Cathy Erdmann's Art

Clay Beginnings

I've been adding the clay to Hayden's sculpture and thinking about a workshop I attended taught by Kirsten Kokkin.  The first day we began work on our sculptures she said, "Don't be afraid to let it look ugly."  I think she said that because there is a tendency to want everything to look perfect from the very beginning.  Right now I'm enjoying the process, making it look good comes later.

Oh, and by the way the match sticks in the ears are for measuring purposes, just in case you are wondering.

Life Sized Metal Armature Part 2

What goes on top of the metal and under the clay?  Lots of foam insulation, glued together with "Great Stuff" and held together with duct tape, until it dries.  I've enjoyed making a big mess the last couple of days, but I can't wait to take off the duct tape and start adding the clay.

Life Sized Metal Armature

Did you ever wonder what's inside a life sized clay sculpture?  For the next few days I'll be showing you what happens before the clay goes onto Hayden's monument.  This is Dan Hildreth, another Utah sculptor, who is welding the metal armature for me (I'm not much of a welder).   The armature is constructed of 3/4" square metal tubing.  It has to be very strong to keep from collapsing under the weight of the heavy clay.

Here you can see the small maquette to  the right of Dan.  He has enlarged the armature to equal Hayden's high of 52".  This process requires lots of math, even artists need to know their geometry.

Pouring the Bronze

After the wax is melted out of the hard shell formed by the slurry, Sergio and Jesus pour in the hot bronze.  They need to wear protective suits, because of the extremely high temperatures.

 

Into the Slurry

Now that the little orphan girl has been turned from clay into wax, she is ready to be dipped into the slurry.  The slurry makes a hard shell around the wax.  The red markings on the surface help the foundry worker (this is not Ken's normal job, but I had to commandeer him for the photo) know how many times the wax has been dipped.  It will be coated seven times before it's finished.

Ursa Minor

Yes, I'm already thinking of Christmas!  Saturday at the Farmer's Market I came across a wonderful little book, written by Tad Bear.  "A Bear's Tale", is a Native American nativity story about why the bears in the night sky, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, have long tails and how they relate to the birth of Jesus Christ.

Of course, my imagination went wild and I decided I had to sculpt a little bear to give as a gift along with the book.  These little bears will be cast in marble resin (white) and made into an ornament to hang on the Christmas tree.  A small rhinestone will be set in the end of the tail to represent the North Star.

Wow, A Book Cover!

I was excited to receive a copy of the Far West Philosophy of Education Society Journal, with a picture of one of my sculptures on the front cover entitled, "Bringing it Closer".  A big thank you to the editor, Dr. Karen Mizell.

The Wax Room

After the mold is completed, we're off to the wax room at Kolob Sculpture Works, with the orphan girl sculpture.  This is Ken, pouring very hot wax into the mold.

After several coats of wax, the sculpture is ready to be removed from the mold and now we have a hollow wax replica of the clay.

Here is Amanda, patching up and putting the finishing touches on the wax sculpture.  She also attaches the cup and arms that the bronze will flow through when the sculpture is casted.

Fish Tales Finished

For those of you who have been following Fish Tails, here is the finished sculpture ready to go to the foundry for casting. You may have noticed too, that the name has been altered slightly.  My husband mentioned this morning that this sculpture would make a good, "Fish Tale".   So, officially named, "Fish Tales", this sculpture is off to become a bronze limited edition of 55.

The wires at the bottom are there for support of that heavy load of clay fish and will be eliminated in the finished bronze.

Mold Maker Part 2

The rubber is completed on the little orphan girl and now she gets a coat of plaster and hemp.  This is called the mother mold, it cradles the rubber in a nice hard shell.