On to the head...This aspect actually went quite rapidly, and I picked up some momentum. You can see where I glued on the tip of the nose, as well as the cap brim. Other than that however, the carving was mostly pure subtraction. Fortunately I was also able to do this part outside, so I was basically done roughing out the carving before the snow began to fly.
On the right is also a good example of how I worked, clamping the work down with a vise and using an angle grinder to do the rough shaping.
Before long it was time to give the whole sculpture a chance to be seen all in one piece. Although I prefer doing the work in pieces because of convinience, the disadvantage is that until this moment you don't really know how it will look...At this point I was in a good spot. Clearly there are some issues, but I expected to have to work at it, and I had a good sense of how to proceed.
Adding the Details:
Placing the numbers and team name on the sculpture is the first step in a transformation. Suddenly it's not a block of wood, it's starting to be recognizable as cloth, and there is a visual shift in the way the mind interprets what the eye sees. It's slow, careful, but certainly worth it.
After the number was applied, and the jersey complete, the process of painting the skin began. I figured it would go quickly, but I was in for a surprise. I soon discovered that our skin is made up of many colors, and that unless I wanted Nomar to look like a plastic toy off the shelf (and have little realism), I would have to invest much more time. My first effort involved three coats of paint, and I was satisfied. To me it looked fine...but thank God for independant critiques! When I displayed my work to my peers, it was decided that the skin was too light, had little contrast, and needed work. Back to the drawing board...or the mixing tray. I jumped into many different colors, experimenting with brushes, my finger, watered down pigments, and any technique that might help. All told there are about six or seven coats of paint on the face...and each one led me closer to the finished product.
I would finally say that this trial and error process was made much easier by having a head that could be removed and taken to different locations and work spaces.
