Inspiration! Tama Kieves

If you have followed me for very long you know I love to read as much as I love to sculpt.  Recently I purchased a book by Tama Kieves called Inspired and Unstoppable and thought I would share some parts or thoughts with you.

The dictionary explanation of inspiration is "the creative impulse of an artist to be inspired is to be stimulated to have a motivating power".

Impulse...the sudden desire to do something

Create...to bring into being.

What inspires me to work on an animal, I either love that animal, its movements have caught my attention to detail or its grace, stealth or action.  I have a passion for animals and even its ugliness sometimes can be beautiful.  I at the same time feel a peacefulness or challenged depending on the difficulty of the piece.

Start each day with a plan, a positive attitude and a gratitude for the gift you have been given...the day  the talent and the passion. One day I began work and had the music flowing and the creative juices going and actually accomplished quite a bit that day...what was the trick...go figure.

Artist are enigma in their attitude.

Are you jerked around by outside influences or do you have a plan each day?

Tama has such great thoughts:

"Let go of proving, striving, panting and always...needing to win".  "I am succeeding just by being on this journey".  If anything Tama knows how to use words to give you a visual like no other for instance..."we keep looking for the brownies, but this is a path of bread, sustenance in the everyday activities, rising in the task at hand". Also "tending even the pieces of lint in the belly button of my business", I would love to have that on a tee shirt.

Best quote pertaining to artist in her entire book though is..."you have to unzip your ducksuit, that waterproof layer that insulates you from allowing in praise and recognition."

Thank you Tama, for an ex-lawyer you are a fantastic mentor.

Snuggle Bunnies

This is actually a piece that I had sitting around for quite some time trying to decide the constant question of...is this art or is it just cutesy.


top view of bunnies

front view of bunnies

I decided that some people might like cute and not have an attitude about the controversy.

A few summers ago I found a tiny bunny in my back yard and knew instantly that I had to do a piece involving rabbits.

I was quickly reminded of a time long ago when our family collie used to bring up little baby rabbits in her mouth very gently depositing them on the steps. She was a natural mother and did not realize that they would die being almost hairless at that time.



shows wax of bunnies

This was like a lot of my pieces, it was an act of love and went very quickly and lesson learned is to trust your instinct on what will be attractive to patrons and what will not.  It has done rather well even though it has not been on the market but a few months and many patrons have even picked their own patina which makes it even more personal for them.

Snuggle Bunnies Ed 5/15

traditional patina

showing without the base which could be an option for patron

my favorite

This shows the unmolded wax ready to be sprued and poured at the foundry. This is also a good view of the wax piece and the mold I had just taken it out of which would also show the high ridges that are in the negative (mold) which you have to deal with when pouring.  You pour the first time with 200 degrees to pick up detail and then thereafter you get cooler and cooler until you actually have to spoon pour the edge of the ridge to get it to adhere. Just remember you do not want your wax too thick 1/8th of an inch is fine....about 3 or four pours.

This also shows the versatility of the patina and the change in the affect. There is such a difference in the opaque and the translucent patina.  My favorite is the last Snuggle Bunnies in the close up.  This just goes to show that you can not only produce cute art but you can enjoy and have fun with it also.

Moose, moose, only a mother could love!

I have been working hard on finishing a moose and doing the research on this animal was just as much fun as doing the actual clay work.

desktop armature for Moose

This is the armature I have chosen for the piece I am currently working on, as you can see I have surrounded myself with not only my own research photograhs but anything I can get my hands on with a moose shown. 

As my son says though you can not take bits and pieces of each you have to decide exactly what season it will be and at what point in time you are depicting. Also with moose they differ so much in each region that you have to be careful not to use the wrong example.You can use your pictures for reference but have to create your own sculpture, otherwise it may look as though you have taken pieces of different puzzles and tried to glue them together.



moose without horns

I first decided that I wanted a mature bull, Alaskan or upper 65th parallel, they are 7 to 8 feet at the shoulder there and the horn formation is quite interesting and can be almost bazarre. I also wanted it to be walking among river rocks which I myself love.

Researching Moose for Piece



This would be a small guy compared to Alaska Moose



Recently in my research to do a moose piece I came across a wonderful book "Moose Behavior, Ecology and Conservation", text by Valerius Geist and photography by Michael H. Francis.

Besides the wonderful photography I found the text so educational that I thought I would pass it along. "A century ago American wildlife was all but gone" "overshadowed by World War I was the birth of North America's continental system of wildlife conservation...wildlife flourished...species once barely alive flourished."

learning to use my Canon digital

"Science was enshrined as a guide to proper public wildlife management".  Thereby entered a unique profession, the wildlife biologist, restoring through intelligent management and for most I have met a passion for the wildlife they conserve. I have had the wonderful pleasure of working with these professionals as a volunteer and have never met a biologist that was not passionate about their work.

