedded in this work. The strain of His muscles, His bearing being strong, yet submissive to the will of His Father are meant to draw the viewer into contemplation of His Great, Infinite sacrifice of Love.

Lazarus, Come Forth sculpturally depicts the miracle of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. The biblical account states that Lazarus had been in the grave four days. Beyond all the miracles Jesus Christ had already performed was this yet greater impossibility of raising someone from the dead long after their spirit had left the realm of earth. I think a great deal about the reaction of Mary and Martha as they struggle in amazement and disbelief as they see their brother who was one dead, alive again. When we pray and ask God to grant a blessing or we personally witness a miracle what is our reaction? How grateful and changed are we as we experience the power of God? Do we give God the glory or dismiss it as an unexplainable coincidence?

Artist
William Leslie
www.PaperSunLightsculpture.com
At the heart of existence there shines a light; Ner Tamid, the flame of the Divine’s ever radiant Presence. This light, which emanates from the inside out, expresses the timeless ideals towards which all individuals and nations strive; Wisdom, Love, and Justice.

Wisdom is the knowledge of the true nature of the human condition and the Sacred Mystery; Love is found in the deep concern for the well being of all living things, especially the least advantaged and most vulnerable; and Justice is the manifestation of Wisdom and Love in action, the right ordering of society such that the dignity of all is cherished and protected.

These three virtues are expressed in the three upward aspiring fingers of the flame in this representation of Ner Tamid. Their unity and interdependence is signified by the manner in which the three fingers twist around each other after emerging from a common base.

It is the wish of the artist that this expression of the Eternal Flame inspire every individual and all nations to be exemplary lights to guide humanity through the dark night of these bewildering times, and to remind us of the undying presence of the Divine.

The aesthetic appeal of my lightsculptures is evocative of what we find beautiful in natural forms; the swirl of texture in marble or wood grain, the evolving folds in flowers or lichen, the patterns left in windswept or sea swept sand. Everywhere we look we see that nature prefers to move in graceful trails, or to organize itself in beautiful patterns.

I began thirty years ago calling my work “lanterns” or “artistic light fixtures.” Gradually my work has evolved to become more sculptural, less functional. While my clients (ranging from homes to businesses, hospitals to restaurants) are often seeking a source of illumination for an occupied space, they also desire something that stands alone as a work of art whether the light is on or off. It is this wish to grow beyond the functional, to create truly beautiful illuminated sculptural forms that motivates my efforts now.

Ner Tamid resides in Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Vista, CA.


Artist
Nancy Winship Milliken
www.nancymilliken.com

Out of Many, One, dimensions variable upon installation (cross is 51”x51”x2”), wood, beeswax, honey, muslin, steel, 2008.

The piece is constructed out of honey frames from a bee hive. It has the balance of the Red Cross symbol as it hangs suspended from the ceiling. There is a waxed muslin catch-pan filled with honey underneath and waxed muslin is draped over the extended arms of the cross. There is a lovely sweet smell of wax and honey and a depth of natural color of the old honeycomb.

Out of Many, One, II, dimensions variable upon installation (cross is 51”x51”x2”), wood, beeswax, steel, polyester, 2009. The piece is similar to the above Out of Many, One description except without the catch-pan of honey and the material draped is interchangeable, purple for lent, red and black as needed. This cross now installed at Calvary Church in Stonington, Connecticut, will come down for Easter and be replaced with a cross that I have made out of the same frame construction, filled with white flowers.

The Lamb, installation size variable,( 7’, 10’, or 15’) wool, felt, polyester, 2009. The wool has been kept in the raw, so the smell of lanolin and animal is vaguely familiar, ancient, visceral. The wool is needle felted into a felt substrate, using an old technique employed by homesteaders all over the world. The subtle colors and design of the wool, the texture and smell present in contrast to the purple polyester shine adds intrigue and contemplation.

Artist Statement
Art for me is where science and the spiritual connect. For these above mentioned pieces the concepts of sacrifice and service were always front and center. Out of Many, One, is titled for both the collaborative work ethic and social constructs of the honeybee colony and our national motto, E Pluribus Unum, found on the seal of the United States and on our dollar bill. The bees work for the benefit the whole colony, even giving their lives in defense of their productive hive. With the recent colony collapse disorder that the nation’s bees have been experiencing, I believe the materials that I have chosen to be symbolic of not only humanitarian behaviors, but also reflective of our environmental impact on the honeybee.

In choosing the symbol of the cross, and in particular the Red Cross, I am referencing the humanitarian gesture of service to others with disregard to country borders, skin color, sexual orientation, wealth or religion. Anyone who has experienced a natural disaster, a manmade calamity, or even succumbed to the power of water while swimming knows the calming effect of the Red Cross symbol flying on a flag meaning help is near. It is powerful and instills the feeling of hope as well as symbolizing sacrifice and service. The lamb has historically been a symbol of sacrifice. The method of attaching the fiber by pushing the wool into the felt with a long needle is laborious and a nod to the essential work of the homesteader. The contrasting shiny purple material representative of the color for Lent and the practice of doing without highlights the natural and authentic smell and texture of the wool.

As a last note about these pieces: They personally symbolize the faith I have in my art. I made a change in my career two years ago and I need to have faith in the unknown, the unseen, the future. By using untraditional materials unconventionally in my art, I am entering un-chartered territory. These traditional symbols are a reminder, a flag, of faith in my art.

Artist
Robert Winkler
www.robertwinklersculpture.com

People often ask Robert Winkler what inspired one or another of his sculptures. But, the more relevant question for Winkler is "what do his abstract forms inspire in the viewer?"—particularly in the case of Look Homeward, Angles. Like all of his works, it is deeply spiritual, humble in its simplicity and lack of ornamentation —with a minimal flow that allows the imagination to soar unimpeded.

In Look Homeward, Angles, his graceful-gravity challenging forms seem to resist the downward pull of the Earth and reach heavenward.

In a recent series of interior sculptures, Grow Up, the prayerful attitudes and upward reach of the twisted forms are both a paean to ephemeral beauty and a moving metaphor for the human struggle to transcend.

Since the early ‘90’s, Robert Winkler has been manipulating volume, mass and balance to create a sense of movement. His interior works make use of surprising combinations of materials, such as aluminum, steel, hand-laid papers, vellum, tempered masonite, and cedar. His large-scale outdoor works are primarily constructed of cedar, an organic material whose surface changes over time. Above all, it is his ability to find infinite variation within a limited number of shapes that sets him apart. Without so much as a single curved cut of wood, he achieves serpentine, animated forms through the use of incremental gradations. It is a discipline that offers no hiding place for error, demanding meticulous workmanship.

