nile crocodile sculpture
A Nile crocodile…who would have thunk it? This sculpture, like the rhino and mud woman sculptures, is an experiment in depicting flowing water and mud evolving into the Nile crocodile’s body. On the good side, by working with such an “ugly” subject, every time my son teases me by saying, “What an ugly sculpture”, I can answer him with, “Thank you, you’re right” because crocodiles are uniquely gross looking. And that’s exactly what made this subject so interesting for me to sculpt – his rough bumpy skin and teeth coming out at all sort of different angles.
Most of the flowing water and mud parts are done. I have a bit more work to do on his front feet and head, as well as blending the water and mud parts. I took a slight number of liberties – like having the tail up and on his body. FYI: see the small slits behind his eyes? Can you believe those are crocodile ears? Pretty interesting, huh? After he’s finished I’ll add the last photo plus additional commentary. Finished…a few more liberties taken…but, but…I am an artist. Check out these two links for interesting Nile crocodile facts: crocodylus niloticus & Nile crocodile Wikipedia. What’s really funny? If you read a description of a Nile crocodile without knowing what was being described you would definitely think Hollywood horror flick. See what I mean: maximum length 20 ft 5 in with an average weight of 500 lbs but will reach weights of up to 1650 lbs. The teeth are long and conical – has 66 teeth. Has short, squat legs which end in sharp claws. The back and tail are covered in rows of knobs. Has large, stocky body with a snout that is long and broad and ends in nostrils which will close underwater. Eyes have a third eyelid which protect them while underwater. Has a special throat pouch which allows them to eat underwater. Oooooooo, creepy. No more swimming for me!
the mud woman, a self portrait
I started another sculpture and this will be my first self portrait. I got out my self-timing digital camera and took 10 nude photos of myself doing the same pose from different angles and pretty much created a 360 view. It was necessary to hook up an external monitor to my laptop so I could view all 10 photos at the same time. By the way, this is as close as I get to posting a naked picture of myself on-line, LOL. This sculpture will be called, “the mud woman, a self portrait”.
She has a new name; Muddy Maude. It seems that the Mud Woman name is a little too common. The Mud Woman name must feed off of a archetype, don’t you think? Doesn’t the name invoke a very earthy feel? I wish I could have used it. She starts at the top with hair made out of flowing water which changes into a mixture of water and mud that forms her body.
white rhino sculpture
Since this is the first time I’ve tried sculpting a rhino I thought why not try incorporating something different – I’m going to make the water part of this sculpture look like it’s been poured and then flowed into the shape of the rhino itself. This sculpture is coming along great. All of the interior water has been done and I’ve started working on the face. I’ve discovered that by depicting the water evolving into the rhino I am able to hollow out the sculpture at the same time that I’m creating it. What a timesaver! He’s done but no name yet. Since he was an experiment it’s a little different naming him. I had a lot of fun messing around with the textures on this sculpture – look at the roughness of the rhino’s skin on his head. I have learned all sorts of cool facts about white rhinos – they have two humps, very noticeable flat lips, and their heads are much larger than the black rhino’s head. Check out this Wikipedia site.
only the strong survive
There’s a lot of muscle tone. Think of those art deco statues from the twenties or even the Hulk – I’ve always liked Bill Bixby. Here it is – day 6. I’m about 1/3 the way done with a long way to go. Pretty much where and how the water will flow is done. I’ve started giving detail to the head and I want to accomplish a determined look on his face. Day 8, almost sorta done. I like him again. Not love, but maybe. He’s getting a determined look on his face. The flowing of the water is present. I still need to work on his mouth. I would like his teeth bared – like a horse will do just before they use their head like a hammer and whack you.
All done, not everything I wanted, but close. There’s lots of muscle, water movement, & the strength of making a stand.
