Da Vinci Painted It All By Himself?

It has long been known that many of the great masters had teams of assistants who helped create the masterpieces we enjoy to this day. The assistants often had specialties...some might paint clouds, others rocks, etc.

Leonardo Da Vinci was no exception.

His painting, "Virgin of the Rocks" has long been thought to have been painted with a team of assistants. Recently the painting was cleaned and it is now believed that the master painted this one all by himself.

So if a team helped paint a masterpiece...does that make it any less masterful? If the "painter" is more or less a director does that make him any less a maestro? Is the ensemble method of art only valid in music and theater or large scale projects such as Christo's that would be physically impossible for a single person to accomplish?

These are interesting questions for artists and art lovers to ponder.

An artist is the visionary and the driving force to have the vision brought into reality.

Does that mean that perhaps the artist does not need to personally have any skill with brush, chisel or other tool?

After all, there are many artisans who have technical skills but lack the creative vision to bring something unique to life.

Perhaps the artist does have the skills necessary (as of course Da Vinci did) but lacks the time to breath life into all the visions that exist in his mind's eye. Thus using a team to bring the pieces forth benefits all...the artist, the team and the world.

I'd love to hear thoughts from other artists and art lovers on this...for example, if you bought an oil painting by a particular artist and learned that he or she didn't actually do all the painting on the canvas, would that matter to you? Would it have less value monetarily or spiritually for you?

If you'd to read more about the cleaning of the Da Vinci that insp, click here.

Wildlife Art Exhibition Includes Local Sculptor

The Wildlife Experience natural history and wildlife art museum which is in Parker, Colorado opened their fall exhibit "Colorado Gold" on Aug 15.

The exhibition runs through Nov 15 and features 35 Colorado artists and 53 pieces of art.

The works are all nature-related and in a variety of media.

One of the artists exhibiting is Loveland sculptor Kent Ullberg, whom I've written about before.

To see the exhibition go to The Wildlife Experience, located at 10035 S. Peoria St, just one mile east of I-25. To learn more about the museum or the exhibition, call 720-488-3300 or visit their website.

Moss Landing Galleria Dos

I am in California visiting my mom and we drove to Moss Landing yesterday...I wanted to see the ocean--living in Colorado I don't have the opportunity to do that too often.

We had lunch at a fantastic restaurant on the slough...ate fresh seafood while watching the otters cavort...fun...

Then we walked "downtown" and went into an antique shop which had some wonderful pieces...there was a French African chest from the 1940s with exquisite carving all over...a variety of carousel horses, not restored, including a pair of miniatures from Mexico that were completely unfamiliar to me.

Next I saw a gallery and went in. Galleria Dos is what she called it...they had just had an opening reception and so when I went in they were vacuuming the carpets...

This gallery is a collective of local artists. Sometimes that sort of gallery is a collective of not so great stuff. I am pleased to say that there were some really nice pieces here. Not enough sculpture for my tastes (but then I am a bit--!--biased on that point) but there was a good variety of images and styles. Appropriate for a small town gallery wanting to appeal to a broad cross-section of visitors.

There were some wonderful paintings I was admiring...I was surprised when I saw they were actually giclees. I used to do color approvals for giclees, so I know how difficult it can be to get a good giclee and represent the textural aspect of paintings. These were very well done. I pointed out some of the pieces to my mom and she looked and said, "I know him!" Turns out she had taken a workshop from Michael Linstrom many years ago.

There were also some marvelous photographs by Craig Lovell. Really rich saturated colors, great detail, interesting compositions.

I love how different artists see things...we each have our own vision and interpretation of life and sometimes when another artist shows us how they see something it can truly transform our own vision. That is one of the best gifts artists have to offer the world. A good artist changes us--perhaps in a small way, perhaps in a grand way--but our perception of the world is never quite the same when we have truly experienced art.

Thanks Moss Landing for a great day and some new insights!

Sculpture Goes Missing: Loveland Sculptor May Recreate Historic Work

Kirsten Kokkin is one of 5 artists selected as finalists in the Angel of Music competition. This competition is to be the artist selected to recreate a sculpture that was on the gravestie of American composer and pianist Louis Moreau Gottschalk (1829-1869). The sculpture went missing in the 1950s.

How does a sculpture go missing? I guess someone must have really liked it. The marble angel was almost 5 feet tall. Also taken was the 6-1/2 foot tall marble pedestal. This is no small feat! I mean, it is not like you can just put that in your pocket!

In preparation for the new work, the pedestal has already been restored and an anitque wrought iron fence has been installed, along with greenery.