Artist
Sean Matthews
www.flickr.com/photos/seansaltars

My first experience with sculpture dates back to childhood. As a boy, Sunday Mass was the least exciting hour of the week and I often found myself daydreaming. I can think back to a reoccurring daydream of the Church spontaneously bursting into flames during a Sunday morning celebration. While the congregation was frantically storming the doors for safety, I was calmly carrying large marble sculptures of the Holy Family out from the fire. I remember thinking how I would be the hero who saved works of art from a burning church.

From time to time, I still find myself daydreaming during Mass. One Sunday, about six years ago, after my first semester of graduate school, I made a discovery that changed my process of object making. During Mass, while we were solemnly kneeling, I noticed a predominant object for what seemed to be the first time. I looked around the congregation and saw how all eyes were focused on the priest and the ritual he was performing around the altar. I remember looking at the altar as if it were a piece of minimal sculpture anchored in the center of a highly conceptual, performance piece. I was immediately inspired, and my mind began to race with ideas. This was a defining moment for me as an artist.

From the beginning of civilization, in every culture around the world, sacred articles, such as altars, shrines, and sanctuaries have been used to connect us spiritually to a place outside the physical world. I have found the altar to be a unique tool that can take almost any form so long as it has been consecrated to a significant purpose. The spiritual object symbolizes religious or secular memories and acts as a focal point where one prays, contemplates, or meditates.

I see the altar as a vehicle that drives a thought or a prayer into an intangible world. It makes an imperceptible connection between the participant and a memory. It is the tool that connects us to a thought, emotion, or a recollection, making visible that which is invisible. An altar can be specific to a location, or small enough to fit in one’s hand. It can be personal or for others, and is possibly the only devotional object that can connect all people, around the world, from the beginning of time through to the present.

My body of work revolves around the altar and its infinite forms. I explore the similarities between the altar and the object, and ask the viewer to determine the difference between the two. Form and craftsmanship is very important to my concepts because I believe that beauty in art is an extension of God. Mark Rothko writes, “The artist must have sufficient means at his command to achieve his objective so that his work becomes convincingly communicative.”

My latest work is inspired by a Sicilian tradition called St. Joseph Altars. The focus of St Joseph Altars is baked goods and fruit. Breads are baked in symbolic forms such as carpenter tools and tools of the Passion; every food item on the altar has a special meaning. Because this tradition is practiced during Lent, meats are not included on the table. I have appropriated the idea of building an altar to a saint, but instead of paying homage to Saint Joseph, I am communicating my gratitude to Saint Luke, the patron of sculptors. In this body of work, small sculptures replace food. The materials I use are found objects and recycled wood and steel. My purpose for using these materials is to symbolize the Resurrection.

Altar XV
Plastic, cement and coffee beans,
Microlithic Altar
Wood and steal
A Bean Picker's Altar
Wood, steel, coffee beans, coffee bean bag

Modeling and Sculpting the Human Figure by Edouard Lanteri
Amazon $10.17

It is my opinion that no sculpture studio should be without Modeling and Sculpting the Human Figure by Edouard Lanteri. The author, Edouard Lanteri was a British sculptor 1848-1917. “The book is a gold mine of technical information, the kind of reference work that should be a lifelong studio companion to the figure sculptor,” as described in the introduction by sculptor, Nathon Cabot Hale. The first of the Lanteri volumes was printed in 1911, my copy is a reprint with a copyright notice of 1965.

Using this book as a study guide will offer the sculpting student a wealth of information that would only be attained in many years of study. Modeling and Sculpting the Human Figure covers portrait busts, full figures, measurements, building of armatures, scales and proportions, poses, and much more. I have especially appreciated the section on draping cloth. We all know that muslin, velvet and silk look different, but how does a sculptor portray the material in clay? No beginning sculpting student or established studio should be without this book.

Modeling and Sculpting Animals by Eduard Lanteri
Amazon $11.65

Accompanying Lanteri’s book on Modeling and Sculpting the Human Figure is another book that was an original part of the 1911 edition—Modeling and Sculpting Animals. This book, with a forward written by friend and fellow sculptor Augusta Rodin covers what is in the Modeling and Sculpting the Human figure but in association with animals. Comparative measurements, construction, anatomy, armatures, and much more are featured with a bull, lion and horse as the subjects. Modeling and Sculpting the Human Animals is another book that should be on every sculptor’s shelf.

Modeling the figure in Clay by Brunno Luchessi
Amazon $14.93

For another self-taught study on the human form, a book that can’t be beat is Bruno Lucchesi’s Modeling the figure in Clay. In this book master sculptor Bruno Luchessi takes the artist through the entire process of creating a human form from skeleton to skin. Building the sculpture on a wire armature with bones, and then adding on the muscles and skin. I have often thought that this type of book and training would be of considerable importance to massage therapists as well. What better way to learn the anatomy and muscles of a client then to create the form from inside out in clay. A student wanting to hone their skills in artist anatomy would find this book a valuable resource.

From Clay to Bronze by Tuck Langland
Amazon $21.45

For those sculptors who are working toward casting their artwork in bronze, and who may want to understand the process of bronze casting, Tuck Langland’s book From Clay to Bronze is another essential reference book for every sculptor’s bookshelf. Tuck takes us through every portion of bronze casting and even includes a section on the history of bronze casting. The idea that bronze casting has changed so little over such a long period of time, never ceases to amaze me.

Though Tuck does designate some chapters to such things as materials, armatures and modeling, most of the book focuses on the process of reproduction. In-depth segments on making molds, casting, and even using other materials besides bronze for casting your artwork are covered. Then Tuck takes the reader through the entire bronze process of waxes, investment, burning out, chasing, and even patinas and mounting. I especially appreciate the color pages on the process of creating patinas. Coloring a bronze using chemicals is called patination and is a true art in itself. With a copyright of 1999 you know that the resources that Tuck lists are probably still available and his suggestions of further reading are a way to continue your sculpture library.

For the small investment of $60.00 from Amazon (this could be less if you are buying used books), and the commitment of time and study of these materials, a beginning sculptor could, upon completion know that their study was at the same level as working under a master in a four year university. The only thing missing is the feedback from the master.

If you have comments on this article or would like to share please visit the artist’s online forum.

All written work is copyrighted and cannot be used, whole or in part,
without the written consent of the author.

Camille Allen from British Columbia, Canada loves babies. She learned the art of making dolls from her husband’s grandmother, Clara Allen. Though her dolls are life-like, they certainly aren’t life-size. Instead, they are miniature babies created in clay.

Her first creation was so small she found it would fit inside an egg and now she has a line of “Egg Babies." She says, “I think the fragile newborn baby is complimented by the egg shell, reminding us of how fragile new life is and how gently they must be treated and cared for.”

