Two New Pieces Today

It's been quite a while since I did anything new for myself. Today I managed to put together two new pieces using the faces I sandcasted two weekends ago. I usually combine the glass components with old "found objects" have been laying around the studio, waiting for me to have an inspiration about what to do with them. Today, I picked out an old copper oil lamp base that was great with the head of Zeus, which I molded from a terra cotta mask I borrowed from my friends George and Jackie. They got it when they were in Greece. We were over there for brunch, and I noticed it on the patio of their condo. I borrowed it and promised to make them one in glass, which I did. I made a silicone mold from theirs from which I did a plaster reproduction from which I can now make as many as I want.

The other piece I did used the same little face I have used in so many of my pieces in the past. It is mounted on an oval sandcasted glass base. I have included the jaw bone of a wild boar my friend Bill shot at his hunting camp in north Florida. The whole thing is mounted on some old heart pine beadboard left over from the remodeling of our house. I plan on donating this one to the annual Dunedin Fine Arts Center Garden Party auction. I post some pictures, when the pieces are totally finished.

"Who did your website?"

I received an email inquiring about who did my website. I was flattered because I did it myself. It's my feeling that everybody should have a website, and anybody can put together a very presentable website fairly easily. The easiest way I know of is to join Yahoo and go their Geocities site. (Since this blog is part of Google, I hope they don't get offended and shut down my blog!) Follow the directions and voila, you have a website. One thing though, you have to spring for an extra 9 bucks a month to get a site without all the Yahoo pop ups.

That's not how I made my site though. I am by no means a professional web designer, but I have been putting websites together for a few years now. I originally started with a program called Bullfrog, which is, as far as I know, defunct. About 3 years ago, I started using Front Page and am fairly pleased with it. I have not had the time nor the inclination to switch to what the pros mostly use, which is Dreamweaver. I use Adobe Elements for my graphics and pictures. I also have bookmarked, Bellsnwhistles.com a handy site for all kinds of free graphics. Another great resource for me is HTML Goodies. It has great tutorials and scripts to use on your site.

As far as uploading new stuff to the site is concerned, there are three ways I can do it. I can use the Geocities file transfer, upload directly from Front Page, or use an FTP program. Most of the time I use WS_FTP. It is not the newest thing around, but I have used it for years and I am comfortable with it.

Super Bowl Sunday in the Studio

Kickoff in one hour!

We just finished casting a furnace load of hot glass into our new graphite molds. If anyone needs these, I highly recommend Weaver Industries of Denver, PA. These folks are great to work with. We got three molds made for a new series of glass sculpture Laura is doing. They will be similar to some of the sand cast masks, she has done in the past, but instead of pouring into a traditional sand mold, we are using the graphite. Sooo smooth and fast! We have about a dozen small, medium and large faces in the annealer, and they will come out on Tuesday. Laura will have plenty of work to do decorating them with fabric, beads, feathers, etc. We will send some to our photographer Steve Meltzer in Seattle to photograph. He is the absolute best. Steve and his wife Diane are good friends. They used to live nearby in Sarasota, but last year they moved way cross country to be near their kids and grand kids.

Short entry today. I've got to shower and get ready for the big game. I can't decide who to root for. We love our former Bucs coach Tony Dungy, but as a one time Chicagoan and avid Florida Gator alum, I would like to see Rex Grossman shut up all his naysayers and play a great game.
Here's some trivia: Peyton Manning and his Tennessee Vols never beat Florida.

By the way, yesterday, my son Tony and I went to Gainesville and saw our Number One rated Gator basketball team absolutely CRUSH Tennessee. Go Gators. . .