Molds and Positives

I cleaned up my five molds and started on a new positive, the first in a series of 6.  I alson drove to DePere to teach my class today.  I've decided that 5 molds is too many at once.  I start to loose focus as the day wears on.

just started this positive

the five molds ready for the dryer

Busy Sunday

I had a grueling day of mold making today and completed 5,  2 part molds, each with multiple pieces inside.  Not a great way to enjoy a Sunday.  I didn't stop for pictures, just a minute to microwave my lunch.  Here is the final product.  They go in the dryer tomorrow.  I wanted to get them done before Monday since I will be up in De Pere tomorrow.

The five finished molds.  Will clean them up tomorrow

Big Molds at Kohler

Today I headed down to the basement at the factory to watch SunKoo create some very big tile molds.  I have been finishing up a series of positives so that they are all ready to go tomorrow.

 I already poured my first three molds and will have a crazy mold making day tomorrow.

positives

This is how the mold looked when we got down there.  Side one poured. Scott helping to take it apart.  Thanks to great Kohler associates.

It takes a forklift to take the plaster off the positive.

There was actual steam coming off this section

side one.  cleaning up

The positive is back in.  Hilary cleaning up the mold.

Ready to pour section 2

SunKoo adding a crazy amount of plaster.

 I did finish all of my work in preparation for tomorrow.  Hannah and Craig came and we went to the John Michael Kohler Art Center.  We got to see the art car bus.

Craig and Hannah headed up top

We also got to watch Newark, NJ artist Kevin Sampson making a boat in the artery. You can read more about his work by clicking the link.  A large series of his sculptures are on view in the current exhibition, This Must Be the Place.

Kevin Sampson at work

More kid stuff and then dinner at the artist's house.  Big day tomorrow.

More Posittives Today

Well, my camera battery died, so no photos.  Pretty unthinkable.  Got three new molds in the dryer, and have three more ready to start the mold making process.  A few more to get ready tomorrow, then Sunday will be a big and crazy day of mold making.  Had some great Mexican food tonight.  Who knew you could find Huaraches in Wisconsin.  

Kohler Day 2

Well, I have finished my second day and finished three molds.  Here are some images from today. These are Sun Koo's large tiles being poured. 

My first positives are ready and my molds complete after a long day.

positives

ready to pour plaster

side one finished

This whole process took 3 times longer than I thought, but that is too be expected.

finally cleaned up

ready to go again

 I finished around 8:30pm, but not before saving one of the molds from a blow out.  I think I'll still with the boards even if it wastes plaster. Nobody likes a blow out!  The mold survived and I even poured the third section before I went home.

Saved from a blow out

Until tomorrow. 

First Day at Kohler

Well today was my first day at Kohler.  As you can see my space is pretty much empty.  I'm working with SunKoo in the studio, that's his piece there, ready to be fired.  It is pretty great just being here.

 

View of my empty studio

Common area

As you can see some big molds are being cast.  I did some drawing and thinking today and made a few things to cast to take me through the process.

First positive!

Pretty cool being in the factory.  I remember my first trip to Kohler when I was an undergraduate at KCAI, so being here is really great.  Check out the factory.

Factory casting floor

I will try to post about my time and progress as the residency progresses

Studio Works!

I've been busy in the studio and getting ready to go to Kohler in a week and a half.  I'm trying to finish my work for an upcoming exhibition before I leave, so it has been a bit crazy.  You can check out the show at ArtStart in Rhinelander, WI starting November 30th.  Here is some of the work in progress.

Many thanks to Reid Schoonover and Pat for the use of the shop and their help in making the forms.  It never would have been level without your help!  The cookies were great too.

This is one of two free standing wooden forms.  The bells will balance from this piece and I should have some working wall pieces put together soon to test out the balance. 

I hope to have about a hundred bells.  They are found bells from the thrift store, their hand made replicas and cast multiples.  Some of these are complete and strung together, but some are yet to be fired.

This image shows bits and pieces of three pieces.  I feel like a frantic making machine and then I have to slow down and focus on drawing for a while.  Most of the drawings are from old family photographs and take a lot of drawing and redrawing over and over.  The images overlap with those of strangers and everyday objects that have some significance to the past of my memory.

I've been thinking about the images a lot and in a way am getting to know them through the process of drawing.  When I was sifting through the photos, my daughter would ask me who they were and then would ask if they were dead.  The images are recreating an untouchable past in some way.

Then the images are drawn on the porcelain forms with pencil and after that with glaze pencil before they are glazed.  I have some finished test pieces and there are three others in the kiln right now, but I haven't seen them. 

The forms make the images permanent and the idea sort of reminds me of the daguerreotypes sometimes affixed to headstones from the past.  More to come as I get them finished.  Hope to complete most of this by the end of next week to allow for some breathing room.