The sculpture competition is being put forth by a 501c(3) organizaion the Green-Wood Historic Fund. This organization conserves and restores the Brooklyn NY, Green-Wood Cemetery's endangered monuments. The cemetery is listed as a National Historic Landmark, is 171 years old and is the final resting place of many historical figures including Leonard Bernstein, Horace Greeley, FAO Schowartz, Samuel Morse and Boss Tweed.

Kirsten Kokkin is one of our talented local sculptors...who like most us moved here from somewhere else.

One of the things I really appreciate (dare I say "love"?) about living in Loveland, Colorado is our art community. Not just the artists, but how the community as a group embraces the arts.

We have beautiful sculptures all around the city, wonderful galleries and a fantastic museum. Kokkin's work has created quite a local controversy in the past when she created an exquisite piece, The Triangle, that was in the classical tradition, including the figures being nude. The piece ended up being relocated and can be seen in the Benson Sculpture Park.

Ancient Chinese Painting Brought to Life

I love Chinese murals...maybe because I grew up in Japan and traveled around and got to see them in person.

This is a really cool way to see some great Chinese art with a twist!

Chinese Mural "along the River During the Ching-ming Festival"

You can control the time you take on this...it is great fun...and a fun break during your day.

The original painting is circa 1085-1145, during the Northern Song Dynasty. It was repainted during the Qing Dynasty. It measures 528cm. in width and 24.8cm. in height. It is considered to be one of the Great Treasures of China and was exhibited in the Hong Kong Museum of Art last year.

I hope you enjoy it!

Bobbie Carlyle Classical Sculptor

Bobbie Carlyle is another one of the extremely talented sculptors who calls Loveland, Colorado home. Her work is classic in style...with powerful messages and exquisite detail that bring to mind the work of great masters.

A recent commission for Bobbie is to re-create a classic female figure that was a fountain adorning the old Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. The hotel has long since been razed and is now the site of a learning center for the LA school district.

Starting from historic photographs, Bobbie suggested a clothed version of the original nude...as a more appropriate choice for a school district. Her design won the competition. The piece is titled "Sea Swept" and is scheduled to be cast later this summer.

I remember first learning about Bobbie's work when I saw "Self Made Man" in Writers Square in Denver. That version was larger than life of a man carving himself out of rock. This piece is what launched Bobbie's career and she has sold copies in a variety of sizes which can be found around the world.

You can see more of Bobbie's work at her website or by visting her at the annual sculpture shows in Loveland (Sculpture in the Park and the Sculpture Invitational are both in August...don't miss them!) She also sells her work by commission and through selected galleries.

Photographing Your Sculpture

I have attended a couple of Sculptural Pursuit's BlogTalkRadio sessions and they have been really good.

This one sounds like it will also be exceptional. If you have seen the magazine, you know they know something about photographing art! Beautiful shots.

Photographing Your Sculpture
Sculptural Pursuit
Date / Time: 6/3/2009 4:00 PM (MDT)
Category: Art
Call-in Number: (347) 215-8795


You only have one chance to grab a juror's, gallerist's or editor's attention, so make your digital images the best they can be. Join professional photographer David Hawkinson and SP founder and publisher Nancy DeCamillis as they discuss megapixels, white balance, composition, and more in this interactive half hour. Whether you work with a pro or do it yourself, you'll learn what you need to know to make your images a compelling representation of your artwork. Bring your questions and join us online or on the phone. (Wednesday, June 3. 6PM EDT, 5PM CDT, 4PM MDT, 3PM PDT. 30 minutes.)

I suspect this will be an awesome event for sculptors and other artists!

"See ya" on the call!

National Sculpture Society Meets in Loveland, Colorado

Approximately 140 sculptors from around the USA are in Loveland, Colorado beginning today through Sunday for the National Sculpture Society meeting.

NSS is a nonprofit organization of professional sculptors, and they are holding their annual meeting in Loveland--a town well known for it's sculpture parks, foundries, large outdoor shows every summer, and the numerous sculptors who reside her.

One of the topics of discussion at this year's meeting will be submitting proposals for commission and some of the challenges that may arise during the commission process.

In addition to the discussions, there will be tours of studios of several of the Loveland area sculptors, including Jane DeDecker, Kristen Kokkin, the Lundeen family, Herb Mignery, Rosetta, Mel Schockner and kent Ullberg.

Saturday night they will have an honors and award dinner.

Sculpture conservation will be the topic for the panel discussion on Sunday. Included in this discussion will be conserving the integrity of your work, selecting materials etc to maintain the quality of the sculpture over a long period of time.

Oldest Sculpture Ever Found in Germany

Read a cool bit about potentially the worlds oldest carving being found in Germany.

World's oldest carving of a human found in German cave

A carving of a human figure has been found in Germany that is said to be 35,000 years old - which would make it the oldest such sculpture ever discovered.Scientists unearthed the piece - in the shape of a woman with XXL breasts and mega-hips - in the town of Alb-Donau-Kreis in Baden Württemberg.