Later she put one of her miniature babies in a sea shell. “The shapes of and textures of different seashells either echo the soft curves of babies, or they provide an interesting contrast to emphasize them. Some "Shell Babies" have pearls in their navels or are holding a pearl, like two little treasures found in one shell,” states Camille.

The miniatures babies are made of polymer clay. Camille explains, “It is soft, but it can hold the tiniest detail, even fingerprints. Once I have completed a sculpture, I then fire the clay with heat to harden it. Sometimes the babies are cast into a mold and made into other materials like Resin or Porcelain or Silicone.”

Camille does not take commissions, instead shesculpts limited edition or one of a kind miniature babies that come from her heart instead of a photo. She has sold to people all over the world, and has even had her babies featured on the Montel Williams television show.

Some babies are available for sale on her website: www.camilleallen.com. All babies vary in price, but here is a rough estimate of the price ranges: Resin Limited or Large Edition Babies: $99 - $400. One of a kind: $1500 - $4000+ (US dollars). She is expanding to different lines of babies that will be available in more price ranges. She also has an email list for anyone who would like to see photos of new babies as they are created.

I asked Camille for some tips on sculpting as well as more about the process. "Starting from a lump of clay, and tiny tools including toothpicks, sculpting a life-size or miniature baby begins. It takes many, many hours of patient concentration to form a realistic baby and finish with fine details - including wrinkles and fingernails. The babies have soft English mohair to imitate fine baby hair and are blushed with paints for realism to enhance their tiny wrinkles and creases.

A life-size baby takes me months to complete. Miniature babies take several days to several weeks, depending on how complex the sculpture is. It depends on how patient I am feeling, and how long I can concentrate at a time. Sometimes my eyes get tired sculpting in miniature, so I take many breaks. It is very time-consuming work.

If you remember with the sculpture of Jenna, both Poser and Daz 3D figures were combined to create several different visuals for the client to look at and approve. From there we took the computer generated 3D pose and sent it to Blue Genie Art Indusries in Austin, Texas, for milling. First we made sure that the mesh, the underlying structure in a 3D computer model that gives it its shape and form, was watertight. This means that there are no holes in the mesh. Blue Genie Art Indusries can examine files for an artist and provided this service as well.

Blue Genie Art Indusries then took the Poser file provided and sent it to the (CNC) Computer Numerical Controlled milling machine. Here the CNC milling machine uses drill bits that move back and forth along the foam, carving out a foam replica of the 3d model that is in the computer.

The dress featured in the approved pose was unnecessary for the form. I opted for milling just the body of Jenna. I wanted to work the dress design in clay. Knowing most of the body would have a great deal of clay covering it, I had Blue Genie Art Indusries mill the body out of a less expensive polystyrene, and the hands and wings were milled out of a firmer urethane foam that would hold greater detail.

There are many different options when having a sculpture milled. The more detail the artist desires, the more passes the bits will have to make and perhaps even smaller bits will be utilized after a pass with a larger bit. With the extended time on the milling machine, the cost of the milling rises.

Many artists ask for a slight reduction in the size of the milled foam so that a thin layer of wax based clay can be added on top of the foam and detail can be added. Some milling companies actually spray the clay onto the foam after milling for the artist.

If a reduction in the foam is desired, it is important to understand that some areas like nose or ears can disappear in the reduction. Milled foam comes from Blue Genie Art Indusries in several pieces. The pieces are light and even monumental sculptures can be shipped long distances without a tremendous amount of money spent in shipping charges. The foam pieces are secured using glue and pipe, or in the case of Jenna a few skewers was all that was necessary. The foam can also be reshaped with rasps if the artist finds modifications are necessary.

Milling foam for the traditional artists is rather new technology and will go a long way in assisting the traditional sculptor in the studio. The 3D computer generated model of Jenna could have been enlarged before milling out to any size, even as a monumental size baby. The use of digital millings offer the artist a less time consuming way of creating armatures for life-size and monumental pieces as compared to the traditional pipe, welding and rebar that has been used in the past.

Shipping a completed sculpture that was first milled in foam to the foundry is also much easier as it is lighter and easier to transport. The foundry men seem to like the process as well, as the sculpture can be cut up for the mold making process quite simply with a knife without worrying about having to cut through rebar, wire, or pipe as they do with the creation and mold making of traditional sculptures.

Milling foam is a new tool that I will continue to use at every available opportunity. Personally I find the process of making armatures tedious and time consuming and milling in foam will relieve me of that task, leaving me with much more time to create.

Using technology in a traditional art studio can, at first, feel like cheating or it may bring a fear that the technology can somehow overtake the craft and creativity. I mentioned these fears and my introduction to this topic in a recent article titled Exploring Digital Technologies as Applied to Traditional Sculpting- Sculpture Review Winter 2007. In the article, I explored incorporating digital scanning and milling in the traditional sculpting studio. My research alleviated my original concerns and fears as I realized that digital enlargement, though a little intimidating at first, can be combined with traditional techniques offering another tool to use in my creative process, a tool that has the added benefit of providing me with more time to create.

I continued my research into utilizing technology in the traditional art studio while attending the 2008 Siggraph Convention this past August. Siggraph is short for Special Interest Group on Graphics and Interactive Techniques.

I once considered Siggraph as a convention for those working in graphics since it relates to illustration or computer generated special affects for movies. I have watched with curiosity over the years as the technology that has been introduced at Siggraph has infiltrated the 3D world outside the computer and into traditional sculpture studio. Those at Siggraph also seemed to be embracing the idea of bringing technology into the art studio. Three prime areas, besides the main floor of exhibitors, displayed this same exploration.

THE STUDIO
The Studio section hosted six established and emerging resident artists, along with handsMatt Shlian calls himself a paper engineer, creating elaborate sculptures through the use of folded paper, which is not to be confused with true origami because he cuts and glues. My intrigue with the art was that many of the forms generate movement, changing shape with the interaction of the viewer.

It is interesting to point out that many of the artists I researched who were working with technology in their art also crossed over into the area of science. A segment of Matt’s website states this.

“As a paper engineer my work is rooted in print media, book arts and commercial design. Beginning with an initial fold, a single action causes a transfer of energy to subsequent folds, which ultimately manifest in drawings and three-dimensional forms. I use my engineering skills to create kinetic sculpture, which have lead to collaborations with scientists at the University of Michigan. We work on the nanoscale, translating paper structures to micro origami. Our investigations extend to visualizing cellular division and solar cell development. Researchers see paper engineering as a metaphor for scientific principals; I see their inquiry as basis for artistic inspiration.”

