Direct Carving
My great teacher, Tom Blodgett, said: "The creative act is one of desperation." The logic behind this is that if you are doing something you
know how to do, you may be very good at it, but you are just repeating something you have learned before. Whereas when you really go out on a limb, when you have no solutions, when you are about to fail, that is when adrenaline kicks in and you pull out the creative act. attempt to put myself in the most critical and dangerous situations to ensure that this principle keeps me on my toes scrambling for solutions.
Putting the whole project in jeopardy is the best way to make it a success. I'll take a stone I have spent months to obtain and thousands of dollars to purchase, then blast into it with heavy machines, with no idea what I am doing. Or paint a scene in the last light of day, knowing that the light is changing every minute. That is the way it feels to create. There is a time towards the end when you can slow down and carefully carve or paint in the finishing touches, when the experience is calmer. But the bulk of the time it is a near mortal battle. Creativity = Desperation. (more)
know how to do, you may be very good at it, but you are just repeating something you have learned before. Whereas when you really go out on a limb, when you have no solutions, when you are about to fail, that is when adrenaline kicks in and you pull out the creative act. attempt to put myself in the most critical and dangerous situations to ensure that this principle keeps me on my toes scrambling for solutions.
Putting the whole project in jeopardy is the best way to make it a success. I'll take a stone I have spent months to obtain and thousands of dollars to purchase, then blast into it with heavy machines, with no idea what I am doing. Or paint a scene in the last light of day, knowing that the light is changing every minute. That is the way it feels to create. There is a time towards the end when you can slow down and carefully carve or paint in the finishing touches, when the experience is calmer. But the bulk of the time it is a near mortal battle. Creativity = Desperation. (more)
Carving
I lived and carved in Italy for many years and believe there is another
explanation of how Michelangelo and others worked. For thousands of
years stone workers carved before there were safety glasses. Loss of an eye
was unacceptable. With all the building and carved work to be done they
could not afford to loose workmen to eye injury. The chisel when it is in
contact with the stone is held at an angle such as you can say it has a
leading edge and a trailing edge to the cutting surface. If you look at the
front cutting leading edge you will quickly go blind. Where as if you look at
the underneath trailing edge of the chisel you can carve all day and never
get anything in your eye. It is said Michelangelo could cleave off massive
chips several inches thick. He would have sent those chips flying safely
away from him not wanting to risk his eyesight. In order to look behind
and underneath your chisel and to cleave off the largest pieces possible
with each blow, he carved only the extreme edge of the block, carving the
profile of his figure. With every blow the point of the chisel slips behind the
block and out of view. The chip is sent flying away.
When you look at the front of the chisel, you are looking at the waste
material you are removing and so it goes in your face. When you look at the
back of the chisel, you are looking at the material you are leaving, the
sculpture itself, so you are exactly controlling the form. When you look at
the front of the chisel, the force of the blow is actually bruising the stone,
which will become your form, your sculpture. When you look at the back of
the chisel and are carving profile, the blow of the chisel gives only a glancing
bruise to your sculpture. The angle of the chisel is tangent to the form. The
energy of each blow is put into removing waste material while only
tangentially licking the outside of your sculpture with no risk of breakage.
Michelangelo was a draftsman so line was extremely important. He knew
the figure from every point of view. The edge of the drawn figure is its
profile. The profile of whatever you are carving is where the edge of the
sculpture is and the background begins. If anyone knows how to draw and
can say from this point of view, the profile of what I am carving is, “Here.”
Draw a line. Now all the stone that is on the other side of the line must be
removed. Put your chisel on the line or close to it, and blast away. When
that profile is the way you want it, move 5% and new profiles will present
themselves. One never carves the material in front of you, but only the
material on the very edge of whatever you are making.
Michelangelo was a superb draftsman; line was his heart’s song. I tell
my students to give me any piece of the figure and I can push my profiles
and uncover the rest of the body. From the tip of a finger I can find the hand.
Drawing is King. When I teach sculpture I also teach drawing.