The woman is carved out of ivory and is at least 35,000 years old, according to archaeologist Nicholas Conrad who writes for ‘Nature’ magazine.

It is a potentially crucial find which gives an entirely new look at the development of art in Europe and the whole world.

The six cm-tall statue has a large bust and enlarged vulva and was found in September 2008 during a dig at a cave in Schelklingen.

It has been described as extremely detailed but bizarre - the sexual organs are exaggerated and the legs and arms are shortened. It is thought to be an artistic impression of fertility.

Perhaps the cave was a sexual hiding place. In 2005, researches found a 20cm-long 28,000-year-old piece of stone shaped like a penis in the same cave.

The new discovery - dubbed Venus - will be on display in Stuttgart from September 18 2008 until January 2010.

Source for this news is Bild.com a German news agency...click here to see original article or to find related items on Bild

Local Church Discovers Stained Glass Window

I drove by a nearby church the other day on the way to a meeting. I noticed there were giving the old girl a facelift. Seems like I've been seeing that a lot lately.
I was in Denver a couple weeks ago and saw workers restoring a wonderful old Victorian. Driving through Loveland I saw at least three major restoration projects underway.

I love that people care enough to preserve these beautiful old buildings where are really works of art.

The local church announced today that during their restoration process they discovered a beautiful stained glass window. Possibly covered in 1914 when a pipe organ was installed…hiding the window…and with no records that the window was even there, it remained hidden until now. The theory is the window was covered to block sunlight and heat which would have come in through the window, possibly damaging the organ.

Art comes in so many forms…interesting that to preserve one piece of art (the organ) another was covered (the window)…it was deemed less important…so unimportant in fact that no record was kept of its presence.

Sometimes we treat our art as being less, or more, important than another art form. This story reminds me that all of our art has a place and deserves to be honored. That might create some challenges in how we can honor them all when it may appear that by doing so sets up a conflict.

Maybe that is when we (or someone else) can be most creative and by being aware of the beauty around us already and collaborating with it we can create something even better than our individual efforts would have been.

Stand By Me

This is a wonderfully inspirational video...featuring street musicians from around the world. What a great way for a virtual band to form!



Enjoy...!

Performance Art in Antwerp Belgium

This is a departure from my usual art themes...certainly from sculpture...but it is so fun I thought I should share!



Hope you enjoyed it!

Katagami Sculpture

An upcoming exhibition at the Longmont Museum, Longmont, Colorado sounds very intriguing! Combining stencil making and sculpture, Jennifer Falck Linssen makes paper sculptures from intricately carved stencils that she carves by hand. Her work is described as a marriage of traditional basket forms and pictorial katagami-style paper stencils.

Jennifer Falck Linssen: Beyond Katagami opens at the Longmont Museum on January 24 and runs through March 22. Linssen will present a lecture, "Under the Knife: Carved Paper Sculpture," on Wednesday, January 28 at 7 pm. Cost is $5. Members of Friends of the Longmont Museum are admitted free.

Downtown Denver Arts Festival

The 11th Annual Downtown Denver Arts Festival will be held May 22-25, 2009 (Memorial Day Weekend).

The deadline to apply is Feb. 17, 2009.

This festival showcases the work of Colorado artists exclusively. Approximately 125 artists of various media exhibit at this outdoor show and over 150,000 visitors are expected to attend.

Go to the Downtown Denver Arts Festival website to learn more about the organization or to get an application.

Making Time for What Feeds My Soul

Yesterday was an awesome day...the first day in a long time that I actually went into the studio.

Don't ask why. There are lots of "reasons"...but no good justification for it.

I kept telling myself that I was too busy. It takes a long time to carve a stone and I "didn't have time"... I had to focus on other tasks that were "more important"...what I was forgetting was that keeping myself happy is one of the most important things I can do in this life.

Lesson to self: remember to feed your soul and you will be fed for the rest of your life.

"African Bazaar" , Sculptures and Stone Available

I heard from my friends at the Chapungu Gallery today...for all the stonecarvers out there, they have Springstone available in sizes up to 200 lbs.

For the first time in over two years, most of the Warehouse Gallery sculpture and all African Bazaar items are marked down by 25%.

This includes some beautiful work by Dominic Benhura, Amos Supuni, Arthur Fata, Royal Katiyo, Bernard Matemera and many other world famous artists.

Other items include batik products, beaded wire baskets, beaded Ndebele dolls, semi-precious stone eggs and paperweights as well as smaller stone sculptures in all of the beautiful stones of Zimbabwe starting at $5!

This offer is valid until December 19th for Warehouse Gallery items only.

