More Workshop Photographs

Some photos from days 3 & 4, where we finished up carving our foam armatures, covered them with mesh, learned how to mix and apply the initial layer of slurry and concrete, learned how to color concrete and apply it as a second layer, and learned how to make rebar & mesh armatures.

Sherri showing us how to mix a rich-mix concrete
(3 parts portland cement, 3 parts sand, 1 part PII polymer, 1/4 part water)

Coyote with the beginnings of meshing

Sherri showing us how to add internal support, posts/poles for totems and finials,
or soft copper tubing for fountain elements

Coyote Blue - there are several steps between Coyote with mesh and Coyote Blue including an overnight curing wrapped in plastic. I had cement-covered rubber gloves on for most of the steps and did not want to pick up the camera with them on or take the time to wash and remove them (Sherri - "it's real easy to take off cement-covered gloves, but real difficult to put them back on...")

Coyote wrapped up for another curing.

Karen Ami (director, Chicago Mosaic School) and Kiela (student) 

and Karen, this isn't the silliest photo I have of you... not by far.

---

Sherri demonstrating the use of a few of the tools we used (just a few of the demo photos - she demonstrated most all of the tools we needed to know how to use)

This was a wonderful workshop - life-changing in fact. I'll have photos of Coyote II soon. He's got a rebar armature covered with expanded metal mesh for the base.

All the photos I took

---

Sherri Warner Hunter Workshop

Too tired to write much, but here are some images from the workshop I am at this week.
Later in the workshop the piece photographed below will be covered in concrete. Eventually it will be a mosaic.

Tools we are using:
Stationary hot wire - for cutting blocks into the outlines.

Hot hand tools - for refining the initial cuts.

I did not take a separate photo of the cold tools we use - two sizes of wire bristle brushes and a drywall (keyhole) saw. You can see them in some of the photos below - check out the photo of shaping the tail.

Making a model and starting the carving of the foam block:
Clay maquette (model) for foam-core sculpture.

Foam block initial cuts:

Shaping the tail.

Sherri demonstrating installing reinforcement rods to added on elements.

Ears and Tail with rods partially inserted.

Final shaping with cold tools (wire brushes, drywall handsaw).

Nearly there.

Ready for mesh and concrete - shown with clay maquette (scale model)

---

Mosaic House Number Finished

Finished this mosaic tonight. Most of the work was finished last night. Tonight I just added the hanging hardware and cleaned up some of the overflow of thinset and grout.

---

Death of a long-ago friend

I just learned that a friend from years back died from a heart attack this past Friday. He wasn't even 50. It's very sad.

And even sadder, while I remember him - having been reminded of him through his death - I do not remember his face. And I know that, when I lived in the commune, I talked to this man nearly every day, at least for a few years. I probably cooked his breakfast on numerous occasions...

It's sad when we forget people who have been part of our lives, only to remember them - and then only in bits and pieces - when they die.

I've found that death affects me much more profoundly now - especially after my dad's death. Even the death of kittens can make me weepy. But I also feel the celebration/joy of someone's life so much more profoundly now too... It's a double-edged sword, and all-in-all I'm glad for it.

---