Sculpture: Ancestral Stories

This sculpture was inspired by the many fascinating petroglyphs that can be found not just here in Albuquerque, but around the world. Before cyberspace, before paper, there was the process of recording one's vision, one's concepts, one's ideas ... in stone. Designs and symbols were meticulously chipped out of solid stone, exposing lighter layers below the oxidized surface, communicating... what? There are many theories about the content these petroglyphs were meant to communicate, but they could well have been, as this sculpture suggests, stories - Ancestral stories.
This mixed media Shamanic sculpture , created in 1995, stands 34 3/4" tall, including the walnut base. I started with a plank of wood, and carved it to look like stone formations - perhaps those that may be seen in a cliff or mountainside. When I felt the shapes were about right, I painted the wood with a combination of gesso mixed with sand, to give it more of the texture of stone. This was followed by many layers and washes of acrylic artists' color to stain and color and glaze the surface to look more like oxidized stone.

I then proceeded to engrave petroglyphs of my own design (no attempt to be historically accurate here - they are a composite of the many shapes I have studied) into the surface of the "stone".
The endcaps that contain the top & bottom ends of that monolithic section are hand hammered brass, with triangular accents in copper, brass and gold soldered in place to form a pattern on the surface. The arms and legs of the piece are ebonized birch, and the hands are handcrafted in bronze. The face is composed of turquoise mosaic, hand-cut and pieced together over a carved stone face, ground smooth and polished as one stone. the staff is wood, with bronze and copper accents. Additional bezel-set turquoise stones have been added as accents - one in the approximate location of the heart, and another on the walnut base. The artist's signature plate and title plate complete the base.

This piece sold to one of my good collectors in the Eastern U.S. The price of that one was about $4800 back in '95, but a similar piece - a variation on the theme - can be made for a higher price today. Contact me for details at (505) 296-1400, or Email me at: David (at) StewartArt (dot) com.

DESIGN, PHOTO AND TEXT © DAVID LLOYD STEWART - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Painting: Evening Caucus

This painting, titled "Evening Caucus", is done in acrylic on a handmade 24" X 48" linen canvas. The edges are "gallery-wrapped", meaning that there are no staples showing, and it's designed to be hung without a frame.
Just what is it that Ravens discuss in the late hours of the evening before the sun sets? Whatever it is, it's evidently more important than we assume. This heated discussion isn't likely to be resolved before twilight settles in.

The background pattern was achieved by painting the pattern in rather bold colors & contrasts. This field was then glazed with a translucent mixture or pearlescent & color glaze, to lightly cover the pattern and make it more subtle, and a lighter value that would ensure some drama born of the contrast of dark branches against a light sky.

The original has been sold, but I am publishing giclee reproductions, both on gallery-wrapped canvas and on art paper as well. Current offerings on canvas are at full-size and 3/4 size. The giclees are hand-retouched to include some of the luminous pearlescent & metal-leaf accents on each print.

I originally conceived of this painting to be done as a part of a pair of artworks - the painting in the background with a sculpture in the foreground. The Sculpture came first, and was titled, "Ravensong":

The sculpture was crafted in carved wood, with the light background on the body done in the same way as described for the background in the painting: colorful patterns covered with a translucent glaze. The groove in the chest was carved & painted to accent the piece of spiderweb turquoise I used to symbolize the heart of the spirit. The face was carved wood, covered with metal leaf, and accents on the body were handcrafted brass.

Well, as fate would have it, the sculpture sold before I even started the painting! However, I couldn't leave the concept of the painting alone ... the image haunted me, until I finally took the time to finish it.

Before I delivered the painting, I got lots of feedback from people wanting giclee reproductions, so I had it professionally photographed and printed by Bruce Shortz of 10000 Cranes studio. Please contact me with your inquiries about sizes & prices available at my studio: (505) 296-1400, or email me at David (at) StewartArt.com.

