Humble Beetles as a PalTiya Experiment

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

I bought a sample bag of a slow drying cement based product called PalTiya, and I need more beetles. So I sculpted these two rather humble beetles as a PalTiya experiment! I found that this product is likely designed for, and best used for, larger sculptures. The fibers are problematic for tiny details, the finished surface is a bit grainy, and the slow drying & curing time is frustrating for smaller sculptures.

PalTiya is not cheap, and the weight means you pay a relatively high shipping cost. While I found this to be an interesting experiment, I don’t love the results. If I use more if this, it will be on a larger work. And I have used ordinary cement with acrylic & fiber additives with some success, so I am not completely sold on this particular product.

I found quite a few of the tiny fiberglass strands in the mix were still clumped together. The recommendation is to burn off fibers if the end result on the finish coat is too fuzzy, but when clumps of fiber are burned, this leaves small voids that are not easy to fill with the fiber rich PalTiya. I filled them with a 2-part sculptural epoxy, and textured the small patches by pressing a scrap of rough sandpaper gently onto the surface of the putty.

My paint job may not hold up, although the beetles should. This product is advertised to be very strong if cured properly (slowly and kept wet). I used about three coats of thinned artists’ acrylic paint. I will spray them with a topcoat: probably two coats of clear acrylic finish before installing them anywhere.

My original plan was to make molds of these, and cast a few more beetles for outdoor use. But now I am not really sure I need to duplicate either of these beetle people! I made these humble beetles as a PalTiya experiment, and I am not exactly thrilled with the results. So it goes!

Share

Shadow Selfie Sequences may be Art

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

I typically resist the notion that my photography ever rises to level of “art”, although I do feel that some of my digitally modified photos are pretty darn “artistic”. Some are quite gorgeous, so if beauty is enough (and how could it not be?), then these may qualify.

While this is amusing to consider briefly, I am much to old to really care. Art or not art, matters not, to me! Rather enjoyment is all! And I certainly do enjoy my Shadow Selfies, both “plain” and digitally “enhanced”. I have a vast collection of such, and continue to hold the notion that I will use these further some day. This may be to print or otherwise display them, perhaps in meaningful groupings or sequences. And indeed that may happen: my shadow selfie sequences may be art, some day! For now, I store them, manipulate them, and share a few here, or by email, or on Facebook.

Share

Experimental Armature for a Beetle Home

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

I need places for my beetle people, and this work is an experimental armature for a beetle home! This experiment is currently a tin foil covered dead snag of a tree, but it will become a much more viable and durable (dead snag) home for beetles if my experiment succeeds!

BTW, the tin foil angel is not part of this piece, but is just taking advantage of the photo op!

I started with a heavy cardboard tube, which I mounted to a base. Then I slashed the tube here and there (in an artistic manner of course). I inserted slats of wood into the gashes and fixed them in with hot glue. From there, I attached additional cardboard and some natural twigs to create brutalized broken branches.

Then came the foil, and a lot more hot glue! It took a good part of a large roll of foil to get this thing well covered. I needed it to be crinkly and textured, not smooth. I quite like the look of a tin foil dead tree, but this is just an armature. It remains to be seen whether the end result will be pleasing or durable.

Share

Better photos of the Red Box of Beetles

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

It is time to post a few higher resolution photos taken to document my Red Box full of Beetle People; so here are a few better photos of the Red Box of Beetles.

This artwork re-purposes an old fabric covered jewelry box I inherited from my mother. I don’t know the history of this vintage box, but I find it too charming to discard. It was never a fine item, but only a cheap jewelry box, but it has personality.

The box has a fabric covered handle and neat little metal loop latch. Inside there is a removable inset tray with a section for ring storage. The interior is lined with what may be artificial pigskin.

I love boxes, and enjoy the suspense of opening it, then removing the top tray to discover the lower of the two shallow levels.

I don’t want to make this red box new again; age has lent it much of the fabulous shabby charm I want to retain! So I repaired the latch, reinforced the fabric hinge on the lid, and touched up some especially unattractive problem areas. But I have left it looking very much used! The age and used condition seem just right for the three beetle people specimens inside!

And to complete the outside, I have added a fourth modest sort of beetle to the top of this red box of beetles.

And this curiosity is for sale now, for those who might enjoy a very peculiar artwork. Enjoy these better photos of the Red Box of Beetles.

Share

Golden Boy Under the Moon

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

My arrangement of my replicated carving has been finalized, and installed: Golden Boy Under the Moon is my second relief collage with a cast of my carved soap figure “Golden Boy”. For this piece I set Golden Boy on an old print (made from corn husks!) as the main background. I added a cast from a pecan shell, and another cast made from egg membrane in the shell. These are mounted onto sealed cement board and set into a fairly deep frame. This makes for a particularly quirky combination of parts, but maybe that is why I like it!