Take a pitching tool or a point and place it on that back edge and blast
away. The bend down and retrieve the chip and hold it up to the stone to
see the break. I see that surface as a plane. If that break was on a true
profile then the plane of the break is tangent to the profile of the sculpture,
it does not cut into needed material. Most of the figure is round so the
profile slips away from you. My experience is one of chasing profiles. I start
on one profile and carve while moving my sight to another profile. Good
crisp Italian marble will break very predictably, always on a plane. I believe
everyone carved profile, not just Michelangelo, until the 1700′s, when the
pointing machine made carving an industrial affaire and glasses became
available. The only reason I have come up with for it not being written
down is that it was so common that no one conceived it would be forgotten.
Notice we never write down how to use a pencil. Everyone just assumes
that it is understood. If you know how to draw, you know all your profiles
and carving could not be easier. By carving in deep relief before cutting off
the back of the whole work, it is way stronger for storage and moving around.
Sighting down an arm or leg shows other kinds of profiles. Now take a bite
out of an apple. If you look at the bite from the front, you cannot tell
actually how deep the bite is. But when you turn the apple so the bite is on
the profile you see exactly how deep you bit. So for safety sake and to better
see how deep you are cutting carve profile. There is an old saying,” Cut
from the weak towards the strong.” This is a small piece of the issue but
does not cover the whole of profile carving.
I do teach now days. I watch people carve everywhere I go and no one
carves profile, which is so weird as I think for centuries it was the other
way around. I never pointed although I understand both that and
compasses. But I never wanted to do it. If one starts with a model then that
is all you can expect to get. When you start with no model or idea you open
yourself up to a myriad of potential forms. Fear of failure pulls out the best
in me. I do not get to see the sculpture until it is done, keeping my
enthusiasm and excitement at a high level all through the carving
experience.
When I teach I ask my students to stand behind me and sight right over my
shoulder so they see what I see. It is suddenly obvious which stone needs to
be carved away. I once heard that it was said that Bernini would get into
one position and make marks all around him. I do the same thing. Say I
put myself on my knees and lean into my figure, then freeze. From that
position examine all the profile extreme edges of the sculpture. Every
profile line is in relation to every other line so that all must be in
agreement. The outside of an arm relates to the inside of the arm. Those
two profile lines must remain in harmony while you move your head
around the arm. The profile lines change as you move. But while carving
one only need to concern yourself with one line at a time. From whatever
point of view that I take I am confronted with many profiles. By attending
to them one at a time I bring that point of view into harmony. Then I move
to another position dancing around the stone, climbing up to look from
above and getting on my knees to look up. The figure blossoms out of the
block. If you are working around the block and you get back to a position
you were in before, most of it should already be correct, perhaps a few
adjustments, but by and bye everything falls into place and the carving
experience just gets more fun. As I start to do delicate modeling I can look
at the front of the chisel as I am removing only tiny chips and dust. At that
point surface is more important and you cannot see that on profile. Instead
you must consider the stone directly in front of you. Regardless at this
point eye protection is no longer an issue.
explanation of how Michelangelo and others worked. For thousands of
years stone workers carved before there were safety glasses. Loss of an eye
was unacceptable. With all the building and carved work to be done they
could not afford to loose workmen to eye injury. The chisel when it is in
contact with the stone is held at an angle such as you can say it has a
leading edge and a trailing edge to the cutting surface. If you look at the
front cutting leading edge you will quickly go blind. Where as if you look at
the underneath trailing edge of the chisel you can carve all day and never
get anything in your eye. It is said Michelangelo could cleave off massive
chips several inches thick. He would have sent those chips flying safely
away from him not wanting to risk his eyesight. In order to look behind
and underneath your chisel and to cleave off the largest pieces possible
with each blow, he carved only the extreme edge of the block, carving the
profile of his figure. With every blow the point of the chisel slips behind the
block and out of view. The chip is sent flying away.
When you look at the front of the chisel, you are looking at the waste
material you are removing and so it goes in your face. When you look at the
back of the chisel, you are looking at the material you are leaving, the
sculpture itself, so you are exactly controlling the form. When you look at
the front of the chisel, the force of the blow is actually bruising the stone,
which will become your form, your sculpture. When you look at the back of
the chisel and are carving profile, the blow of the chisel gives only a glancing
bruise to your sculpture. The angle of the chisel is tangent to the form. The
energy of each blow is put into removing waste material while only
tangentially licking the outside of your sculpture with no risk of breakage.
