2018 at a glance

Below are images of the stone sculptures I made this last year.  Over all, it was a good year, even though it often seemed like I was walking across a bridge of glass, with fierce cross winds and no guard rails.  Still, I feel like I'm doing some of the best work in my life - hoping for even better in 2019!  Enjoy and have a great New Year yourself !!!

"Breeze" and "Zephyr" functional sculptures

I guess there's a theme to December's sculptural efforts: Breezes, Zephyrs,   Is it the Winter Winds on my mind?

 The first piece that I completed was this vessel in Indiana Limestone called "Breeze".  It measures 20" x 14" x 5".

 There were quite a few days below freezing when I spent time indoors doing drawings and models.  One design to come out of those sessions was a scale rendition for a seat called "Zephyr".  This design is actually a spin-off from the "Magic Carpet" bench that I made last year (there's also some visual ties to the piece called "Daydreamer Bench").

 Meg used her crane truck to move this block of Indiana Limestone into the studio.  It measures 30" x 20" x 16" and weighed-in above 1,000 lbs.

 I started the piece by carving the top curved seating element.

 Then, I sawed the 2 sides flat and drew on the designs using a timber crayon.

 This is how the piece looks today... I was hoping to have it completely done, but it still requires a few days of finish work.

 It will also get a base... next spring...  when I buy more stone...

… and ending with the standard wildlife image: Last Monday, wave after wave of Sandhill cranes flew over the studio all morning long.  Sometimes, they were so close that I could hear the sound of their wings as they passed overhead.  Here's a short piece of video for that:
https://youtu.be/_d3F08bysE8
The event started right about the time that I felt the earthquake that centered in Tennessee - I also felt the aftershock sometime later

Ice Storm and Holiday Fun

I woke up Wednesday, November 14 to the aftermath of an ice storm.  The first thing that I saw was the top busted out of one of the Cypress that I planted over 15 years ago.

 I can see reflections of lights in this picture which implies... that I still had power that morning.  From 5 p.m. Wednesday until noon on Sunday, I had none.  No problem, I just put new strings on my acoustic guitar, kicked back and kept the wood stove going.

 Somewhere along the way, I decided "waste not, want not".  I brought the broken top of the Cypress inside for a Charlie Brown style of Christmas Tree.

 I hung wore out diamond blades and polishing pads from the branches.  I wrapped the bottom in 3 different colors of wore out extension cords and crowned the top with a cone-shaped grinding wheel. I'm good to go - maybe Santa will replace the wore out blades with new ones....

 I got a break from 19th century living when I went to the Kyana Rock & Mineral show on Saturday, Nov. 17.  This Grape Chalcedony from Indonesia was my favorite acquisition.

 15 minutes after getting my power back, I got a visit from my old high school friend Kirk Schablik who was up from North Carolina for Thanksgiving.  On black Friday, Meg, Kirk and I went out across this black bridge for an adventure.

 We went to Rose Island in Charlestown State Park.  They've made huge progress since I was there 5 years ago.  They've got lots of great signage and I love the big metal corner posts that mark where the old buildings used to be.  It helps to form an idea of the way things were before the '37 flood took it all out.

 They also reconstructed this long path with these arches.  There were a lot of other folks who had the same idea that day.  Rose Island is getting a lot more use than when we were last there..

 We still had some daylight, so we went down to the Falls of the Ohio after getting a pizza at Arni's in New Albany.

 What you can't get from pictures is the roar of the flooding river as it goes over the dam.  The power of that water is unbelievable - you wouldn't dare take a boat out into that!

 As we combed the beach, we found this whimsical family group.  It's definitely the work of "Artist at Exit 0".

… and ending this post with a rainbow of colors left by the same artist.  Cool stuff.

"Enthusiasm" stone sculpture

Last June, I split off 2,000 lbs. from a 10,000 lb. quarry block of Indiana Limestone as I carved "River Fiddle Bench".

 It was too heavy to be moved by Meg's crane truck, so I decided to carve it right there where it lay.

