To sculpt a figure, he starts with a special armature - a pipe with two prongs about two or three inches long and an inch or two apart. A block of semi-hard clay is pushed onto the prongs to form the beginnings of the pelvis. This is the only thing attached to the clay figure other than the board it is standing on. He then rolls long cones of clay for legs and attaches them to the hips. Almost instantly, he has formed the bottom half of a figure. The legs are in place, bent slightly at the knees and ankles. Lucchesi adds smaller pieces of clay for the major muscles, and then takes a larger piece of clay, slaps it into a pattie, and slings it onto the floor. Taken aback, students watch curiously as Lucchesi takes the slab of clay from the floor and rolls it around newspaper to form a torso. He then throws clay on the floor to form a thinner slab, and magically wraps it around the leg like skin. The effect is stunning.

To give this figure the strength to support additional water-based clay, a propane torch is used to slightly dry and harden the clay. In some cases slip, (soft clay blended with water), is used to attach wet clay to the dryer clay. Other tricks taught to the class included puncturing a piece with a tool in order to "push out" part of it from inside. The effect is better than simply adding clay to the outside of the sculpture and modeling the surface. As with the slab that is wrapped around, or even thrown onto a piece, the result is an organic, or natural look, of clay that just simply can't be created with modeling or carving.

Lucchesi uses an unusual set of tools, including a plastic card (like a credit card), wood carving tools, and a spoon that has been ground off at the tip. He also uses burlap. When I first saw him apply a piece of burlap or netting to a figure, and then work the surface with his fingers to make subtle changes in the form through the loosely woven fabric, I thought "what difference could this possibly make?" The fabric was removed and the piece looked great, but couldn't he accomplish the same thing with his fingers? The netting didn't seem to contribute anything, except perhaps a little texture. Once I tried it a few times, however, I understood. Instead of adding a little here and re-shaping a little there, by using the fabric on the whole section (for example, the front of the whole torso), your hands seem to work on all of it as one cohesive section ­ and it does seem to bring the piece together in form and texture. In five days, students sculpted a seated male figure, a reclining female, and a standing female figure. Some students sculpted a bas relief as well.

Students said the following about the workshop:
"I have never enjoyed a workshop that much before, and I have attended quite a few. I learned so much in a week and had so much fun doing it. Nobody could ask a stupid question, it seems, and Paul was having so much fun himself that it was contagious. I think it must be his total control of the medium and vast knowledge of what he was doing, but something about the way he teaches makes you fearless."

"Paul did an outstanding job of teaching a group of people from a variety of backgrounds and experience. From rank beginners to expert professionals, he kept all of us intently interested and on task while giving individual attention and direction to each person. I was one of the beginners and I not only learned a lot, but was also very pleased with my results."

Check out more Visiting Masters workshops at SAA.
www.sculptureacademy.com (512) 419-7373

Master sculptor Paul Lucchesi demonstrates the process of building a terra-cotta portrait at a 2005 workshop at Sculpture Academy of Austin.
Photo by Beth Schoen.

San Juan Diego

Above: ISADORA! Steel 39" High x 28" Wide x 8.5" Deep.
2005. Photo and sculpture by Lisa Brummel

ISADORA! Sculpture in Steel

by Lisa Brummel

Ironically, it was one of her long, free-flowing scarves that would be instrumental in her demise in Paris, France, in 1927. According to an article from the period, "Affecting, as was her habit, an unusual costume, Miss Duncan was wearing an immense iridescent silk scarf wrapped about her neck and streaming in long folds, part of which was swathed about her body with part trailing behind. After an evening walk along the Promenade de Anglais about 10 o'clock, she entered an open rented car, directing the driver to take her to the hotel where she was staying. As she took her seat in the car neither she nor the driver noticed that one of the loose ends fell outside over the side of the car and was caught in the rear wheel of the machine."

I chose to do an abstract sculpture of Isadora, leaping across the floor, head cocked backward and trailing a long scarf, perhaps a foreshadowing of events to come.

Stone Sculptor Mark Yale Harris

by Yvonne Montoya

Harris states, "I enjoy the challenge of working with permanent and natural matter. Unlike other art mediums where one can add or delete, with stone, one can only delete. The material often dictates to me the direction in which the design is supposed to head. It is my belief that as we go through life we can only create from that which we have, or are given. We cannot replace what is lost or taken away, or that which we never had. The ability to interpret and create beauty from what we have is the challenge and the satisfaction I experience in creating my work."

Over the past year, Harris has exhibited his work in a number of prestigious group exhibitions: SOFA New York; SOFA Chicago; Santa Fe Sculptors, Crossroads Contemporary Gallery - Santa Fe, NM; Santa Fe Artists Emergency Medical Fund Invitational, Riva Yares Gallery - Santa Fe, NM; Art For Life - Columbus, OH; US Bank Art on the Streets - Colorado Springs, CO; Chesterwood Museum, Stockbridge, MA.

Harris has also been selected for many juried exhibitions over the past twelve months, including: The Sea and The American West, both presented by the National Sculpture Society, New York, NY; 22nd Annual Sculpture in the Park, Loveland, CO; The Farmington Museum - Farmington, NM; Tri-State National - Beaumont, TX; Texas National - Nacogdoches, TX; The Terrain, Las Cruces Museum of Fine Art - Las Cruces, NM; Focus on the Figure, A New Leaf Gallery - Berkeley, CA; and the 2005 Annual Awards Exhibition, National Sculpture Society - New York, NY.

Above: Mark Yale Harris in his Santa Fe New Mexico studio in 2005. Photo by Steve Yadzinski.

Nancy Cardozier Donation for Monkey Project

Above: Title: "Simian Spectator"; Artist: Nancy Cardozier; Medium: clay; Height: 9 1/2 inches; Date: 2005; Photograph by Nancy Cardozier

Jania Ashby Shows in Florida, Fort Worth

She also has six pieces exhibited at the Ft. Worth Petroleum Club for the month of February.

Above: "Sher-e-Punjab" (The Lion of Punjab) by Raj S. Paul; Bronze 22" x 18" x 8"; 2005; Photo by Patrick Lane.

Sher - e - Punjab
(The Lion of Punjab)

by Raj Paul

A passionate secularist, he ruled his kingdom according to the Sikh way of life, regarding all as friends, regardless of race, caste or creed. Driven by curiosity and a desire for learning, Ranjit Singh established over 4000 schools in his empire, teaching the arts and sciences along with English and French.In an era of ruthlessness, he demonstrated principles of mercy and abolished capital punishment. His advisors included not only Sikhs but Hindus and Muslims as well. He employed European and American officers to train his armies, transforming them into the most disciplined forces in feudal India. He was the owner of the fabled Kohinoor diamond which he loved showing to visitors. Following his death in 1839, the English conquered the Punjab, seizing all of the Sikh Empire along with the Kohinoor diamond which now adorns the crown of the English monarchy.

Above: "Five to the Power of Three" sculpture by Hank Waddell

Above: "Stargazer" marble figure sculpture by Kelly Borsheim; 24" h; 2005; Photo by the artist.

Borsheim Hosts Stone-Carving Workshop with Master Sculptor Vasily Fedorouk