Michelangelo was a draftsman so line was extremely important. He knew
the figure from every point of view. The edge of the drawn figure is its
profile. The profile of whatever you are carving is where the edge of the
sculpture is and the background begins. If anyone knows how to draw and
can say from this point of view, the profile of what I am carving is, “Here.”
Draw a line. Now all the stone that is on the other side of the line must be
removed. Put your chisel on the line or close to it, and blast away. When
that profile is the way you want it, move 5% and new profiles will present
themselves. One never carves the material in front of you, but only the
material on the very edge of whatever you are making.
Michelangelo was a superb draftsman; line was his heart’s song. I tell
my students to give me any piece of the figure and I can push my profiles
and uncover the rest of the body. From the tip of a finger I can find the hand.
Drawing is King. When I teach sculpture I also teach drawing.
Take a pitching tool or a point and place it on that back edge and blast
away. The bend down and retrieve the chip and hold it up to the stone to
see the break. I see that surface as a plane. If that break was on a true
profile then the plane of the break is tangent to the profile of the sculpture,
it does not cut into needed material. Most of the figure is round so the
profile slips away from you. My experience is one of chasing profiles. I start
on one profile and carve while moving my sight to another profile. Good
crisp Italian marble will break very predictably, always on a plane. I believe
everyone carved profile, not just Michelangelo, until the 1700′s, when the
pointing machine made carving an industrial affaire and glasses became
available. The only reason I have come up with for it not being written
down is that it was so common that no one conceived it would be forgotten.
Notice we never write down how to use a pencil. Everyone just assumes
that it is understood. If you know how to draw, you know all your profiles
and carving could not be easier. By carving in deep relief before cutting off
the back of the whole work, it is way stronger for storage and moving around.
Sighting down an arm or leg shows other kinds of profiles. Now take a bite
out of an apple. If you look at the bite from the front, you cannot tell
actually how deep the bite is. But when you turn the apple so the bite is on
the profile you see exactly how deep you bit. So for safety sake and to better
see how deep you are cutting carve profile. There is an old saying,” Cut
from the weak towards the strong.” This is a small piece of the issue but
does not cover the whole of profile carving.
I do teach now days. I watch people carve everywhere I go and no one
carves profile, which is so weird as I think for centuries it was the other
way around. I never pointed although I understand both that and
compasses. But I never wanted to do it. If one starts with a model then that
is all you can expect to get. When you start with no model or idea you open
yourself up to a myriad of potential forms. Fear of failure pulls out the best
in me. I do not get to see the sculpture until it is done, keeping my
enthusiasm and excitement at a high level all through the carving
experience.
When I teach I ask my students to stand behind me and sight right over my
shoulder so they see what I see. It is suddenly obvious which stone needs to
be carved away. I once heard that it was said that Bernini would get into
one position and make marks all around him. I do the same thing. Say I
put myself on my knees and lean into my figure, then freeze. From that
position examine all the profile extreme edges of the sculpture. Every
profile line is in relation to every other line so that all must be in
agreement. The outside of an arm relates to the inside of the arm. Those
two profile lines must remain in harmony while you move your head
around the arm. The profile lines change as you move. But while carving
one only need to concern yourself with one line at a time. From whatever
point of view that I take I am confronted with many profiles. By attending
to them one at a time I bring that point of view into harmony. Then I move
to another position dancing around the stone, climbing up to look from
above and getting on my knees to look up. The figure blossoms out of the
block. If you are working around the block and you get back to a position
you were in before, most of it should already be correct, perhaps a few
adjustments, but by and bye everything falls into place and the carving
experience just gets more fun. As I start to do delicate modeling I can look
at the front of the chisel as I am removing only tiny chips and dust. At that
point surface is more important and you cannot see that on profile. Instead
you must consider the stone directly in front of you. Regardless at this
point eye protection is no longer an issue.
The Creative Process
The creative process is about magic and believing in miracles. It is about trusting that
the process will guide us. It borders on the spiritual, in that a connection is made for
which words seem inadequate, yet we witness it. In fact this connection is a sign that
the process is working.
While doing gymnastics, flips, and tumbling, my gym teacher explained that if you
don’t really go for the trick, if you hold back at all, you will not have enough altitude
and will surely break your neck. It is a very graphic example of a principle, of the
creative process that extends itself to all disciplines, and so should be understood as
fundamental. Jump off the edge.