DESIGN, PHOTO AND TEXT © DAVID LLOYD STEWART - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

American Style Magazine cover

Last year, I received a nice kudo I forgot to mention: One of my pieces was featured on the cover of the February 2007 issue of American Style Magazine! The cover story was about the art collection of the late great actor, artist & collector Anthony Quinn, and how Katherine Quinn, his wife, intends to share that collection with the world. I made several pieces for the Quinns before Anthony passed away, and they chose this one for the cover of the magazine - very flattering. click image to enlarge
While I wasn't mentioned in the article itself, (not surprising - it was mostly about Rodins and Picassos!) , I was mentioned inside, on page 6 about the cover:

The piece featured on the cover was commissioned by Katherine, after Anthony admired a similar piece in my booth when he was our very first featured celebrity artist at Weems Artfest. This was in November, and I finished it just before Christmas, and shipped it to them in Hawaii, where they were staying with dear friends for the Holiday season. Katherine later told me that he liked the piece so well, that he insisted on taking it with them when they traveled, so he could set it up wherever they were staying and view it there! He was such a monumental talent, that I was very flattered by his validation. I wish we had had more time to develop a friendship.

One of the other pieces I made for his birthday at Katherine's direction was the Spirit Egg featured here on this blog. It was his central piece in the cabinet where he displayed his egg collection.

Sculpture: "Prize"

"Prize"

click to enlarge

I may add some close-ups of this piece at some time in the future, but in my effort to update this blog daily if possible, I wanted to post this sculpture I completed some time ago, titled "Prize". I love fishing ... I've spent many a fruitless afternoon in high hopes on lakes and streams, contemplating the uncanny parallels between this sport and life itself. The spirit that keeps me going is a spirit of PLAY ... a sense of unbridled optimism keeps this game of life forever fascinating, despite the occasional empty creel or the unsuccessful art fair.

Many years ago, my Dad took me fishing in Alaska. It was a fabulous father-son bonding experience, and beyond that, an opportunity to fish for larger prey than I had ever tackled before - Steelhead Salmon. At one of the fishing spots our small group stumbled upon, we each took turns on a small boulder jutting up in the middle of the bay - kind of a scary perch, but right in the path of the salmon. The thing wasn't flat, and on 3 sides, it went straight down - God only knows how deep. I rehearsed in my mind how to get my waders off if I fell in, so they wouldn't drag me down into the abyss! The fourth side slanted into the water for some distance before dropping off.

Shortly after the boat dropped me off for my turn on the Rock, I hooked a big one. It was such a thrill playing that big boy around & around the rock with light spinning gear. This thing was huge, and right at the limit of what my equipment could handle. Finally, I worked him around to the sloped side of the rock, intending to drag him as close to the surface as possible before I made a grab for him. In a last-ditch effort to break free from his line, he thrashed in the shallow water, and ZIP! My line broke as it scraped across a sharp barnacle on the rock. And then I realized - he didn't know he was free! For a split-second, he and I looked at each other ... me on the rock, him in the water .... and I knew if I wanted him, I'd have to go in after him. I dived for him, waders and all, and landed belly-first on his long thick body. He began thrashing underneath me, and I had to hold on for dear life - I had no idea how strong he was until then. After our wrestling match, I managed to bring him ashore.

I had always felt elated when I actually caught something in my past fishing trips - but this was different. That victorious feeling was part of what I wanted to convey with this piece. The fish is not a salmon, but a combination of salmon, trout, bass and...whatever! I called it an "Everyfish". It is carved in basswood (yes, really) and painted with acrylic artist's colors. The rest of the piece is carved wood, decorated with brass accents, turquoise eyes, and composite gold leaf.

This piece is still available at $3,800, shipping included to the US. Call me at the studio - (505) 296-1400 - to discuss how I can get him to you!

DESIGN, PHOTO AND TEXT © DAVID LLOYD STEWART - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Sculpture: Eskimo Dream

For the life of me, I just can't remember the title I gave this piece - Eskimo Dream will have to do for now. The body is carved from a mineshaft timber that my father-in-law, Allen, picked up somewhere in the Wyoming back country. He intended it to be firewood, but gave it to me to carve.

PHOTO BY AZAD - click to enlarge

The cavities in the body and head were flame-carved, the way canoes used to be hollowed out. I carved the face and mittens out of a slab of Mammoth ivory. I carved the fish out of Basswood (no, really!), and painted it with acrylic artists' colors - some of the "interference" and metallic and pearlescent colors are perfect for 3-dimensional shapes, and especially a fish! People kept asking me what kind of fish it was, so I invented the species - it was an "Everyfish". The base was carved from a chunk of snowy-white marble.

This piece sold many years ago - call me at the studio to ask about a variation on this theme.
(505) 296-1400 .... or email me at David@StewartArt.com

DESIGN, PHOTO AND TEXT © DAVID LLOYD STEWART - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Raven's Stone

I designed this piece with outstretched arms, so that the new owner can contribute to the look of the piece by hanging their own necklaces & pendants on them. Ravens & crows, of course, are known for their fascination with bright, shiny things - so I gave this one a large brilliant-cut cubic zirconia stone glittering in his beak.