Another person that caught my eye was metal smith and jeweler, Sondra Sherman. I told Sondra that my goal as media at Siggraph was to find artists who were bringing technology into their studio, and she made sure that I knew that her present designs were created by hand, but that learning about the technology that would apply to her art studio was also her goal while at Siggraph. “I believe artists in craft media are always curious about means or materials which might enhance or facilitate their creative expression and which seduces the viewer to engage with the work. I am not interested in the 'novelty for its own sake' quality, which the use of technology might bring to my artwork. I am interested in how I might use the attention given to novel forms/materials to attract the viewer to consider what I might be trying to express with that form, as they would with work created in any media or by any means.”

SLOW ART
Slow Art was a juried exhibition. Artists were asked to “reconsider the paradigm of speed and instead consider the concept of "slow art."’ The questions that were raised— how do you employ speed afforded by technology, how does it affect the work, and the process of creating slow art?

There were a variety of pieces of art in this section that peeked my interest. One of mention was an interactive piece that is the literal description of slow, titled —RealSnailMail. In this exhibit you send an e-mail on a designated computer in the slow art exhibit. It is then sent to a server in the UK. Here the e-mail is in a holding pattern along with the many other e-mails as it waits for a snail equipped with a transmitter in a tank at Bournemouth University, UK, to slide into range of a hot spot that can pick up your message. It then must move to another area of the tank to send it.

I could not help but wonder just how long my snail mail would take to get to a person. I emailed Bournemouth University in the UK using the regular fast e-mail and they quickly replied. “We have done a bit of calculating this morning. As of the 8th of Sept. 2008 we have 8,977 emails waiting. Based on this, if you sent an email today, it would take 24 years, 217 days before it gets to the front of the queue. It then may take a further 69.87 days (average snail transfer time) before being forwarded to its final destination. Therefore, a RealSnailMail sent today should arrive approximately by Thursday 16th of June 2033. Please note times may differ dependant on snail behavior and usage.” Now I am wondering how many people will have their same e-mail address twenty-four years from now.

Interaction seemed to be the theme through the entire Siggraph convention. The question was, which sense was going to be stimulated or interacted with, by the art or new technology? Another one of my favorites in the Slow Art integrated vision, touch, and sound. Joo Youn Paek’s Fold Loud was a visual of large sections of tapestry incorporating origami shapes that could be folded, and in doing so, they opened circuits made of conductive material creating harmonic vocal sound.

It was difficult to truly appreciate the Taoist principles intended with this soothing art while standing in a noisy convention hall, and I was glad to see you could hear the work by visiting the Fold Loud website. I loved the opportunity to interact and touch the sculpture and while doing so to also create my own meditation.

DESIGN AND COMPUTATION
The third area depicting art and technology was the Design and Computation section of Siggraph. Here artists, designers, architects, and mathematicians created artwork, images and structures utilizing technology in both design and digital fabrication.

I had many favorites. The two pieces I choose to focus on were not figurative at all but instead were once again patterns and shapes.

It might seem strange to see the work of a traditional veteran sculpture like Erwin Hauer in the technology exhibit at Siggraph. Hauer created works of modernism that began in 1950 and can be found, not only in museums and collections but also in architecture. The patterns in Hauer’s work held the same intrigue that Shlians paper cutting held for me in The Studio section of Siggraph. Each modular constructivism sculpture of looping forms change as the viewer interacts with the piece, light bouncing off form, shadows moving and blending, creating an entirely different piece of artwork from every angle.

A book of Hauer’s work titled CONTINUA was published in 2004, but it is said that by that time of publishing many of the existing screens had disappeared or were in disrepair, and the laborious task of making molds and casting these screens had not taken place in nearly 40 years. In 2003 computer technologist Enrique Rosado began working with Hauer creating digital files of Hauer’s original work, CONTINUA. Utilizing the new technology of digital files and Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) milling machines, the team is working to recreate the works of this master.

The journey of translating the designs into the new technology was not easy for Rosado. He found what I have found in my research; often you must push the technology to do what you need it to do, and then wait until it can catch up and become affordable. In a wonderful magazine article about Hauer’s work in Metropolimag.com it states, “These subtleties of balance and proportion were difficult to translate into the software. ‘The computer wants to do what it wants to do,’ Rosado says. ‘And if you’re fastidious, you really have to beat it into submission.''

My other choice in Design and Computation was actually a student of Hauer. Bathsheba Grossman says that she was an undergraduate at Yale studying math when she first saw Hauer’s work. It was life changing; this is what she wanted to do. After graduating with a degree in math she went on to study sculpture at University of Pennsyvania. Bathsheba transfers math and science into wonderful sculptures utilizes 3D printing in metal and 3D laser etching as the output. She reports that her “traditional” studio has been reduced drastically, as she creates most of her work in the computer. It is because the complexity of her work cannot really be done any other way. She creates in a space that is inaccessible to traditional forms. Immersed in technology, for years she has watched as some traditional artists like jewelers begin to gravitate to working on screen instead of through tiny loops. It is not without its sacrifice, as she admits there is a tactile experience that is the reward of creating manually.

She waits patiently for technology to catch up to her needs as an artist. I learned that the “rough” texture created in the very intriguing process of digital printing in metal is a result of the technology and not part of her design. She is waiting for technology to improve. For those artists pursuing technology in the studio, it may sometimes feel like it progresses at the pace of RealSnailMail.

There were many more discoveries that I have found at Siggraph, which I hope to share in this column in the coming months, along with some wonderful tutorials on the advances in digital technologies as it pertains to the traditional artist. I myself have decided to embrace the technology and share it with as many creative people as I know. Maybe this will increase the snail's pace and create the demand for the advances in technology that will assist us in our future creations. Though technology is improving and it will help us; in closing I would like to leave you with a quote from Hauer, “It is an important token reminder for the younger generation and their tutors, that above and beyond the abundance of electronic marvels, the human vision and imagination remains the most important element and that its nurture should not be replaced by excessive reliance on devices.”

In the previous article Mold Making and Bronze Casting-Part I, we learned about preparing your sculpture for the mold making process and painting rubber on the sculpture. If you want to see a mold being made please refer to the video, The Casting of the Dick Hathaway Memorial. The video has been embedded in the online article Part 1. I will refer to this video often in this article. In Part II, I would like to talk about the process of creating a mother mold. Once this portion of the mold making process is complete, your molds can be cleaned, sent to the foundry, and waxes can be poured into the molds. Your artwork then begins its journey through the foundry process and through the lost wax method of bronze casting.

