WARNING! DO NOT INHALE!

I’ve finished shellacing the shit out of my piece! I couldn’t be happier with the end results. The smell of shellac can be pretty… thick… if you will…. So I have a great respirator that completely blocks out the fumes! Worth every cent, that respirator! What stinks more than the toxic solvents is the fact that my studio is literally a storage closet so I have no real ventilation system going on. I’ve basically gassed myself completely out of my own studio. Fans are on full blast but I don’t know how much good they’ll do unless my door is open. I can’t leave it open unattended because I have a large collection of expensive tools that I’d rather not get stolen. Worth the risk? Maybe. I figured I’d see how bad it was tomorrow night. If its still a wall of toxic…. I’m going to have to babysit by studio with the door open till the smell calms down.

Was it worth it? Of course.

Will my studio mates get a little high tomorrow/hate me? Most definitely.

 

Final portfolio pictures to come. I have a round of show applications due March 31. Gotta get this dried and photographed ASAP!! AHH!

Burlap is DONE!

What a tedious process!! I’m happy with the end result though and am ready to shellac! 

Who Knew...

...This would take so long..... progress pictures: 

Sexy, Sexy!

This weekend I’ve been slowly upholstering “Cathartic Birth” in sexy, sexy burlap. Wait… you didn’t know that burlap is sexy? Well… now you know! I’m glad I could be the one to point that out to you. Burlap covered in shellac… now that’s the ticket! I want to go to there.

I’ve completed the arms, hands, and head. Last night I started the main trunk of the figure. I’m trying to not be too anal retentive about all this. It’s my nature to want everything to be just so and in my control, but ever since I started making more frequently, I’ve been making the conscious effort to loosen up a bit. Seams are going to happen… and that’s okay. The burlap might imperfect in some areas… and that’s okay!

I have to let the process “take over,” in a sense, and embrace the output.

Burlap Attack

Tape is Done!

I recently finished up the tape job for the "Cathartic Birth" piece. All the legs, feet, crotch... DONE!! On to the burlap!! I made a tester to see how the burlap will look wrapped tightly and coated in shellac. I'm sold! Looks great and I'm ready to move forward! Tests are definitely an annoying step in this whole process.. but it has helped me gain confidence in treating the surface of this piece. I'd rather waste time on meaningless tests than screw up in a way that I can't reverse.

You should take a moment and marvel at my HUGE bolt of raw burlap. Its just so... beautiful....

Burlap/Shellac tester = SUCCESS!

Bowchica-bowow!

Labor Of

Even before having my first child this past August, I knew this would be the ultimate act of love. Filming some of my first contractions helps me to remember how much I went through to receive my little boy. “Labor Of” is a visual representation of love through sacrifice, pain and suffering.

Much like most of my previous performative pieces, a threshold is definitely met. I chose to have no sound in this video because I feel there is such power in the subtle nuances of my facial features. Looking over the footage, I noticed I would have the slightest eye twitch whenever another contraction was coming. I would see the twitch and get anxious for myself… myself from 7 months ago… knowing that a wave of pain so great was getting ready to wash over my entire body.

I now know the limits to my physical and mental strength after enduring such an intense labor.