 After a series of drawings and clay models, I came up with a design that I liked.  It was called "Enthusiasm" - where it is a bright and shiny sun breaking through the barrier of " stick-in-the-mud, everyday routine".  This concept was based on a reading from the Book of Changes by the same name.  It is typical of my fascination with Dualities; Enthusiasm without Discipline will dissolve into Unbridled Mirth - Discipline without Enthusiasm is Drudgery.  The 2 need each other to keep a balance.

 I carved weight off the side and cut the bottom flat.  Then, Meg used her truck to stand it upright.

 I carved a deep hole behind the Sun shape to create an interesting negative space.

 When, it was stood up, I could see that the back side was concave - I didn't have the stone to do my original idea...

 … so, I modified the design to work with the stone.  I'll re-work the design someday in clay and buy a quarry block to make the original design.... some day...

I thought that I'd have this piece finished by this time, but the weather hasn't been conducive to working outside (not if I don't have to, anyway...).  Hopefully, I'll post finished pictures before the end of the year.

2 Installations in Champaign, Illinois

I just received these pictures from David Wilcoxen who is the President of the Public Art League in Champaign / Urbana.  These are "Courtesy of" and copyright remains with David.

 We started the installations on the morning of October 23, 2018.  Here, we've just taken "Stepping Out" off the flat bed truck.

 Crossing the cross walk...

 taking her up the road...

 … and over some bushes … in heavy traffic... nothing's easy.

 … and here she is on 1 Main in downtown Champaign.

 Then, off to The Trails at Brittany subdivision for installing Day Dreamer Bench.

 We moved it across the central lawn, beside a lake full of wild geese...

… and already put to good use!  Thanks Dave for the pictures and thanks to all these guys for their help!  Both crews were excellent to work with - took a load off my mind having experienced crews for these installations.

2 Sculptures leased to Champaign, Illinois

Starting with old business first...

 I sold this sculpture to a private individual from Ashville, NC. last weekend.

 I also sold this stone vessel to them as well.

 At daybreak on Monday, October 22, Meg drove me to Louisville to get a rental truck from Sternberg on Crittenden Dr. Then, Dereck Sheroan from JBB Inc. of Hardinsburg, KY brought their 23 ton crane out to move some stuff for me after lunch.  First thing we did was move this 5,000 lb. block of Indiana Limestone out of the way.  (this and the next 6 photos by Meg White.)

 Then, we stood it up so that I could work on the piece.  It will become a functional sculpture titled "Fruition".

 The Public Art League of Champaign / Urbana IL accepted 2 of my stone sculptures into their lease program.  We loaded "Daydreamer Bench" onto the 24' flat bed truck that I had rented.

 Next, we went into the back part of the sculpture garden for "Stepping Out".  When we brought this sculpture out a couple years ago, we got the crane truck stuck in wet, muddy ground - nothing like that this time around.

 We set that piece on the truck and then I made the 6 hour trip to Champaign / Urbana.  Saw a shooting star on the way up - Meg said later that it was probably part of the Orionid meteor shower.   Tuesday was taken up with installing the 2 sculptures at their separate sites, picking up an old piece in Monticello and making the 6 hour drive home.

 The Public Art League had bought "A New Leaf" which had been leased for the last 2 years.  At some point, I may have to go back up and oversee the move to its new location.

 On Wednesday morning, Dereck had to come back to the studio to unload "Shooting Star Bench" before Meg and I could take the truck back.  Shooting Star had been on loan in Allerton Park near Monticello, IL for the last 2 years, but they didn't acquire it.  I had logged in 33 hours in 3 days and I'm taking it easy for the next couple days before returning to work.

 On Saturday, October 13, Meg and I went to Doe Run Inn where a chain saw carving event had been organized by our friend, Abby Peterson.  These are some of the wood sculptures that were auctioned off that day.

 Doe Run is a very pretty place - I spent a lot of time down here as a kid as well as working in the Inn when I was 16 and 17.

… and ending my post with the obligatory wildlife picture.  An employee of Broadbent Wildlife Rehabilitators was showing people a juvenile Great Horned Owl.  The chainsaw event gave a portion of their proceeds to Broadbent - definitely a worthy cause!
(and for more wildlife stuff - check out this video by Meg.  It's 1 of 2 white deer we saw the other day:)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQN8q7OZh1U