Lemon Slice Sunrise

Early mornings are spent finishing up a large functional sculpture called "Fruition", which is in the shade outside the west wall of the studio.  In the heat of the afternoons, I work inside the studio (with a fan on me) on a sculpture called "Lemon Slice Sunrise".

 This picture was taken last fall after I cut a large piece of scrap from "Fruition" using the diamond chain saw.  In the background is the raw quarry block that later became "Resonate Journey" (makes me tired to think of all the work that I went through on that piece!)

 Meg used her crane truck to move that 1,000 lb. piece of scrap into the studio.

 I came up with this design to fit that stone.  It is a metaphor for making the best of a bad situation; when life gives you lemons, make lemonade - that kind of thing...

 I opted to go with the shapes found inside a lemon slice rather than the background sunrays in the drawing.  The sections of the lemon slice have a bush texture that contrasts with the fork chisel texture on the sunrays and the polish of the sun and rind of the lemon.

 As you walk around the piece...

 ...and the other side.  This piece measures 30"H x 37" x 15" and will sell for $2,800.00

Then, ending this post with a wildlife picture.  Some of the fawns are now coming up to the studio with their moms.  This little girl just got done checking her look in the chrome bumper of Meg's truck.  She's walking over to go nose-to-nose with a button buck (undoubtedly her first meeting with a boy) - who promptly kicked her in the head with his front hoof.

Wyandotte Cave

June 15 was my 58th birthday and Meg treated me to a tour of Wyandotte Cave which is a little west of Corydon, Indiana.

 We joined a group for the 2 hour tour.  This is the natural entrance.

This cave had been closed for a long while because of the White Nose disease that decimated the bat population.

 Even though this cave is close to where I grew up, I'd never been here before.

 This is one of the remaining barrels from a scheme by some guys to corner the onion market back in the 1800's.  The cave has a long (and colorful) history of use: first by native Americans, a group of counterfeiters, a secret society called Oddfellows (who had meetings with costumes and musical instruments) etc.

 This room had strange acoustics that made it sound as if the floor was hollow.

 I loved these dry-laid stone cairns that were at various locations throughout the cave.  Long ago, people would stay in the cave for days - exploring and making their own "monument" to show they were here.

 I liked these long Epsom salt crystals growing on the path.  Lots of geology in the cave: calcite, gypsum, dolomite, flint etc.

 There was a passage that had helictites - which are erratic growths of stalactites that seem to defy gravity.

 Meg caught this close-up shot of a twisty bunch.

You can see the seated silhouette of our guide (second generation following in his Father's footsteps).  He did a great job - let us take our time and enjoy the experience.
So… I'll have to go back another day and take the short tour of a different cave on the same property.
It was a pleasant way to spend my birthday.