Buffalo Girl - Finished

All done and she turned out great.  I was kind of bleary eyed painting all the beading but it really sets off the piece as does the Buffalo skull.   I decided not to paint the upper part of the dress the darker color as it would have detracted from the overall piece.   I was a little worried about mounting the skull to the figure but putting dowel from the back of it into the body locked it in place securely.  There are lots of photos in the Gallery and I will look forward to your comments as I always do.


Note:  As I mentioned earlier, Google is no longer supporting Picasa but now is using Google Plus as the host for photos.  Picasa will remain it's just that it will no longer be updated.  All my photos are already on Google Plus so for ease of operations I'm going to just let things stay the same for the time being.  

Buffalo Skull

Spent the morning painting the Buffalo Skull for my new piece.  Looks pretty good although the photo really doesn't show all the colors used.  Before starting I checked the skull hanging in the Gallery to make sure I indicated all the major skull details, i.e., plates, nerve holes, etc. As that skull was bleached I did a little research to capture the true colors of a naturally sun bleached product.

I started out by removing the horn caps and then painting the entire skull a light gray (mudstone) followed by yellow ocher highlights, followed by brown (asphaltum) and ending with white on the parts that would be mostly exposed to the sun.  I then used straight black for the eye sockets with a little white on the outer edges.  For the horn caps I used black and then dry-brushed on some white highlights which really set off the horns texture.  Once everything has a chance to dry I'll paint on the ceremonial decoration but not too much as I don't want to overdo it.

So far so good!!

Buffalo Girl

I've been working on this one for the past 6 or 7 months.  Once it's painted I think it will be one of the best so far even though, after taking the photos, I noticed a couple areas that need to be corrected.  With the walnut base she will stand about 20" tall.  An impressive piece.

She's a Cheyenne girl, preparing for the Call of the Herd dance.  I plan on painting a few ceremonial symbols on the skull to carry that theme.  She has her skinning knife on her belt and will be ready to follow the hunters once the herd is located.  While there is quite a bit of beaded decoration on her dress and more will be added once I start painting her, I added a role of Elk teeth above the strip of

beads on her chest.  I made those with some 3/16th' dowel and inset them into the wood.   The earrings, choker disk and hair feather disk are made from hammered galvanized

tin.  Once carved, I covered the hair braids with texturing material to simulate a fur wrap.   As for the coloring, I'm thinking of using this dress as a guide:
I really like to darker colored cape.

While I had a number of Buffalo skulls aready carved the size of the figure required that I care one more.  I carved the arms and hands separate so they would fit naturally around the shape of the horn caps.  

While this was a pretty challenging project once it's finished it's going to really look nice.  I hope you agree and will look forward to your comments.  More photos in the Gallery. 

Buffalo Skulls

Over the past couple of days I've been working on a larger Buffalo skull to go along with the figure I'm doing.  While using reference photos from the net I finally gave into bringing over the skull I have mounted in the Gallery to work from.  Nothing beats the actual article as a go-by.  ("Go-by"....I hate that word.  Why can't we just say "reference"?  It sounds much more intelligent and professional! )  Anyway, to show the difference from using mostly photos as a reference over the actual article take a close look at the two skulls. .  Notice the placement of the horns and the curvature of the facial plates. Quite a difference.  I still have to make a correction after mounting the horns as while correct in themselves they are just to massive to match the skull.  That should be an easy fix.  Once this is done I should have a fairly correct copy to go along with the figure.  Even though the complete result might be a caricature, the details associated with the figure will make it that much more authentic. and carry the theme I'm trying to express.

So, if I could give anyone some advice it would be to stop and take a moment to find out as much about what you're trying to accomplish as you can.  For myself, I'm always on the lookout for more "reference" matter no matter where I am.  Today, almost all of us have the ability to whip out our cellphones and snap a photo. When in a museum the first question I ask is can I take photos.  If that's not allowed I have a small sketch pad handy to record something of interest.  Unfortunately, too many of us casually "go-by" so many things that could have a direct and positive affect on what we're trying to accomplish.   (There's that word again!  I hereby banish it from this blog!)

Carving A Buffalo Skull - Part 1

A number of you have asked that we do a series on carving a Buffalo Skull so here's the first part.

Iron Buffalo - Finished

Put the finishing touches to this redskin this morning and boy am I glad to see him done.  What a project but it turned out really well I think.   Quite a colorful piece.  Hope you like him and your comments are always welcome and appreciated.

Iron Buffalo

Not only is the carving part of this project finished but he also received his name.  I picked it as the rock he mounted on is full of some kind of metal as it totally destroyed a Fordom bit when I leveled the areas of the rock where he's standing.  Sparks were flying.

I'm really satisfied with this one as once he's painted I think he will be a classic and an example of my best work.  And you'right....that skull really sets the piece off.  Will have to put that on my video list as a number of you expressed an interest in carving one.

He's an impressive piece, standing 20" including the base.  The stone also gives his some heft which will surprise anyone picking him up.  I omitted the fluffy feathers that are normally at the base of each feather but that is okay as in researching I came across a number of war bonnets which didn't have them.  Oh....and do a Google image search of "war bonnet" and see who's dominating the web these days!!!

Anway, some more photos in the gallery and your comments are always welcome and appreciated.