If you think you know what you are doing, you are acting from a point of confidence
and knowledge. The creative process happens once you have jumped, and you don’t
have any solutions.
Once you have surrendered to your fear, given up your control, the magic happens.
The doors of perception open and there is a flood of emotion as the first wave hits and
your free fall turns into flight.
The creative process becomes a way of life. Its principals are a guide that can give
you the courage to face the difficulties and uncertainties of the artistic life. The truth
is that it can take over your life, you may become obsessed, intoxicated by the
passions that flow through you. Forget sleeping. There is only repose from sheer
exhaustion. That doesn’t mean that you get to create all the time, because there are
lots of interruptions, but neither does it ever leave you. When you enter the studio,
time suspends itself and you work hard, for the joy of it.
There are no failures, they are just steps along the way, and absolutely necessary to
the process. The only judgment is the extent that you allowed fear to enter. One of the
miracles of creativity is how the phoenix rises out of the ashes of our failures. We
behold its splendor. One of my teachers told me that it has to look ugly before it can
look beautiful.
You can’t hold on to anything, so beware of becoming attracted to beauty or to truth.
Beauty glides noiselessly across the floor. Truth is helplessly cruel. Both will lure you
to stop when there is still more work to do.
It doesn’t matter how anyone did it before, not even you have lived this moment
before. Remember you are in free fall. You are creating; no amount of thought can
save you now.
Sometimes friends or family will say that it is madness; your commitment will be
tested. Faith is hard to explain. There is no reason why it should work, no logic, yet
there seems to be principals that must be respected in order for the magic to happen.
There is no time frame for magic, no way to force it. The whole process is one of
setting the stage, creating the time and space for miracles, being patient, relentlessly
on guard against the pitfalls of fear and control. When the time is ripe, the fruit will
come. Remain open as long as possible.
There are various stages in the process, such as the set up, the fall, the flight and the
landing, a return to this world. It is a journey that will reveal much about ourselves
and is open to all.
The first requirement seems to be purity of intent. It is extremely important as it puts
the mind in a state of openness. The point is not to achieve some goal, but of being
open to the possibility of witnessing and participating in the magic, the wonder of
creation.
Since the results of the experience are a mystery until near the end, it is important to
keep the mind during the initial stages concentrated on the broadest of principals, in
their abstract or mathematical sense. During this period the questions asked, are
aesthetical and theoretical.
Once the abstract is in harmony with your emotional state, vision is released from the
rational mind and images appear, materialized and often mostly realized. This
happens to many of us when we suddenly see an image in the clouds, or a piece of
knotty wood.
Here we are presented with the choice of modern art, to share or not to share, your
vision with the rest of us. I am an imagist; I believe that the image can be an addition
to the abstract qualities of a piece. I wholly embrace pure abstract and just personably
am unable to stop at that point.
Choosing the image is totally a personal thing. I have passed up images never to see
them again, and at times, gone on, to greater and more meaningful images. Often I
experience an image so clearly and powerfully that it is irresistible. I wait until I have
several images to choose from. The more fully the vision uses all aspects of the
abstract, the less you will have to invent.
Our ability to invent is an acquired knowledge. We have to know something
thoroughly and have the skill to reproduce it. This is difficult and so it should be
avoided during the creative process. One should actively pursue life studies, so that
future knowledge, will serve you during the stage of pulling out an image.
When you can’t invent, use reference material or go out on location and do a study,
which will resolve the missing element. If you choose a vision that gives you 80% of
the information, there should be no problem finding the missing 20%.
In the final stages of perfecting the image all your past can finally be brought to bear
on the remaining problems. Only time can fill the reservoirs of your mind. Study life
at all times. Although acquired knowledge only comes into the creative process here,
at the end; it is nonetheless essential. The more you have, the easier it is.
Use good materials, have respect for your efforts. You don’t need to be struggling
with poor materials.
Creation takes an atmosphere that is warm and dry, where you can work undisturbed.
There is no reason to assume any financial benefits. If you want to make money there
are other ways.
If you must do it, then there never was a choice. Buono Lavoro
the process will guide us. It borders on the spiritual, in that a connection is made for
which words seem inadequate, yet we witness it. In fact this connection is a sign that
the process is working.
