Art Nouveau Inspired Sculpture

As I wait to birth it has felt very important to finish unfinished projects. This is in part to do with following the Artists Way these last months and revisiting some of my artistic U Turns. And so I finally finished off this piece which has sat on the shelf next to my desk waiting to be cast for over a year.

Having spent many of my formative years living in Glasgow it is impossible not to be influenced by Art Nouveau and Rennie Mackintosh. However the artist I have always particularity admired was the lesser known Frances MacDonald, sister of Mackintosh's wife and part of the Glasgow School, The Four. Her work is beautiful. This sculptural work was greatly  inspired by her work, in particular - 

 

Spring - Frances MacDonald

 

The Sleeping Princess, 1910

I have been drawing 'floating ladies' for some time and have felt they have a certain Art Nouveau style to them. So I decided to use my penchant for floating ladies and be quite methodical in creating an Art Nouveau inspired piece. I  borrowed motifs and elements of style from artists across the movement, Frances MacDonald as earlier mentioned and artists such as Mucha. I originally sculpted the piece in clay and then made a plaster cast of the the clay original. Using this plaster cast I made a more durable final piece from white cement. I think my original plan had been too place the finished piece in a whimsical garden grove surrounded by greenery, which I have yet to create. 

 

 

 

Parts of the Sculpture Process

Basic form starting to take shape.

I generally try to work from life, but its always handy to have some photos to refer to.

Ear detail. I love the ears. After doing this sculpture I have been looking at the wonderful sculptural forms that are the ears of my family. I plan to give them more focus in future works.

 Nearly ready to cast. I couldn't decide whether to sculpt in the pupils. Often the eyeballs in classical sculpture are left plain, however in antiquity they may have been painted in.

 I was making a two piece waste mould. Meaning I would make a two part plaster cast. The brass fencing adorning his head creates a thin barrier/ division between the two parts of the mould.

 I decided to sculpt the pupils. It makes him look far more alive.

 After making the plaster mould I needed to separate the two halves and remove the clay. Soaking the cast in a little water causes the clay to expand and thus forces the two halves apart. After separating the two halves I gently removed the clay without being to vigorous and damaging the plaster. I was lucky that the face pulled out in one piece. I have it on my work bench eerily looking at me.

 I got so engrossed in the project that I forgot to take pictures of the concrete stage. However after removing the clay it was given a thorough wash and the mould kept wet. I then gave it a rinse of soft soap to help separate concrete from plaster later on. I filled the two halves separately. A layer of white cement slurry followed by a thick layer of white cement mixed with pebble aggregate, reinforcing the cement with hessian strips. I then joined the two halves and as the sculpture is hollow reached inside and reinforced the internal seam. Once the two halves were together they were strapped together and left to cure for a few days. I didn't want the piece to dry out so I draped wet clothes across the top.

After chipping him from the mould there were a few areas that needed to be patched up, so I made a new mixture of cement slurry and pasted it on. He was then sanded to finish.

Centurion Sculpture

Balancing babies and creative work has meant that this sculpture of my partner has sat on my work desk unfinished for a 'few' months. However it is now done and my desk if available for new projects. Thanks to renewed vigour in my art practice as a result of the Artists Way (affiliate link).

The original sculpture was made in clay, I then made a two part waste mould from plaster.The final piece is cast in white cement.

A bit of fun! My partner is facinated by the Romans and so part of the inspiration for the sculpture was to create an Roman style bust. For now the centurion is sitting on the breakfast table.

Shadow life



Reflections and Shadows

I have for some time been fascinated with reflections and shadows. Most namely reflections in still water and the shadows caused by the sun. The shadow selves that are created, simple outlines that capture a moment. Without detail they encapsulate the essence.
 I feel like making reflections and shadows the theme of some further exploration over the next months. But for now I leave you with a series entitled Abhain Rath Reflections, which I took whilst in the Scottish Highlands several years ago. Simple rotated images of a slow moving river. The froth on the river creating magical snow like swirls. Edited on Light room.

 Available to buy as a A4 Giclee prints from my Etsy shop

New Beginnings

I had a dream two nights ago, in which I owned a pub. I had decided to live there but was taking no responsibility for running it. I had appropriated a lounge room for my living space and became a little disgruntled when anyone accidentally spilled into my space from the pub. However one day I decided to explore and I realised that there was a lovely beer garden and even a swimming pool that I had never noticed. As I looked around my lounge room I noticed that there were big display fridges full of delights that looked fresh, but had been on display for so long that they might not be. I couldn't remember how long I had occupied the space for and so suddenly became very worried that I might accidentally poison someone. So in my dream I decided it was time for me to take control of the pub. get my license and learn how to run it. 

I made the assumption that this dream was guidance for my life, it is the new year after all and if I were still in the northern hemisphere its almost time for a spring clean and so i felt it was apt to wipe the slate clean of my old blog and start anew fresh. So welcome to the new Rebecca Home Art, a journey in artistic exploration.