Mother molds are called mother molds because they hold the rubber in place. Your rubber may have been created in two or more pieces or sometimes one piece with a seam up one side, but a mother mold must be able to be pulled off the artwork, and it will not have the flexibility that rubber has. To be able to take the mother mold off the sculpture, it may entail visually dividing your sculpture up into more sections for the mother mold so that the pieces can be pulled off without any force or prying that may destroy the wax that will be poured into the mold later at the foundry. Drawing with a marker on the cured rubberhelps to define the mother mold sections.  You will “clay up” seams, just as with the rubber portion discussed in Part I, claying up the sculpture along these marker lines in preparation for the plaster. 

NOTE: You must "clay up" before putting on the mold release, or the Klean Klay will not adhere to the rubber.  To make the Klean Klay adhere warm it up in a microwave as in the rubber stage and push it onto the dry rubber. Thicker "clayed up" seams are preferred over thin seams in both the rubber stage as well as making the mother mold seams. There is nothing worse than having a clayed up seam break loose while making the mold.

Mother molds can be made in a variety of different products. Most artist use a type of plaster called Hydrastone.  Hydrastone is much stronger than Potter's Plaster.  You may be able to purchase Hydrastone from your art dealer, but most likely it will cost more than getting it from a supplier. I purchase mine from Circle Supply in Houston, Texas.  A 100-pound bag of Hydrastone at Circle Supply costs $32.89. I went through three-100 pound bags on the Dick Hathaway sculpture featured in the video.

Mother molds can also be made in fiberglass.  If I know I will be creating many pieces in an edition and I will need to obtain many waxes from a mold, I consider the extra effort of using fiberglass. You will be quite surprised how heavy a small mold can be with a mother mold of plaster.  Fiberglass has its advantages for larger molds as well, because upon completion the mold is lighter.  Fiberglass is, however, I believe, difficult to work with and toxic to use.

The plaster portion of the mold making process is the messiest part.  In the past, I have fooled myself into thinking, “Just let the plaster fall on the floor and it will dry and scrape up easily.”  This is just not so, and preparation of my space for making the mother mold is just as important as the rubber.  It also makes clean up so much easier.

I usually like the rubber to cure a day before putting on the plaster, and often the plaster is done in conjunction with rubber. For example, if a mold is done in two pieces like the leg or arms in the video, I will paint rubber on one side then put the mother mold of plaster on top of that, and then flip the sculpture to do rubber and a mother mold on the other side. 

Before beginning to put the plaster on the rubber, you must note there is a process of preparing the rubber so that the mother mold can be pulled off the rubber.  I mentioned this in Part I. This step is done in the rubber stage.  This part of the process is not shown in the video and is a bit tricky to describe.  Pieces of foam, the kind of foam that is in your sofa cushions, have been stuck to the rubber in areas of deep undercuts. Then a skin of painted rubber is put over the foam.  The foam offers the “give” that the rubber mold needs to fold back on itself as it is taken off the wax that will be poured into the mold.  It also gives a flatter surface with no undercuts for the plaster mother mold to be put on top. I will try to make a video or take detailed photographs of this the next time I make a mold.

Before applying plaster you should cover your rubber with a mold-releasing agent.  An inexpensive source for this is simply usingshortening such as Crisco or a store brand purchased from your local grocery store.  Rub this over the entire surface. Putting your hand inside a plastic bag first helps to coat the rubber without making your hands gooey, an old cooking tip.  

I usually have four plastic buckets, one that I am mixing in, one that holds a bit of hemp soaking in water, another that has extra plaster, should I need it, and another for washing my hands. 

Mixing plaster is tricky, and you must watch it closely because when it activates there is little time to work.  Working on smaller areas is much easier than a very large area.  Be prepared to get dirty. 

HINT:The Hydrastone makes these containers weak. I figure it must be a chemical reaction.  Plus, I will often bang on them with a rubber mallet to get the hardened plaster out.  When using the last bit of mixed plaster in the container, or if there is excess, try to scrape to the bottom in the center of the container.  Then after the Hydrastone cures in the bottom of the plastic bucket, I can bang on the container freeing the two pieces into the trash can outside my studio and offering me a clean container to use for the next part of the mold.  You will have to find just the right spot to bang on the container to loosen the plaster form the container without plunging through and breaking the increasingly brittle plastic. I prefer the rounded edge of the bottom.

HEMP: I purchased a bale of hemp, which will probably last me a lifetime. I might suggest you talk to your foundry or another artist and see if you can purchase some of their hemp from them. Be careful, if you buy a bale and clip those metal straps around the bale, the thing will explode, and you will be trying to figure out where to store all that hemp. 

DO NOT MAKE A MOTHER MOLD WITHOUT HEMP.  If you break your mother mold you have lost your piece.  Hemp increases the strength of your mold, and if you are in a hurry, like I usually am, you are going to want to get this mold pulled and into production as quickly as possible. Molds, just after their completion, can be quite fragile.

Fill your plastic bucket with water to the amount needed for the amount of Hydrastone mixture you will want to use.  I am not sure how to tell you how much to use; this knowledge will come with practice.  Always mix the Hydrastone into the water.  I start by making mounds of Hydrastone and letting them soak.  You can get ratios from your Hydrastone supplier, but I really do this part by sight.  Usually I add a bit more Hydrastone as I impatiently wait for the bucket to begin to “kick”.  I mix all my plaster by hand and don’t use any mixers.  This really helps me know the different stages of the plaster.  It is something I do by feel.  While the Hydrastone is soaking, I’ll take some of the hemp that has been soaking in water and arrange it over the rubber section that I am about to cover in Hydrastone, being sure to put some on the seam area. Then I will take this hemp off and dip it into the Hydrastone mixture and lay it back on the rubber.  As the mixture begins to "kick", I must work quickly, putting the plaster on the sculpture, forcing it into the hemp and building the areas that I need, including the seams. I strive to make the entire mold an inch thick or less. 

When you are finishing the Hydrastone mother mold section and the Hydrastone is curing—you will know this is happening because it becomes increasingly warm, go over the section one last time with a wet hand to “polish” the outside surface of the mold, making it smooth.

HINT: When creating a section of mother mold next to another section of mother mold, I also rub the Crisco or cooking shortening on the edge of the completed Hydrastone piece. This will help in separating the pieces and keep splashes of Hydrastone from being stuck to the already hardened plaster.

There are a couple of tools that I think are necessary to create the plaster. For example, I love having this large loop tool around when creating my Hydrastone mother mold. It is great when you want to clean up your Hydrastone seams and not make them jagged. This tool also cuts through the Hydrastone, even after it begins to cure, which is helpful, if I feel I have too much Hydrastone in one place.

Once all parts of the plaster are made you will want to separate the mold.  Waiting a day or two for the Hydrastone to cure is helpful. It will take longer in high humidity. As the water evaporates from the Hydrastone, it will strengthen and will become a bit lighter.