While doing gymnastics, flips, and tumbling, my gym teacher explained that if you
don’t really go for the trick, if you hold back at all, you will not have enough altitude
and will surely break your neck. It is a very graphic example of a principle, of the
creative process that extends itself to all disciplines, and so should be understood as
fundamental. Jump off the edge.
If you think you know what you are doing, you are acting from a point of confidence
and knowledge. The creative process happens once you have jumped, and you don’t
have any solutions.
Once you have surrendered to your fear, given up your control, the magic happens.
The doors of perception open and there is a flood of emotion as the first wave hits and
your free fall turns into flight.
The creative process becomes a way of life. Its principals are a guide that can give
you the courage to face the difficulties and uncertainties of the artistic life. The truth
is that it can take over your life, you may become obsessed, intoxicated by the
passions that flow through you. Forget sleeping. There is only repose from sheer
exhaustion. That doesn’t mean that you get to create all the time, because there are
lots of interruptions, but neither does it ever leave you. When you enter the studio,
time suspends itself and you work hard, for the joy of it.
There are no failures, they are just steps along the way, and absolutely necessary to
the process. The only judgment is the extent that you allowed fear to enter. One of the
miracles of creativity is how the phoenix rises out of the ashes of our failures. We
behold its splendor. One of my teachers told me that it has to look ugly before it can
look beautiful.
You can’t hold on to anything, so beware of becoming attracted to beauty or to truth.
Beauty glides noiselessly across the floor. Truth is helplessly cruel. Both will lure you
to stop when there is still more work to do.
It doesn’t matter how anyone did it before, not even you have lived this moment
before. Remember you are in free fall. You are creating; no amount of thought can
save you now.
Sometimes friends or family will say that it is madness; your commitment will be
tested. Faith is hard to explain. There is no reason why it should work, no logic, yet
there seems to be principals that must be respected in order for the magic to happen.
There is no time frame for magic, no way to force it. The whole process is one of
setting the stage, creating the time and space for miracles, being patient, relentlessly
on guard against the pitfalls of fear and control. When the time is ripe, the fruit will
come. Remain open as long as possible.
There are various stages in the process, such as the set up, the fall, the flight and the
landing, a return to this world. It is a journey that will reveal much about ourselves
and is open to all.
The first requirement seems to be purity of intent. It is extremely important as it puts
the mind in a state of openness. The point is not to achieve some goal, but of being
open to the possibility of witnessing and participating in the magic, the wonder of
creation.
Since the results of the experience are a mystery until near the end, it is important to
keep the mind during the initial stages concentrated on the broadest of principals, in
their abstract or mathematical sense. During this period the questions asked, are
aesthetical and theoretical.
Once the abstract is in harmony with your emotional state, vision is released from the
rational mind and images appear, materialized and often mostly realized. This
happens to many of us when we suddenly see an image in the clouds, or a piece of
knotty wood.
Here we are presented with the choice of modern art, to share or not to share, your
vision with the rest of us. I am an imagist; I believe that the image can be an addition
to the abstract qualities of a piece. I wholly embrace pure abstract and just personably
am unable to stop at that point.
Choosing the image is totally a personal thing. I have passed up images never to see
them again, and at times, gone on, to greater and more meaningful images. Often I
experience an image so clearly and powerfully that it is irresistible. I wait until I have
several images to choose from. The more fully the vision uses all aspects of the
abstract, the less you will have to invent.
Our ability to invent is an acquired knowledge. We have to know something
thoroughly and have the skill to reproduce it. This is difficult and so it should be
avoided during the creative process. One should actively pursue life studies, so that
future knowledge, will serve you during the stage of pulling out an image.
When you can’t invent, use reference material or go out on location and do a study,
which will resolve the missing element. If you choose a vision that gives you 80% of
the information, there should be no problem finding the missing 20%.
In the final stages of perfecting the image all your past can finally be brought to bear
on the remaining problems. Only time can fill the reservoirs of your mind. Study life
at all times. Although acquired knowledge only comes into the creative process here,
at the end; it is nonetheless essential. The more you have, the easier it is.
Use good materials, have respect for your efforts. You don’t need to be struggling
with poor materials.
Creation takes an atmosphere that is warm and dry, where you can work undisturbed.
There is no reason to assume any financial benefits. If you want to make money there
are other ways.
If you must do it, then there never was a choice. Buono Lavoro