Visit the warehouse location which houses the largest collection of Zimbabwean stone sculpture in North America. (1052 N. Boise Ave., Unit B, Loveland, CO.)

They are open 9-1pm M-Friday or by special appointment times, call 970-461-8020 to make appointments.

If you don't live in the Loveland area, they will send you images of these one of a kind sculptures to assist in your purchase.

For additional shopping, visit their online Gallery at www.chapungusculpturepark.com

Photo courtesy of Chapungu Warehouse Gallery

Do You Maquette?

As a sculptor, do you make a maquette before moving to your final piece?

I know many sculptors who do...and just as many who do not.

For art lovers who may not know what I'm talking about, a maquette is a miniature version of what the piece will ultimately turn out to be. This miniature gives the artist an opportunity to work out in 3 dimensions poses, the flow of the piece...basically the composition of the work. Maquettes are frequently made from clay, even if the final piece is to be carved from stone.

Some sculptors will even have a maquette bronzed...to be clear, a maquette is not the same as having a small sculpture that the artist then chooses to enlarge.

Some sculptors make their maquette in full detail. Others make only a rough model, enough to give them the composition details.

Personally, when carving stone I rarely create a maquette. I was taught a drawing method...I will actually draw on paper and directly on the stone. For me this allow a more direct relationship with the stone and the flexibility to work with the stone as it is rather than forcing my maquette vision upon it.

That being said, there are times when I grab some clay in order to work out a particular flow or shape...but my maquettes are not things of beauty! They are more like gesture drawings...just enough for me to get the feel of where I want to go with a piece.

I'd love to hear from other sculptors if they do or do not create maquettes, why, and to what level of finish do they take their maquettes!

Stone Sculptor Ellen Woodbury

I met Ellen Woodbury almost 3 years ago at a workshop taught by Collen Nyanhongo, a master stone sculptor from Zimbabwe. It was fun to get to know her and to see her work on her first stone.

Ellen is a fascinating, energetic, expressive person and her work reflects that. It also reveals her background as an animator for Disney, a position she held for 20 years! Ellen started her sculpting while still employed as an animator...like many sculptors she worked in clay.

So, while Jan. 2006 may have seen Ellen's first stone sculpture, she was no "newbie" in the art world. And it shows!

Ellen's work is simple and complex at the same time. Her pieces tell stories and engage the viewer.

We are fortunate to have Ellen call Loveland, Colorado home...come see her at the Sculpture in the Park show. She has exhibited there for the last two years--showing her stones--quite an accomplishment for a new medium!

Connecting with Other Sculptors

Sculpting, for me at least, is a rather solitary experience. I typically am in my small studio by myself--me and a lot of rocks, that is!

So it was with great pleasure that I got a phone call inviting me to attend a meeting of a group of stone sculptors from our region.

It was a social event, and I got the opportunity to meet new people and catch up with friends I rarely see. We talked about lots of things--stones, tools, tips, studios, and even some topics not sculptural at all!

Check out your area to see if you have a group that you can meet with from time to time. It may be a group that is very specialized, like this one, or it may be broader to include all sculptors, or it may be a group for artists of all media. Any of these types of groups can be helpful for idea exchange, inspiration, tips and pointers, and friendship!

Bruce Campbell, Creating Art from Discards

Bruce Campbell is one of my favorite local artists. He never fails to impress, amaze and inspire me with this talent, creativity and unique approach to life and art.

Not only is Bruce a talented sculptor and painter, he combines these skills with a unique way to reuse old items.

My art is created using various combinations of welding, carving, painting and engraving on salvaged industrial forms. I've diverted countless tons of material from the waste stream, and hopefully I'm helping people see the beauty and value in so-called "junk". As an artist, I benefit from the unique shapes and odd details produced for functionality (my process is a collaboration with unknown people who were unaware they were creating sculpture) which are often improved by being dented, gouged or partially crushed. I also love the gorgeous surface patinas and textures created by the forces of time, the gradual reclamation of nature.

Walking around Bruce's studio is an eye-opening experience. Old fashioned washing machines sport new faces, huge tanks become kings and queens with curls fashioned from parts of water heaters.

Old wooden gates become mystical wall sculptures.

Figures seem to appear and disappear, morphing from one image to another.

Much of Bruce's art is conducive to outdoor display. Whether due in part to scale or because of the materials, exposure to the elements can further add to the works.

By combining "found steel" and other found objects with welding, engraving and painting, Bruce brings new life to items that otherwise would find themselves either in the landfill or recycled into some new gadget.

Bruce does more than keep thing out of the landfill and save our resources...Bruce catapults everyday items into fantastic sculptures that are sold and exhibited around the west.

Photograph "Envision", Sculpture and Photograph copyright Bruce Campbell