The Grinch

I started this one this morning which I'll put in the Silent Auction at the Dayton show in a week or so.  The theme this year is a holiday one so he ought to fit somewhere in that area.  Should be a crowd pleasure....at least I hope so.  Hope you like him.

Wrapped In Glory

Finished this fella a couple days ago but lost the front view photos.  Retook them this morning so here he is in all his proud glory.  He had sat on my workbench for a week staring at me while I couldn't figure out just what to do with the blanket.  There was so much area there that it had to have some kind of design to bust up all that surface.  Well, while flipping through my reference material I came across a photo of a painting by John Moyers which solved that problem.  Here's the link to that painting".  https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz6aOJ4WfAAPPqVyIDgl0uxFPT7WRssO9fnSLko49qB-O-MX4yb0mIJVi2O10oz-rNq5VMI0h0JctFLc6WZ08EuTE_MewPOTq1-j04b3Yqmn-A2GxsRLfh6Nj62mqCGxzKGAUnHQ/s400/Native+American.jpg   Some might call this copying.  I don't!  I consider it taking advantage of the information that is available.

I penciled on the lines for the design and then lightly burned the breaks.  I applied the paint pretty straight from the bottle on the wet surface to get the strongest color.  I think those strong colors really bring out the softness of his face.  Even the hat was painted straight but that too appears soft compared to the flag.  The gold choker also amplifies the richness of the whole piece.   Just my opinion.

I painted the hair a dark gray before dry brushing on the white.  Instead of using Moroccan Red on the braid wraps I used straight Red Iron Oxide as I wanted a clear definition between those two red colors.  The hat is  Midnight Blue, shaded with black.  I think the skin tones could be a little darker but overall everything seems to work so I'll leave it as it is.  As I mentioned earlier the earrings are pounded brass painted gold.

The piece stands just over 15" with the base so it will be pretty impressive setting on the display stand or the Judges table.  There are more photos in the Gallery and your comments are always welcome.

The Old One

Here is the newest piece just off the carving bench.  Stands a little over 12" tall with the base.  Should be pretty colorful once painted.  I gave him some hammered brass earrings which I've painted gold.  Still have to add some wire ties to his shell choker which should finish the piece but will do that once it's painted.

Still sticking to my plan of carving a Native American, then a Cowboy then back to an Indian.  They can't say I don't believe in equal opportunity!   Next up is a sour faced wrangler informing all who enter the museum show that they'd better keep their hands off the carvings or he'll have to put the sign down and possibly do some damage.   Completed the head yesterday at our weekly carving and B.S. session downtown and he's looking pretty nasty!

Oh.....if you haven't see it yet, check out the neat write-up about my upcoming show at Woolaroc in the latest High Noon eMagazine Smoke Signals.  You can find it at:  http://www.highnoon.com/aboutsmokesignals.htm.  It's under the "In The News" section.   Have to thank my friends James and Tammy over in Harrison, Arkansas for submitting it to them.   High Noon is probably the largest dealer of western artifacts and memorabilia in the U.S. and also a great research site.  

We stopped by the Museum on our way home from Colorado last week and had a long conversation with the Director.  Even got a tour through one of the back storage rooms which was really neat.  Saw a model Chuck Wagon which made me humble but the really great thing was when he  handed me a bronze off of a dusty shelf and said "Here's a Charlie Russell!"   Me, standing there holding a Russell bronze!  It doesn't get any better than that!

Making Boxes

Want to know how to pack your carvings so they'll arrive safe?  Well, here are two videos which will show you how I go about it.

The Cherokee Kid

Old Will, or rather Young Will in this case, is passing the time spinning some rope and that boy can spin some rope!  This was really an enjoyable figure to do.  Lots of action with a little humor tossed in for good measure which Will would probably approve of.   I based the figure and the colors of the clothes and chaps on the painting "Dog Iron" by Wayne Cooper which hangs inside the Memorial in Claremore, Oklahoma.  The Dog Iron Ranch was where Will grew up just outside Oolagah, OK.  The ranch is now part of the Memorial and well worth a stop if you're ever in the area.

For the rope I use a larger size of commercially twisted wire available at Lowes so as to bring it into scale with the figure.   There are some more photos in the gallery and your comments are always welcome.

Will Rogers - Part 2

Finished up with the carving part of this project this afternoon.  He's looking better and better.  Still have to burn in the color breaks and the details.  Thought I had a problem with the rope he'll be spinning but figured it out after the second trip to Lowes.   This is a  pretty big bust, standing around 15" tall with the base, so he'll be a pretty impressive piece.

Hope you like him.

El Jefe - Painted

Got this Hombre painted yesterday and he turned out quite well.  Hope you like him.

El Jefe

I haven't decided on a name for this fella yet.  Would like to call him Santiago but I've used that one already, same goes for Pancho, Pedro, Pablo,  so will continue my search for a good one.

He's pretty good sized, standing about 15" with the base.  Hope you like him and there are a couple more photos in the Gallery.

Will Rogers

It's been quite a while since I carved Will Rogers and as they were asking about him last week when Judy and I paid a visit to Woolaroc museum I thought I'd do another bust of the Oklahoma humorist.   The hat behind his head is not the one that will be there at the end but it will give you some idea of what's to come.   Hope you like him.

Hot Tamales

Here's an old friend from the past.  I did this one back in 2000 for a collector down in San Antonio, Texas.  It ended up in Southern California and was recently put up for auction.  It was purchased by a couple in Arkansas.  Unfortunately, the previous owner didn't spend much time packing him up so he arrived beaten and broken.  As I have a policy of guaranteeing my work for as long as I'm around to do it I told them to drop the poor guy off for some repair work.  Well, he's back in the street, ringing his bell and hawking those Red Hots just like before.   What a guy!