So we just ended a nice long Thanksgiving holiday weekend, albeit a sick one. :( I'm still thankful I got to rest a lot, which I did. And not only me but my brother & sister-in-law as well. It also gave me a chance to continue working on my kitteh, although not as much as I had hoped for. Still, I made progress, not only sculpting but educating myself further and experimenting a little too. I really believe it's important for artists to educate themselves constantly, gain inspiration from other sources, and especially experiment a lot. I think some artists can get static by never thinking outside the box and constantly doing the 'same ole' in their art. But having said that, I've also seen artists doing the same paintings or sculptures over and over with just small nuances of differences in them, but those artists also have a lot of passion for what they do and never seem to come to a stand still, which I greatly admire as well.
I've been learning, experimenting and finding much inspiration during this first kitteh sculpture. I actually didn't intend to blend it with too many natural elements in this first one but I've been inspired a lot by it lately so I thought 'what the hell'. I'm still trying to keep it simple, however. Once it's all done, I'll adorn it with a few crystals here and there and call it done. Then move onto the next! I may continue the nature theme with the next sculpture but create something more dynamic. I admire the work of Ellen Jewett greatly and am fascinated by her work and craftsmanship, and would love to include elements that are similar to hers, even if it falls way short of her style. She puts a lot of hours and time and thought into her work and she gives me something to strive towards. I've only recently found out what type of material she uses and funny enough, I was on the right track when I found out. But even just knowing what she uses is a tiny fraction of the whole story of her work. It's one thing to know what an artist uses; it's another thing entirely to implement it! That's why she advises other artists on her site to use what's right for them. And I agree. For example, Crystal Morey uses porcelain for her work which turns out just beautifully when complete, while others like Jessica Dalva uses a wide array of materials including super scupley, fabrics and other materials that suit her style and storytelling which come out just wonderful as well. It's all what you want to accomplish and what look you're aiming at presenting. For me, for now anyways, I always had to goal of creating elegant kittehs (cats) that are almost life-size, in various ways of colors, materials and styles. That was my goal from the beginning. It took some time and thinking about how to accomplish this, but I think I'm on the right track thus far.
I'm hoping to wrap up my first kitteh very soon, but in the meantime I will also continue to experiment and learn more. I just ordered a book that I'm hoping will help even more, that focuses on a different methods of sculpting. We shall see in about a week or so. ;)
