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figural sculpture help

updated sun 14 nov 99

 

Tina M Low on fri 12 nov 99

I am working on a figural sculpture of a baby that I want to add a lot of
detail to. Does anyone know of any special techniques or tools that would
help me carve eyebrows, eyelashes, eyeballs, hair, etc.?

Sara JH Ashodian on sat 13 nov 99

dear tina

try asking your dentist for their old cleaning tools, they can only use them
for so long before replacing them and the old stuff gets tossed


--
Sara JH Ashodian
Sash Arts Studio

----------
>From: Tina M Low
>To: CLAYART@LSV.UKY.EDU
>Subject: figural sculpture help
>Date: Fri, Nov 12, 1999, 12:40 PM
>

> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> I am working on a figural sculpture of a baby that I want to add a lot of
> detail to. Does anyone know of any special techniques or tools that would
> help me carve eyebrows, eyelashes, eyeballs, hair, etc.?

Libby Douglas on sat 13 nov 99

I highly recommend Bruno Lucchesi's books, "Modeling the Figure in Clay" and
"The Portrait in Clay." Both give good detail on his methods, materials and
tools. Personally, I find that dental instruments and very small riffler
files work wonders for working very fine detail - best when clay is just
past leather hard.
Good luck...

At 11:40 AM 11/12/99 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>I am working on a figural sculpture of a baby that I want to add a lot of
>detail to. Does anyone know of any special techniques or tools that would
>help me carve eyebrows, eyelashes, eyeballs, hair, etc.?
>
>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
" . . . looking forward into the past
and backward into the future,
i walk along the highest hills
and i laugh about it all the way . . ."
e.e.cummings
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peace and Love
Libby
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cindy Strnad, Earthen Vessels Pottery on sat 13 nov 99

Tina,

To carve hairs, I use a home-made tool consisting of a needle jammed point
first into a wooden dowel. (Choose a diameter and length you find
comfortable to hold.) I clip off the top of the needle with wire cutters,
exposing (or opening) the eye. This gives me two points for carving. I
sharpen them with an aluminum oxide stone in a Dremel (rotary carving) tool.
For differing detail, use needles with larger or smaller eyes.

You'll find the details carve easier if you work with clay that's just
reached the stiff leather-hard stage. Softer, and it gums up--drier, and
it's hard to etch. Get the best and closest photos you can find. It helps a
lot.

Cindy Strnad
Earthen Vessels Pottery
Custer, SD

John Rodgers on sat 13 nov 99

Tina, form my sculptural work, I use a variety of scrapers and gouges that I
have collected over time. I don't subscribe to the necessity to buy
"sculptural" tools. Some of my favorites are dental tools that I have
modified. I bought a set of wax working tools from RGI in Albuquerque once.
After using them a while I found that I really used only one....it looked like
a split pea with a steel bar on one side stuck into a rubber handle. I bought
8 of them then ground the tip into a certain shape so I had a comple set of
one shape, just each progressively smaller than the next. So it is basically
just what you like to work with. Go to flea markets and you can find some real
prize tools there. It's all in what works for you.

John Rodgers

Tina M Low wrote:

> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> I am working on a figural sculpture of a baby that I want to add a lot of
> detail to. Does anyone know of any special techniques or tools that would
> help me carve eyebrows, eyelashes, eyeballs, hair, etc.?

WHew536674@cs.com on sat 13 nov 99

Tina,
You'd be surprised at all the wonderful little tools you would find in a good
manicure kit. Have used them more for fine carving in clay than on nails.
Joyce A

Steve Yahn on sat 13 nov 99

Look at dental tools,picks,explorers,etc.

At 11:40 AM 11/12/99 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>I am working on a figural sculpture of a baby that I want to add a lot of
>detail to. Does anyone know of any special techniques or tools that would
>help me carve eyebrows, eyelashes, eyeballs, hair, etc.?
>
>