HINT: Small molds are often held together with rubber bands, larger molds may require bolts.  Making a seam that comes up at the edge provides room for bolts.  These bolt holes can be drilled before pulling apart the mold. Be careful not to jeopardize the rubber underneath.  Often there is so much rubber and plaster, it is sometimes hard for me to make out where the sculpture actually lies underneath.

Separating the shell can sometimes feel like an impossible endeavor.  I have several screwdrivers that I can shimmy into the seam.  Once one is in a seam, I’ll try to move it down a bit and put another in, doing the same thing all of the way down the seam, being careful not to puncture the rubber underneath.  More than once I have to struggle with a seam, only to flip the mold over and try another one.  As a l ast resort, I may try to scoop out the clay from the open section where the wax will be poured, giving me something to hold on to, and I use this to pry the pieces apart. It takes practice to know when and where to apply pressure and when not to.  This part of the process can take a good deal of strength. 

NOTE: Be very careful if you are prying one piece of Hydrastone off another.  It is easy to shatter a corner or an edge. Go slow and steady, and if you feel frustrated walk away, get lunch, and come back later.

Once the mother mold is separated, you can pull the rubber away from the original art.  You will lose the integrity of your original art, but I keep the sections, especially the face. Should the wax come back to me and not look right, it gives me something to compare the wax against.  Before sending these molds to the foundry, the rubber will need to be washed both inside an out. This can be done with kitchen soap and a good brush. Sometimes a toothbrush helps to clean small textured areas.   When cleaning the inside, be sure that all the clay debris is out of the crevices and details, as this will be picked up by the wax, rendering the wax unusable.

The Crisco should also be washed off the outside of the rubber.  Then the rubber is dried and placed back into the mother mold.

HINT: Do not leave the rubber in a heap. Instead let the mother mold do what she is supposed to do, cradle and hold the rubber.  Rubber can have a “memory”, and leaving the rubber tossed about outside the mother mold may distort its shape and cause it not to fit back into the mother mold securely.

I would suggest that anyone who is wanting to learn to make molds for his or her own bronze casting, watch the process being done under a master mold maker.  Contact a local foundry or artist and ask them if you can intern or apprentice under them to learn this process. They will most likely appreciate your eagerness and the help, especially if you can do it in their time frame. Remember they are on a deadline.

I might also suggest you take your education a bit further and ask the foundry if they will teach you to pour and pull your rubber molds.  There is no better education in knowing if you created the mold properly than experiencing how the mold pulls from a wax. Though the process of creating a mold for bronze casting can feel daunting, with a little practice it is possible to begin to create your own molds, and in turn, save yourself a great deal of money in the process of bronze casting.

There is one question that I receive on a regular basis, “How do you make a mold for bronze casting, or how can I make my clay artwork into bronze?”

Though the process is quite detailed, I have recently made this video of the Dick Hathaway mold and bronze casting. It is not instructional but it does show the process. Watch the video and I’ll share some hints, and tips as well as some of my resources for materials that I use. Mold making and bronze casting is much too much to cover in one article, so check back next month for part two.

I have been making molds for years; however, I still find myself saying, “I could have done this one better.” I learn from each process. Attempting to make your first mold will feel overwhelming, but start with something simple. The one thing I have found that keeps me from beginning a project is not just the learning process, but also the daunting task of finding all the materials and tools I need. So for this months article I thought I would give you a list of my tools and materials used in the mold process, some of which you will see in the video If you proceed with a mold and need any further assistance or have any questions just go to my forum on my website, http://www.creativesculpture.com/forum and post your question. I’d prefer to answer your question on a forum. Then others might find our conversation at a later date and gain some knowledge. I’ll list the contact information of my suppliers at the end of this article, though I do encourage you to research suppliers in your own area.

CLAY

Almost all of my work goes from clay to bronze. That is the reason that I rarely use water-based clay to sculpt, though I love the feel of it. The AB 200 J-Mac Classic Clay brown, purchased from Reynolds Supply, does not have to stay wet and that is a huge plus with a long commission.

The clay that you see me using as I’m claying up the seams in the video is Klean Klay. You can purchase this from Reynolds or directly from Klean Klay. Each of these clays comes in a few different consistencies. I prefer firm for both. I’m sorry I can’t give you a price on Klean Klay. Last time I ordered it, I ordered quite a bit. I do have to clean it, cutting away plaster and rubber after each mold making session. I lose some of it during this cleaning, but my supply has lasted me a long time.

TOOLS

When I am claying up seams, I heat the clay up in a microwave, bang it out into thick slabs with a rubber mallet, and then put it on the sculpture while it is warm. Often I search around the studio for jars, cans, and other items to hold up this seam. Pressing hot Klean Klay against the base of a jar will help to hold it in place, and the jar helps hold up the seam. If I need to clean up a seam, I’ll use my favorite dental tool. I use a round ribbon tool to carve the groove in the Klean Klay. This creates the “key” to keep the two pieces of rubber together. Kitchen knives come in handy to cut the clay to make a clean edge.

As you can tell, making the seams and preparing each piece can take a lot of time. It probably took me three days to cut and prepare the entire sculpture.

Don’t forget to leave an area to pour your wax into the mold. This can be the cut area. For example, where the arm was cut. Sometimes I create a clay spout, adding it to the cut areas to give me a good pour. If you look at the lower torso in the video, I put rubber over the entire cut section, between waist and lower torso, and poured the wax into the rear area.

I love power tools. It is a reciprocating saw that I use for cutting apart the sculpture. Using this tool is something I learned from the foundry.

The metal shims used in creating the seams on the upper torso and head are from Wholesale Tool and they are taped together with scotch tape. I have also seen other sculptors use plastic for shims. One of my cans of shims says the size is .0005. The shims should be thin enough so as not to make too big a gap when the rubber pieces are put together and not too thin so that it bends when you push it into the clay.

HINT

Be careful when using metal shims. Throughout the process, the shims disappear after being covered with rubber and plaster, you may have an edge stick out that can slice your hand.

MOLD RELEASE

Each sculpture piece is sprayed with a couple of coats of mold release agent. I never seem to have enough of this around. Be sure to keep a few cans on hand. Universal Mold Release costs about $11.30 a can and is purchased from Reynolds.

RUBBER

I have tried several different rubbers, but right now I am using Reynolds Rubber Brush- On 40, gallon kit. It costs around $120.00. It took about four of these to do the Dick Hathaway sculpture, a big investment. Remember though, a foundry would charge you about $7,000 to make a mold this size. I’m open to investigating less expensive rubbers, but dependability and longevity of a rubber is something to consider when comparing rubbers and I know this rubber fits that bill.

