Sir Pembroke-Smythe, explorer and adventurer.

It's been a while since I've posted any work here, partly because I find facebook easier to use but also because I've just not been feeling very creative lately. A couple of half complete pieces have been sat glaring back at me which hasn't helped either. Normally when I need a creative kick start I cleanup my studio as a tidy space helps me work and in the process I often find odd unfinished work that sparks ideas, plus a trip to the scrapstore will provide exciting treasure for stimulating the creative juices.

I found this sculpey head which was originally going to be a tall thin mad scientist and decided to create a short fat British general with skinny legs. I think the idea may have come about as I'm reading the Flashman books. The wooden clock face courtesy of the scrapstore seemed an ideal base.

As I started to build the basic armature he slowly evolved into a skinny old figure in an oversized robotic suit. I always like making weird steampunk type suits and this one has been floating around my imagination for some time.

 

The basic shape is built up from thin corrugated card edged with copper wire. Once the shape is blocked out I take care applyong the masking tape as this provides the outer surface onto which I paint. Just like a suit of armour the suit is made up from individual segments as are the boots.

 

I use a lot of corrugated card as it is remarkably versatile, both flexible and strong. It's important to get the corrugated grooves running in the correct direction though. Here the line can be seen going in a vertical direction which allows te card to ben in a curve for the neckpiece. I gently rub the card over a rounded surface (the edge of my workbench) to get an even bend and the wire edging helps keep it in shape.

I wasn't happy with the finish on his body so I covered it with papier mache toi give a more even finish. The text of the ppaer will show trough the paint slightly giving an intersting finish.

 

I felt he needed a bit more interest so I've given him a mechanical arm made up from bits from my scrapbox. The hand is oversized, a mix of Hellboy and Umbrella Academy for inspiration here.

His powerpack is a joint section of plastic piping sporayed black with various funky bits added.
As he's taken shape his suit has become more of an environment/exoskeleton suit so Ive added bits of armour and protective plates, secured with split pins to act as rivets.

The paint job starts with a wash of yellow ochre rubbed into the textured surface. I then add shades of burnt umber stippled on and rubbed black with a paper towel to give an old rusty weathered look.

The steampunk 'tricorder' again made using stuff from the scrapbox and brass rod.

The finished sculpt.
More photos here.
By the way anybody else having problems uploading photos form their pc on blogger? I've had to do this on my ipad as the upload box won't let me access photos.

Creating a Wood Sprite

 

I thought I'd show the proccess of making a wood sprite head from fimo.

It starts with a rough drawing over which I twist thin galvanised wire to make the branches that come out of his head.

Tape and foils are used to bulk out the basic shape.

 

Fimo is worked into a flat shape and layed over the foil.

This is slowly pushed and worked into shape.

Two eye sockets are pushed in.

 

 

 Beads are used for the eyes and extra fimo is added to make up the face.

 



 The head is placed on a foil baking tray and fired for approx 15-20 mins at 130degrees. When it comes out it has a richer colour.

 

 

The foil is removed from the head, as this just provided support while I was sculpting.

You can see that the wire was also twisted into a hoop at the back for hanging.

 

Extra fimo is added to give  a clean finish. The fired surface is covered with vaseline to help bind the new and old. This is then re fired.

 

 

After the second firing thin strips of masking tape are wrapped around the branches.
I lay the tape on a piece of perspex and cut them with a knife.

 

 

 

Thin copper wire is also covered with thin strips of tape and coated with pva. This stops the tape unwrapping over time as it loses its stickiness. These will become tin branches or ivy.

 

The head and ivy are stained with burnt umber acrylic. The head is wiped back regularly with a soft tissue so the paint accumalates in the cracks giving a nice aged wood effect.

 

The ivy is wrapped around the head and a second coat of paint and PVA added to ensure  a good finish.

 

The Finished piece.

Treecreatures visit Glastonbury

I've just installed a blogger app on my iPad so I'm trying it out with a quick news update.
The photo below is of a collection of work from about 3 or 4 years ago which I called treecreatures or tree sprites.
I'm very pleased that they now have a new home on Glastonbury high street with Lilith of Avalon. It's a very cool shop stocking work by many reputable artists including The Frouds, and reputably patronised by Nic Cage who lives nearby!

It's my first time in ages selling any work so both excited that Maya, the owner, thinks my work is worth displaying and a little sad that so many pieces have left home.

I think the plan is for a window display which is very encouraging, so watch this space for a photo.

summer creations

It's been a creative summer and here are two of my latest pieces.
Firstly the Steam Cannon, originally planned as a telescope but when I turned the tube around it looked much better like this.

And secondly, The Gironaut. I made him as a hanging piece because I'm running short of space to keep all my work!

Incidentally all these shots were taken on my ipad of which I'm very fond. The only down side is that although I can post photos to my Facebook page: The Professor's Steampunk Emporium I can't blog from it which is a real shame as I've enjoyed taking photos of work in progress and posting them as I go on fb.



The Professor's Patented Steam Powered Perambulator

The finished piece.

The Professor's Patented Steampowered Perambulating Command Chair





For the legs I had in mind something like the tipods from War of the Worlds. While making the bockpit the polystyrene ball has been sat on a plastic ring. I cut slits into this so the 3 legs would slot in. The 3 legs fit snugly together and are packed out with hot glue.



To give a good surface texture the legs are painted white and then stained with burnt umber, this is rubbed back slightly with a soft paper towel to give a nice texture.

The legs are given detail with layers of card and bits of plastic to make pistons

 





Once in place the machine looks a bit plain so I've added lots of cables and tubes as well as funnel's exhausts. All from bits of scrap I have in my collection. The clear tubes are filled with fairy liquid and plugged with brass rods which then slot into the sculpture.