I like to think this assembly of parts creates a mysterious peaceful whole, and not just a messy attempt at same!

Once I took a photo, it was necessary to try the digital foil transformation. But I was not satisfied with that, so I had to select out the golden boy figure, and transform it differently to get the result above right: Foil with Golden Boy under the Moon.

Share

Tidying my studio is problematic

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

Tidying my studio is problematic, always and forever! I save & accumulate far too much “stuff” for re-use in my assemblage/collage works.

I replicate parts for my completed works by making archival prints and casts from molds of my originals. These labor intensive parts and pieces for artworks pile up. Pieces that I like, but that are not quite the right color here or the right size there, are set aside for future use. I love to re-interpret special pieces, incorporating some of the parts, and thereby creating sets or series of related works. And I fall in love with scraps: bits of string, hardened drips of resin, palette scrapings, cut pieces of old prints, shells, sea glass, pebbles, and more!

Tidying usually means making new work. I stop sorting, to complete a good “arrangement” as a permanent work. Or I find myself re-working an older piece when I remove it from a frame that I will repurpose for my new piece! All of this is much more fun than actually making sorting, discarding or putting things away to really clear my work surfaces!

There is no such thing as just putting everything away; I have long since run out of “away”! So instead, I just move things around and, I hope, make better art!

Tidying my studio is problematic, when everything I touch could lead me to make a new piece of art!

Share

A Red Box of Beetles

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

I have successfully completed another Beetle People artwork: a red box of beetles!

I “inherited” an old fabric covered jewelry box from my mother. I don’t know the history of this red box, but I find it too charming to discard. It has a handle & latch, an inset tray with ring storage, and the interior layers are lined with artificial? pigskin. I love boxes, and enjoy the suspense of opening, then removing the top tray to discover the second of the two shallow levels.

I don’t want to make this red box new again; it has a fabulous shabby vintage charm that I want to keep! But I repaired the latch, reinforced the fabric hinge on the lid, and touched up some unattractive problem areas. It is a Beetle Box now: a red box of beetles!

And this curiosity is for sale now, for those who might enjoy a very peculiar artwork.

Share

Beetle People Series Progression

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

I am pleased with my Beetle People series progression: my second Beetle People habitat is almost complete. The second Beetle People habitat is Beetle Specimen Drawer II. I have it all put together, with several tiny finishing touches that I just added. I still need to add the final clear finishing coats.

Drawer number two may be more intricate than my first drawer. At least it has more details on the inside “walls”. I am, of course, very fond of it at the moment. Generally I become more critical of each artwork with a bit more time and distance from its initial production!

I tentatively plan to install hanging wire to the underside of both drawers. This will let me display them in vertical orientation on a wall. This should not prevent anyone from displaying them flat for an alternate view.

I plan to continue my Beetle People series progression, but I don’t have another drawer in mind at the moment. I expect the next beetle habitat to be smaller. Some beetles prefer to be partially hidden, tucked under protective cover of some sort. In the natural world beetles don’t like to be fully exposed to view. A few beetles currently live in boxes with closable lids, but these are not yet permanent living arrangements!

Share

Another Addition to the Edition of Fat Baby Birds

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

I have completed another addition to the edition of Fat Baby Birds: I have my newest fat baby bird painted and ready for a clear coat! Number 10 of the limited edition casts from my hand carved limestone bird is “Green Eyed Baby Bird”! Green Eyed Baby is very charming, in lighter subdued & variegated yellow and umber tones. She? or he? is a commissioned cast destined as a gift, and will be picked up by the new owner tomorrow or Friday.

I may still need to create a base for FBB #10, that has not yet been decided. For now, she just sits on her own two yellow “feet”.

I may need to make #11 very soon, as yet another addition to the edition of Fat Baby Birds. I would love to install one or more of these at some of the Larry Scott Trail parking lots!

Share

Buy Art This Week Only at CVG’s Red Tag Sale

P.T. Artist Sandra Stowell Posted on by

Update: what with insane happenings in WA D.C. and general pandemic issues, the art auction got very little attention. Contact me directly if you are interested in these or other artworks!

Buy art this week only at CVG’s Red Tag Sale: this year the art auction is online only, with curbside pickup for purchases at the Collective Vision Gallery in Bremerton.

I have three mixed media artworks available, and displayed in the auction catalog. You can register (free) and bid on these this week only.

Share