Mold making is messy. I put paper, plastic, or cardboard around the mixing area. Save all of your large plastic yogurt and sour cream containers. These can be used over and over again for mixing rubber. This entire process is not very earth friendly and reusing containers helps ease my conscience a bit.

Mixing sticks. I use a lot of these, so I try to pick them up from the hardware store whenever I go. Usually they give them when you buy paint. I also look for anyone throwing away old shutters or shutter doors. The slats work perfectly for stirring sticks. Yes, the word is out, I garbage pick.

HINT

Be sure to keep the catalyst (yellow container) of your rubber covered while working with it, it can go bad.

HINT

Keep a stick to scoop out Part A and a separate stick for Part B and then another clean mixing stick. You don't want to get any of part A into part B until you are ready to mix. You will notice in the video that I save my containers from sushi to set the cups in so they don’t drip all over the work area.

HINT

You must have equal parts. You must also be sure to mix thoroughly. If you are using yogurt containers be careful of the groves in the bottom of the container. You will want to be sure to mix every bit of it from the bottom. If you falter on these two hints, you will lose your mold and maybe your original.

GLOVES

Have plenty of gloves on hand. Mold making is very wasteful, but working without rubber gloves is maddening. I usually try to keep both vinyl and latex, just in case an apprentice prefers one to the other.

PAINT BRUSHES

You will use quite a few paintbrushes. I change out paintbrushes after each coat of rubber. One inch chip brushes work best for me, and I get mine from Montalbano Lumber, $14.04 a box Even though this is a little item, I suggest looking around for a good price per piece on these. You will use a lot.

HINT

When applying the first coat of rubber, be sure to dab the rubber into all crevices. The second and third coat will go much faster than the first. I like to have several pieces to work on to keep the flow going. That way I am not waiting around a long time for something to cure for the next coat. If you touch the rubber and it feels sticky but kind of leaves a fingerprint, it is ready for the next coat.

UNDERCUT PREPARATION

This is a step that is not covered in the video. The video does not show how to make sure a mother mold will come off of the rubber. It is a vital step. Please contact me and I’ll explain this or I’ll be sure to video tape it in detail the next time I make a mold.

NEXT MONTH – Making the mother mold

SUPPLIES AND SUPPLIERS

Paper or plastic to cover floor
Recipricating saw
Klean Klay
Rubber
Mold Release
Stiring Sticks
Yogurt Containers
Gloves
Microwave
Rubber mallet and tools to clean up seams
Large garbage can for disposing of gloves and brushes
Paper towels

Ceramic Store Tools and water base clay
1002 West 11th St.
Houston TX 77008
1-800 290-8990
http://www.ceramicstoreinc.com/

Circle Supply in Houston Hydrastone
6401 Long Point Rd # 506
Houston, TX 77055
(713) 688-9803
http://circle-supply.com/

Fine Art Foundry of Texas wax and bronze casting
6107 W34th
Houston, TX 77092
713-686-5567
http://www.fineartsfoundrytexas.com/

Klean Klay Clay for claying up the seams
P.O. Box 678
1019 Salamonie Ave.
Huntington, IN 46750
260-356-2328
http://www.kleanklay.com/

Montalbano Lumber Chip brushes
5850 N Shepherd Dr
Houston, TX 77091
Phone: 713-691-6611
http://www.montalbanolumber.com/

Reynolds Advanced Material Rubber, clay, mold release
5 locations 1-800-421-4378
http://www.reynoldsam.com/

Wholesale Tool Shims
Several locations
1-800-521-3420
http://www.wttool.com/

Immediate action is needed concerning the Senate Bill S. 2913 and House Bill H.R. 5889, the Orphan Works Acts of 2008.

America is known for the country that protects an individual’s rights. It is impossible for me to comprehend that my rights as an artist may soon drastically change, and that I could lose the rights to all the work that I have ever created.  When I first heard about this, it was so unbelievable that I thought that it must be a prank. But, with further investigation I found it was not.   In this article I will include a little about what I found and links with other articles for readers to peruse so that they can make their own informed decision.  I am also setting up interviews with several people including Copyright lawyers, those in the writers unions, and even those in the American Federation of Television and Radio artists, to name a few.  There is urgency in acting and spreading this information.  For whatever reason, this is moving through congress quite quickly and will affect your rights and possibly your income as a creative person.

As I find more information and create these interviews, I will pass them on to the Editors at Best of Artists and Artisans sculpture blog to be posted at their discretion. I will also post all of the information that I find on my home page blog, located at www.creativesculpture.com/blog

COPYRIGHT LAW AS IT STANDS TODAY
First, a few basics about copyright law as it stands today.  According to the copyright law of 1976, everything that you create is protected by copyright from the moment you create it, even if it is not registered. This is the way copyright is handled throughout the world. It was defined by the Berne convention, which is an international agreement concerning copyrights.

With the current Copyright law, you do need to register your work if you want to collect for statutory damages for infringement. If, however, your work is registered and you discover someone has stolen it and you file suit, statutory damages are punitive and can be quite severe for those infringing on someone's rights. This very idea keeps many people honest about “taking” other people's artwork. 

"It is not what it appears to be, it is a Trojan horse… Under this orphan works legislation, nothing you do would be protected unless it is registered with these commercial registries… they are orphaning all unregistered work”   Brad Holland

THE CHANGE IN LAW
A radically proposed change to the US copyright law allows infringers to exploit the right of copyright holders with little or no penalty according to the Orphan Works Opposition Headquarters (OWOH). “Two bills currently on the “rocket docket” would let infringers “orphan” any copyrighted work whose owner the infringer failed to locate through a vaguely defined “reasonably diligent” search. The creative arts industry, including world-renowned artists, designers, photographers, manufacturers, and licensing businesses have united to oppose this legislation.”

The New Orphans Work Act declares that nothing you do would be protected unless you register it with a registry, placing a burden of diligence on the copyright owner.  It must also be stated that even though these bills are moving quite fast through congress, registries do not, at this time, exist.  These would be private registries where an artist would be responsible to register their art. In other words, every artist will have to pay to own their own work and each of their pieces will have to be registered, right down to the sketches in their sketchbook.   If they are not and someone comes across your work and they search these directories and do not find it, then they can say that they performed a “reasonably diligent search.” They can use your work at no cost. As I comprehend the ramifications of this, the works that are presently copyrighted would also have to be reregistered. The cost of registering each piece of artwork, nevertheless the time that it would take to register each piece of artwork throughout an artists lifetime, makes this task impossible and prohibitively expensive.