Another team to watch in their wonderful photography and reading are Erwin Bauer and wife Peggy, artist or just wildlife lovers have ultimate books to refer or browse through and enjoy

Hopefully any one reading this blog realizes the importance of game management  and continue the legacy begun by our great grand parents. Next time you are buying pesticides or cleaning agents there are numerous new products out there that will not harm our environment or our wildlife and children...leave the legacy in tact.

Thanks to all the wonderful authors that enlighten us and remind us to treat the earth and its wildlife with respect and to also remember John Muir's quote:

"When we tug on a single thing in nature we find it attached to everything else." John Muir

Time to Work!

Sorry but you will not have a blog from me for a few months, I not only have another commission that is in the works it is also verging on the holidays so I will be busy, busy with family.

If you are a patron keep checking out art whether you prefer pastels, etching, pencil or paint and sculpture please try to keep artist in your future and if you are an artist, keep up the good work and don't hesitate to drop by or say hello.

Talk to you again in January.

Exhibiting via truck and trailor

The past two weeks have been exciting but exhausting also. I had my largest show of the year in Loveland, Colorado, the Loveland Sculpture Invitational and a new show the 17th Street Art Festival in Cheyenne, Wyoming.



17th Street Art Festival

 This particular view is of the set up I had in Cheyenne, Wy. this past weekend. I attempt to draw viewers in by working live on a  pedestal in the center of the 10 x 10 area.

You notice that I placed a large piece that drew a lot of attention in one corner at the front and another large piece at the far opposite corner in the back.

I do take a few extra pieces in order to not have an empty pedestal when one sells.


Loveland Sculpture Invitational

  This is a view of the set up I had with the same 10 x 10 space at the Loveland Sculpture Invitational in Loveland, Colorado.

This gives a better view of how I played with the area, giving room for the patron to browse and make a circle of the entire area.

The two uses of the space allowed one to browse entirely on the outside in Cheyenne and to enter the space in Loveland.

Often you will show in different spaces, one allowing people all around you the other only allowing people to see you from the front and enter from the front (you have other artist butting up against you on either side.


I haul 12 or more pedestals to shows in order to get the look I want

 This shows how I haul pedestals and in the case of the Loveland show we hauled also an atv on a flatbed to unload on the premises and hook up to the flatbed unload the pedestals and load the work (hauled both in the truck and my car) in order that we could pull onto the show grounds going from parking lot to 10 x 10 space where they did not allow vehicles.

If only I could get enough courage to drive the atv up in the pickup and use the trailer as already loaded with pedestals it would not take me so long to set up.

Yes, I realize that I could bust out the glass in the back window or roll over myself off the back so I doubt it will happen anytime soon...only in my dreams.

Each show is different and each time you may set up your space differently to allow the best view and traffic. I have exhibited in the center using two C shapes to each side with me in between allowing viewers from each side to view as they are circling  tent.

I have learned over the years to allow patrons to look uninterrupted and if they are interested in a particular piece or want to strike up a conversation they will...you just have to be attentive and friendly, connect them with a piece they may be admiring by telling a story about that particular piece.  Give it life and personality in their view. Otherwise you will constantly be scaring off people by trying to entertain them or carry on a conversation when all they want to do is look.

I had a great time and made new friends (both fellow artist and patrons). Had return patrons and gave them a percentage on another purchase...this is how you develop as an artist...produce and market, you can not do one without the need of the other.

Art Demo's in Public

Doing an outside demo is always fun for me because I get to talk about my favorite passion and show people just how I arrive at pieces I create.

I was involved with a studio Creations, Art and Gifts in Louisville, Colorado and they were nice enough to let me demo in a tent outside during an art walk.

What you have to remember when you are introducing your particular medium to non-artist is that many do not have a clue as to the process.

I have been asked many times how I paint the metal onto the clay object and I am tickled to introduce them to the fascinating process of lost wax casting.

During a demo, I not only try to show them the creative process of the artist conception in clay but also the remainder of the process as referring to the mold, casting, metal chasing and patina. I try to explain that I am not the only artist that touches my work and I often refer to the other artist as my team because without them I would not be able to complete my work.

I usually take with me clays, waxes, molds and raw metal if available to show them as many examples of each process as possible.

I also invite them to take a tour at one of the foundries in Loveland (they give wonderful explanations of the process).

I have done demo's also during important shows such as the Loveland Sculpture Invitational coming up here soon in Loveland, Colorado.  When you have three days to talk you find all kinds of questions and almost form relationships with patrons letting them into your private world of creating. Don't sit back and just let them look at things, talk, talk and talk. A relationship with a patron is important in the sale of your work, they must feel a connection with you in order to feel connected with your work. Show the passion!