My Brain Is Recooperating....Thank You

[Dick Wilson]

Ahhh, what a fun few days this has been. My doctor diagnosed my head aches do to 24/7 turmoil over the new top ideas I was fighting with. As he slapped me he said "Get a grip, get away from it, have some fun". Always have been one to follow doctors advise I leafed through my spiral design/doodle book and picked out a design. I have always enjoyed looking at the wall hangings of Doug Fisher and Eugen Schlaak (Canada) and lately Carole Floate (UK). There are other turners work that I have really liked but their names elude me. Anyway......................

This piece is a 4/4 Walnut board approx 10" in diameter. I used a dremel and Rotozip tile cutting bit and my wood burner to create the stippling. Base is a piece of Alabaster I had laying on the bench. Deft rattle can lacquer. This piece will stay in my living room display as there are way too many imperfections for me to put a price sticker on. I will be doing another one very similiar for my Art Prize work next year.


FSCN0444 (500 x 500).jpgI would appreciate an honest critique. If you don't like it tell me why. I am most interested in what you would do differently. Thanks

[steve mcconnell]

Very nice. I really like it, it speaks to me.

[Roger Chandler]

Dick.........doing this piece would have given me a headache!

[Dale Miner]

Dick,

I can't see the "way to many" imperfections in the picture so will take your word on that. But, this is a great piece. Something fresh, Contrast between the texture and the proud areas, negative spaces from the piercing, and a tension from the mounting to the Alabaster.


Can you tell that I like it?

[terry mccammon]

The curse of being an engineer is that I am stuck in a world where things must be balanced. Somehow I would have liked it better if the inner group of stipples were only partially realized like the outer group, perhaps on the opposite quadrant. Or if there had been a gradation of stipples across the outer ring. Am I making sense, it almost looks manufactured.

I think the above sounds harsh and I don't mean it that way, just my immediate impression. I just wish I had the imagination to do something like it.

[Dick Wilson]

The curse of being an engineer is that I am stuck in a world where things must be balanced. Somehow I would have liked it better if the inner group of stipples were only partially realized like the outer group, perhaps on the opposite quadrant. Or if there had been a gradation of stipples across the outer ring. Am I making sense, it almost looks manufactured.

I think the above sounds harsh and I don't mean it that way, just my immediate impression. I just wish I had the imagination to do something like it.

Terry, I understand exactly what you are talking about. I like your idea of inner circle treatment. If I did the inner circle like I did the outer area to match I think it would work. Thanks

[Dennis Ford]

I like it but don't see "way too many imperfections". I did notice one of the pierced openings is shaped quite differently than the others. For variety in this series (if you make a series of it), I would like to see one with more color contrast between the plain area and the stippled area. Moving the center ring slightly off-center might also add some interest.

[Dick Wilson]

I like it but don't see "way too many imperfections". I did notice one of the pierced openings is shaped quite differently than the others. For variety in this series (if you make a series of it), I would like to see one with more color contrast between the plain area and the stippled area. Moving the center ring slightly off-center might also add some interest.

Off center ring, hmmmm, that could be interesting. Great idea. I will try it. You can't see the inperfections such as the raised ring width is all over the place. I didn't have the carving capability so I used my dremel. There are gaps in the alabaster on both sides of the wood. If you look at the piece from the side the piece leans about 4 degrees. Like I say, it is a prototype. Thanks

[Harry Robinette]

Dick
Glad to see your getting better. Now for this new piece I love it. I'm not an artiest or anything I just really love this piece. It's different but thats good.

[David E Keller]

I've been staring at this piece for a while now, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I like the way you mounted it on the base... It creates a sense of tension or potential movement that I like. The pierced/carved areas seem a bit homogenous to me, but I don't have enough experience with this form or these techniques to really make suggestions. You mentioned Doug Fischer, and I watched him demo at SWAT and studied one of his pieces up close... There's a lot going on with his stuff. His vacuum chuck/multiaxis technique yields lots of different levels within the piece and I think that prevents monotony. His use of color also helps to the same effect.

Dennis suggested moving the circular element off center, and I think that's a good idea... While you're there, why not introduce some other elements from that center or yet another. That might break up the field of the piece and allow you to go crazy with varying textures, colors, and designs.

I'm looking forward to seeing where this leads...

[John Keeton]

Dick, I really like the concept, and the mounting. I don't agree with the off center idea as I think that would fight with the mounting imbalance - a very neat idea.

Two thoughts - have the rim raised with a defined edge such that it appears a bit of a hoop, and the return curves coming off the center piece need to be deeper (less width to the "base" of the inner circle) and the same radius as the center circle. That should produce an ogee and provide a little more balance to the main form.

I do agree with some gradient in the piercing such that is gets progressively larger or at least that piercing inside the inner circle is a different scale.

[Scott Hackler]

Dick, your on to something here. I chopped up your image to try to illustrate how I would change a little something. I believe the repeated radius' would better serve the overall image. I do like the mounting and base for this one.

FSCN0444 (500 x 500).jpg

[Dick Wilson]

Dick, your on to something here. I chopped up your image to try to illustrate how I would change a little something. I believe the repeated radius' would better serve the overall image. I do like the mounting and base for this one.

FSCN0444 (500 x 500).jpg

Dang, Scott! I like your piece better than mine. I will have to do some more sketching. Thanks

[Bob Rotche]

Dick, I really like where you're going with this. Loads of possibilities without one being necessarily better than another, just different and a matter of personal preference. Personally, I'm envisioning something a bit less symmetrical with a curve more like a nautilus shell or a yin-yang. Might have to give that a try. I really like your off center mounting- gives the piece a great sense of movement. Good job!

[John Pratt]

I am nowhere near the skill level of those who have already commented, but I really like the concept of this piece. It may be the subliminal suggestion in the title of the OP, but for some reason it looks like an abstract version of a brain MRI. Either way, I like it.