It is interesting to note the following—It is a violation of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works for any country to impose registration on a rights holder as a condition of protecting his copyright. See Article 5(2) "The enjoyment and the exercise of these rights shall not be subject to any formality (emphasis added).", (From How the Orphan Works Bills Affect Visual Artists. Illustrators Partnership of American)

According to some of the interviews that I have listened to a creative person would also have to police their artwork, making sure that no one has taken it or it may be considered orphaned.” It is also said that you would have to reply to all inquiries on your artwork or it might be considered orphaned. All of this hardly leaves room for an artist to create.

OWOH states, “The new bills would severely “limit” financial penalties for infringing. Opponents charge this will encourage deliberate theft because statutory damages are the only tool the law gives copyright holders to prevent abuse– and they say it works. Penalties for infringement almost certainly deter rampant abuse by making it risky. But as medical illustrator Cynthia Turner notes 'the new bills would protect infringers by denying artists damages, incurred court costs, attorneys’ fees and other expenses.'"

“Because these bills were planned behind closed doors, introduced with little warning and fast-tracked for imminent passage, a broad-based coalition of artists and trade associations say they have had little time to respond and generate public discussion. They say that a radical change in intellectual property law should not be rushed through Congress without public vetting. They are calling on Congress to slow down this legislation until it can be subjected to an open, informed and transparent public debate.”

Those in support of this bill are libraries and educators that claim that this bill is intended to give libraries and museums greater latitude to commercialize archived works. But, accordingto tp the OWOH, “critics charge the bills have been drafted so broadly they would permit any infringer to commercially exploit any copyrighted work, from professional art to family photos.” Those supporting the bill say that if artwork is worth something it should be registered. But if it is not worth something why would others want to take it?

Brad Holland of the Illustrators Partnership of America comments on the bill, ‘It is not what it appears to be, it is a Trojan horse… Under this orphan works legislation, nothing you do would be protected unless it is registered with these commercial registries… they are orphaning all unregistered work” 

I encourage you to become familiar with the bill and take action accordingly.  Your rights may be fading away without you even knowing it. If you would like to have your voice heard, The Illustrators Partnership of America has made it quite easy to take action. You can go to the web site and send an email, but faxes and letters are also encouraged.  Please keep coming back for further information on this subject and send a link to this blog to other creative people that you know.

OTHER RESOURCES

Don't take my word for it. You must decide how important this is to you. Here are some places to start.

    * A wonderful resource of articles about this bill put out by the Illustrators' Partnership
      For comprehensive bill descriptions that describe the impact on visual artists:
      House Bill http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/issues/bills/?billid=11320236
      Senate Bill http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/issues/bills/?billid=11322171
    * Video interview with Brad Holland of the Illustrator's Partnership
    * American for the Arts on the Orphan words Legislation
    * American Society of Media Photographs Update on 2008 Orphan Works Legislation
    * Art Calendar article on the Orphan Works Act that also talks about Microsoft's and Googles involvement.
    * Public Knowledge concerning the Orphans work act
    * Orphan Works Opposition Headquarters
    * Plagiarism Today has several articles about the subject
    * Attorney Tammy L Browning- Smith discusses the orphans works and Washington DC in her online blog Arts and crafts law
    * Photography Director Rob Hagart discusses H.R.5889 ORPHAN WORKS ACT OF 2008 (INTRODUCED IN HOUSE)  on his online blog
    * An article from The Artist Foundation about the Orphan works Act
    * The American Society of Media photographers throws in the towel and gets behind the bill, Johnathan Bailey describes why in this article ASMP Supports Orphan Works Bill. This site also has a video
    * Mind Your Business: Don't Lose the Rights to Your Artistic Creations, Animation World Magazine's Mark Simon reports on alarming new developments in his continuing campaign against the Orphan Works Act.
    * Why the Orphan Works Act is Uncles Sam’s Thieves’ Charter written by the Editorial photographers United Kingdom and Ireland

Artwork

    * Political cartoon created by Benjamin Hummel and used with permission
    * Lisence to steal created by Mike Delaflor and used with permission

 

This past month marked a celebration of a true traveling exhibit. The 2008 Houston, Texas, Art Car Parade is one of the oldest and largest art car parades in the world. 200,000 plus spectators and media from all over the world saw this year’s parade. The art car parade is part of The Orange Show’s Center for Visionary Art and began in 1988 with just 40 vehicles. This year, its 21st anniversary, boasts 280 entries from over 15 states.

I decided to take my studio apprentice Russo, an exchange student from Georgia (the country between Europe and Asia, not the state) to see this Houston wonder. Everyone should experience these American artistic autos at least once in their life. While on the way to the parade, we were followed by “Shep The Rescued German Shepherd” art car. Or should I say, "We were tailed."  It was at that moment that Russo learned she was in for something quite unusual.

An early arrival to the parade allows for close inspection of each art car, along with some of the colorful characters that seem to accompany the cars and those that the parade draws out from the woodwork. Besides art cars, costumed roller skaters and art bikes are also welcome in the parade.  
 
There is really no other experience like seeing the wild rides exhibited in the art car parade. Russo and I quickly found our favorite cars.  On our list was the “Sashimi Tabernacle Choir” created by Richard Carter, John Schroeter and Team Sashimi. The creators of this car mounted singing fish novelties and wired them to the car to sing in unison. The car has over 250 computer-controlled lobsters, bass, trout, catfish, and sharks. 

We were also quite fond of “Dekuntry Pedlur” by Rich and Pam Molden. The car made to look like an old fashion country peddler made me think of Ma and Pa Kettle or the Clampetts. 

The “Phone Car” by Howard Davis was originally a 1975 Volkswagen Beetle and has a horn that rings like a telephone. Amber Eagle was inspired by the patron saints of Mexico and created “Lady of Transportation” and won Mayor’s Cup and Participant's Choice Awards in the parade.
 
People's Choice went to a giant chicken car called “HEN-A-TRON II” by Pomponio Napumucino. 

Woodworker Isaac Cohen created a work of art. His car “Splinter” is made of wood. According to the artists My Space Page, “I built Splinter as a birthday present to myself for my 50th birthday. It took 5,600 hours to complete. Splinter is built on an 89 Honda Accord frame.  The body is 21 ft. long and crafted from 4,985 linear strips of ash and walnut.”
  
  
 
It is rumored that Houston Grand Opera’s baritone Liam Bonner was the person singing in the mouth of the art car “Opera To Go” by Perryn Leech. The parade is one of artistic wonderment, free expression, and a real head turner. Coming home I had the urge to glue, epoxy or create something for my own silver van.  You could say it was an obsession that was driving me crazy.

“Keep America's roads weird, build an art car”
Quote by Tom Jones curator of The Art Car Museum died May 10, 2008 killed by a drunk driver.