I finished this carving last week. So the next step is determining just how to present it. As I've done a number of Chuck Wagon Cooks in the past I want to make this one unique from those. Now I could just mount him on a base by himself but by adding another detail apart from him it creates a more complete story. The addition of a Dutch Oven which will eventually be filled with baked biscuits does the trick.
I don't know his name, but just looking at him I can tell he is one, crusty individual. By the looks of that belly I can also tell he's a fan of his own cooking. Also, by his holding a kerosene lantern it must be pretty early in the morning and while I'm sure the cowboys waking up will be hungry I seriously doubt if they'll appreciate having beans for breakfast. The circular cutout, while still a little large, will make a nice platform for the scene. I thought about adding a coffee pot but I think that would crowd the composition.
So, the scene and the story is complete and the only thing left is the painting and putting everything together. Hope you like him. And comments welcome as always.
Here Is "Po Campo", from the Larry McMurtry book, Lonesome Dove. I'm sure that most of you following this Blog have certainly seen the Lonesome Dove series on TV so you no doubt know the character I'm referring to. One of the character's main features is that, when being hired as cook, he offered Gus and Woodrow some tasty Grasshoppers as an example of his cooking. Must have been good as he was hired on the spot. I may have taken a couple liberties with him by adding the earring and the cigarillo, but other than that I think he would pass muster.
As you can see by the bug on the base, I added a Grasshopper to carry the theme of the piece as it needed something to finish the piece and that little addition did the trick.
I have to thank my good friend Jerry Smyers for the suggestion. That little insect will certainly add some fun to the piece. I made the body and attached legs of him from a piece of basswood and the feet from bent 16 gauge wire. He's anchored by a 1/8" dowel. He took a while to paint, probably longer than the figure of Po Compo!
Anyway I hope you like him and will look forward to your comments as I always do.
Here's the first one of 2019. Yep...another Mountain Man. Along with Native Americans I just can't seem to get away from these guys. No doubt because they can be so colorful and fun to paint. Maybe fun isn't the right word. How about challenging? That knife sheaf took an entire day and a throbbing headache to complete.
As you've probably noticed, I've been pretty lax in posting over the past month or so. I won't apologize as the cause is what we'll all face or have faced over time......Hitting the Wall! Sometimes the desire to be creative just seems to disappear. It might last a couple days, weeks or a month or more. I thought maybe our yearly trip out west to Jackson, WY in September, and a couple weeks of seeing whats going on in the Galleries and watching other artists at work in Quick Draw events in both Jackson and at the Buffalo Bill Museum would be the cure. Nope! Didn't work. Fortunately, I think I'm finally coming out of the creative funk as the desire is starting to move back in. At least I hope it does.
So, as the New Year starts, let's hope we all are charged up to face it with new ideas and the will to get them done and off the workbench.
All the best, Lynn
Here's a new one that left the Ranch before the paint was dry! The weekend's over and he's not to happy about what the Top Hand has laid out for him. At least it's not fence work.
Hope you like him.
Well, it took a while but he's finally finished.....Just in time for the Tulsa Woodcarving Show. I'm quite pleased with the way he turned out and hope you are too. That shield really sets him off and shows how much an extra detail can add to a piece.
Comments welcome.
Here's another one fresh off the paint table. Wrapped in his painted robe with warpaint on his face, he's no doubt planning how to get his horses back from that bunch a couple mountains over.
I never tire of Native Americans. The opportunity to paint them is just too enjoyable.
I finished this one up last week. I really like to do the 3/4 style busts as a lot of detail can be squeezed in without making the figure so large.
This Rancher is after the reprobates who have been diminishing his livestock. He's got his noose ready and is heading to the corral to saddle up and put an end to it. Someone's gonna get their neck stretched!
Here's Willy, all painted up and ready to head down to the new Casino and try is luck. Hope you like him.
Comments always welcome.
I'm still working to clear off the partially finished carvings setting on my work table. One of the best way to do it is to add a bust body to one of the many heads I've done. I think I've mentioned before that on our Tuesday carvers gathering at the Senior Center in town I can usually manage to pretty well rough out a new head in the two hours we're there. So, these things build up after a while.
While Bottle Stoppers are a good way to mount them I think this works out much better by making a something fairly simple turn out to be a really nice presentation. The base is walnut and it, with the figure, stands at 12".
Now to paint it! Comments welcome as always.
Added the hat feathers yesterday which completed this piece. I had my worries about whether the solid color capote would work but I think it turned out pretty well. Not every Mountain Man in the Rockies was fortunate enough to have a Hudsons Bay blanket and had to depend on just what was available.
I spent some extra time letting the waist strap ends hang down over the base to tie the two areas together. The two pieces were attached but reinforced by epoxy on the back side. As long as they are not purposely fiddled with they should be fine.
In sun, he turned out great...He might be an old codger but up there under that hat is a wealth of knowledge on how to live in the mountains and, most importantly, how to stay alive.
I hope you like him and look forward to a your comments. More photos in the photo gallery section.
