This sculpture video shows some of my favorite creations. I enjoyed sculpting in clay when I was very young and took a class or two in sculpture during my first years of college. As a professional artist, I began to sculpt architectural details when I was working on large villas that required them.
I knew that, in theory, my classical training in drawing should give me the ability to sculpt, and this proved to be true, as the sculpture video shows. My first figurative sculptures were still daunting because they were on a relatively large scale; 6’X20′ each. Realizing that sculpture, at least in clay, was very much like drawing, I nonetheless persevered.
I have always supported myself with my work, and commissions are often the only way I can finance learning a new process or technique. The upside of this is that there is income. The downside is that there are deadlines and quality expectations on the part of the client.
So far, I have been extremely fortunate when developing new abilities and techniques on the job. I attribute some of my success to rigorous training in the fundamental skills of design, drawing, and painting. Techniques such as the hollow cold casting of the final work allow me to offer sculptures for structures that could not support solid stone.
Many of the fundamental ideas that I use in my work are the result of studies I do on my own time. Artists usually value having independence in the studio to create new work. I tend to use my studio time to learn new skills. It can take years to invent a new process or develop an innovative idea, and I sometimes must wait a decade or two before my concepts are understood well enough to find a market.