The piece is constructed of ebonized oak, with carved composite gold-leaf accents. The Raven scene is carved in deep relief in basswood, and painted with acrylic. The base contains a layer of polished black beach pebbles.

"Raven's Stone" (click image to enlarge)

Here's a close-up of the face I carved for the sculpture below. I carved it in a smooth-grained wood (basswood), and then painted it with a rusty-red undercoat, followed by a splotchy covering of composite gold leaf. I wanted the red to show through the little gaps in the metallic covering, just as it did on the "spikes" on the lower body. Note that it's not carved fully "in the round", but almost as a bass-relief piece in keeping with the almost monolithic shape I'm so fond of right now. These pieces are almost tablet-like in shape - something I find fascinating.

This piece is still available at $6800 - Email me for details: David@StewartArt.com
or call me direct at: (505) 296-1400

DESIGN, PHOTO AND TEXT © DAVID LLOYD STEWART - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Credenza: Evermore, Nevermore

"Evermore, Nevermore" (credenza) (click image to enlarge)

This piece is a decorative Credenza (sideboard) custom-made for a client in Scottsdale. Titled "Evermore, Nevermore", it is about 5 feet long by 1 foot wide. I used solid oak for the structure of the piece, textured to emphasize the grain, and ebonized black. The panels were carved in deep relief in basswood, and polychromed in acrylic with composite gold-leaf accents.

The knobs were created by first carving the faces in river-rock, and then cutting & fitting turquoise stones, piece by piece, to cover the surface.... the assemblies were then ground, carved & polished as a single large stone, and then mounted in a handmade siver bezel and suspended slightly above the surface of the panel. A turquoise cabochon set in silver accents the center post.
A comparable piece would run in the neighborhood of $20,000.
DESIGN, PHOTO AND TEXT © DAVID LLOYD STEWART - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Sculpture: MUSE

The Muse is the traditional Spirit that inspires Artists, Poets and other creative people. The imagery I've carved in deep relief in the body section is representative of the things that inspire me: Light, space, geometry and organic/ natural shapes, rhythm, high contrasts in color and value, and the creative works of artists through the ages.

In the execution of the carving itself, as well as on the back of the piece, I have carefully preserved the chisel and tool marks, as well as the natural cracks in the wood, to create a rich, rustic flavor, and to remind the viewer that it is only by the labor of the hand that such creative works come into being.
The body of the piece is hand-carved from a solid heavy plank of Poplar, and the carving is polychromed with acrylic artists' colors accented with composite gold-leaf. The arms and legs are carved from warm-toned Oak, while the hair, which ends in a ponytail on the back of the piece, is Ebonized Oak. The face was created by overlaying hand-cut turquoise mosaic, piece-by-piece, over a carved wood base... then the assembly was ground and polished as a single large stone. The sculpture sits atop an 85-pound slab of Arizona Moss-rock. Resting in a depression carved in the Muse's left hand is a polished Brazilian rutilated Quartz crystal ball, symbolizing the "prophetic" nature of the artists' work: the dreams of artists today inevitably become the realities of tomorrow.

The piece stands 67” tall on a stone base that is 23” wide X 21” front-to-back. I envision this work of art as a greeting in a foyer or entryway, or as an accent in a great room to the side of a fireplace (but not too close!). It is for display indoors only, not to be exposed to the elements (as would be the case for any fine painting). The bottom of the stone has heavy felt pads attached, to protect your tile or wood floors.

Documentation sent with the piece is a Certificate of Authenticity, which includes the artist resume, artist statement, and a list of awards. Also included is the Appraisal of Replacement value, certified & signed by the artist. The piece will be crated & shipped in two pieces: the sculpture itself, and the stone base. The Quartz crystal ball will be packaged separately & sent via first-class mail as a third package.

UPDATE: THIS PIECE IS NOW PART OF A PRIVATE COLLECTION. UPON ITS RELEASE, IT WAS PRICED at US $17,500. Given standard appreciation rates, a similar piece could be done for you, and would be approximately US $26,000 today (2008) Email me for details:
David@StewartArt.com
Or call me personally at (505) 296-1400
DESIGN, PHOTO AND TEXT © DAVID LLOYD STEWART - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED