WOUNDED FLOWERS SERIES – FROZEN FLOWER
FROZEN FLOWER I
“Frozen Flower” is the third miniature sculpture in the series called *“Wounded Flowers”. This has been carved from a piece of Canadian limestone that I found while rockhounding. Size of the sculpture is approximately 1.5” x 1.6” x 0.8” (3.8 cm x 4.1 cm x 2.0 cm).
THE PROCESS
Stone is the first material I started carving. The first sculpture I carved was a large piece of limestone, roughly 18” x 8” x 5” (45.7 cm x 20.3 cm x 12.7 cm) in size. At the time, I had no idea how to carve stone, so I had to familiarize myself with the hand tools and when to use each. I was only half convinced I could do it, since all previous sculptures I had done were produced by an additive process. The only instruction I received was a thirty minute demonstration using pneumatic tools, which I had no access to use to carve with. Not helpful. So I had to figure it out on my own using hand tools and one small book showing the tools and which to use in what stage. It was a surprise that I managed to get a handle on how to carve stone and do it well enough to pass muster.
I didn’t touch stone again for years, not until I developed a fascination with miniature carving. After exploring wood and antler, I launched into all types of stone. Softer stone, such as limestone can be worked with only hand tools, but not in miniature, unless you want to make one piece a life project, particularly with hard stone.
Tools I use to carve stone are a Foredom industrial rotary power carver with sintered diamond burrs, the exact kind of diamond burrs a dentist uses. There are other diamond burrs of lower grade, but they wear out very fast due to the way they are made. Water is a must with stone, since the stone needs to be kept cool to prevent damage such as crazing, internal fractures, or breakage during the process. Water is also necessary to flush away the ground material being removed, otherwise its cutting blind in stone dusty mud.
FROZEN FLOWER II
Additional tools used are diamond drill bits, diamond files, and diamond impregnated pastes of several grits. Diamonds are a stone carver’s best friend. Files and pastes are used in the finishing process to fine tune areas and bring the piece up to a final polish, stage by stage. Areas can be left unpolished, in their natural state, or worked to create textural elements. It all depends on the stone (type, natural shape) and the design. The way I work is primarily intuitive. At most, I may begin with a rough idea of the subject; in this case, a flower is what I had in mind.
When I found this stone, I didn’t know what I would carve from it, only that I liked the stone. If possible, I prefer to carve stone I find, rather than purchase it. I will handle a piece of material I’m going to carve, study it, carry it in my pocket with me for a few days, or a little longer if it doesn’t immediately tell me how it wants to be carved. Yes, the stone tells me how to carve it. I don’t tell it what to do. Not ever. This process is, as I said, intuitive. It means letting go and trusting in the moment where I’m being shown to cut away material.
This will happen quickly sometimes. At other times, it’s a slow few cuts and then a pause while I study the stone and listen. Occasionally, there will be a roadblock and I won’t know where to go next. I set the piece down then. I’ll work on another that’s in process, while I wait for the material to speak again. This is how my process goes.
FROZEN FLOWER III
For this particular piece, I started out with the power carver and diamond burrs to define the form. The water method I use is “the dip method”. I work over a larger plastic container, inside is another, much smaller and deeper container filled with water. Approximately every ten seconds, I dip the stone in the water, then continue carving.
Once the form was roughed out and refined, I switched to using diamond hand files with water, continuing to dip the stone every several strokes, while also keeping the file wet. For this flower, I created a contrast from the petals by texturing the flower head. I carved this texturing completely by hand, using a pointed diamond burr. It was a painstaking process to create the texture.
Stone, throughout the entire process, takes more time and patience than any other material I’ve carved. I finished by using wet/dry sandpapers with water. Limestone can be sanded this way. Hard stone always requires diamond everything. Final finish for this carving was to polish it to a shine and then apply a light coating of beeswax.
FROZEN FLOWER IV
THE INSPIRATION
There’s this description about the fear response to danger, “Fight or Flight”. A third response to fear exists that those words fail to include, “Freezing”.
It’s like that deer in the headlights syndrome.
Some event or sequence of events takes place. It could be anything at any time in any situation…all in a split second. From zero to.........a million? Zap!
Instant flash. Gone. Watching from a distance. Floating somewhere. Oooooh yyyyyyeah, there’s my body, where am I? The body, it’s frozen in place. Can’t make it speak. Can’t make it move. Can’t operate this thing called the body. Can’t think. Can’t focus. Can’t connect.
“Frozen Flower” is all about this extreme freezing up in situations where triggering occurs that snaps one back to a previous experience of trauma that instilled a pattern of helplessness, among other things. When triggering happens the person becomes disconnected from their body. There is an inability to respond. Sometimes an inability to verbalize. Sometimes a complete physical re-enactment of the trauma. Always a completely inappropriate response to what is an ordinary event from the outsider’s perspective. It’s a very vulnerable and potentially dangerous place to be in.
I’ve known so many people who’ve shared their personal stories of struggles like this with me. Some of them have had a profound impact on me and changed the course of my life in the process. I’ll be forever grateful to you, J, R, S, and A. None of them would want me to publish their names publicly, so the letters are a stand in for their names.
FROZEN FLOWER V
All photos taken by Nine with a Pentax digital 35mm camera and 90mm Tamron Macro lens.
Outstanding artwork and a great writeup to go with it. I was wondering about the "frozen" nature of the flower but when you got into the stuff about fight/freeze/flight response and trauma, it made perfect sense. Fascinating piece 🎉
Thank you @brandt! It wouldn't make sense without the context, thanks for confirming that. I was debating about how I would express that. I appreciate your feedback. 😊
Your wounded flower is almost flawless. I see that you have written in depth about the process of carving itself.
I have seen people carving here on stone and wood the just have a chisel and a hammer. I have seen them dip their pieces in water as they work.
I have always admired their work and bought a lot of stuff from these temple artisans and given them away to my friends who love them.
Your stone carving seems more polished and different.
I guess it has to do with your conceptualization and execution of the piece.
Beautiful!!
Thank you @sofs-su! I wanted to add in more details about the carving process to give a better rounded view of how I work. Chisels and mallets are a must for carving wood and soft stone. I've been carving for a very long time, so I've become practiced with it. Additionally, each piece must be gone over repeatedly to bring it to that polished state. This carving is what would be described as "stylized", meaning it's particular to the artist, a style they've developed that does not fit any specific traditional art style.
Hmm.. would love to watch you work on a piece.
My longer term plan is to do some videos showing that. I need to invest in equipment to do that though, so it will be a while yet. If you were in the same place, I'd invite you over for a personal demo, as I've done with some people. Also, I've carved in public here, so lots of strangers have seen. LOL
Can't wait for those videos.
Yip making videos need a bit more investment and software to edit.
I find editing videos take a lot more time than I can afford even though I love do it.
I'm making a list in my mind of who wants to see videos, lol. Software I have already; it's the equipment I lack and also I'm racing against time for a couple things are my present limitations. I've heard video editing is very time consuming.
Good on you if you have the software.. Time is the hardest thing to find. Darn I am so late today getting stuff done and now I am racing against time. 🙃
That part about inability to and inappropriate response is why I said you sure are weird in a cool way.
I know that feeling. Like when the car you've been tailing forever is suddenly stopped and all you see is red.
That's the best I've heard so far. "Cool" and "Weird" have never been words applied together when describing me. Thank you. I like it. 😊
How often do you tail cars and do they all have glowing crosses and faith signs, or do they deviate from that? Ah yes, the red monster, I've mostly evicted that monster. Green Eyes + Seeing Red, those are a contrasting complimentaries you know. 😉
I have to keep reminding myself that it is a stone and not chocolate 🤣 because if it was chocolate, I would have it devoured it from my laptop screen. Nine I am seriously curious about the tools you use and I would love to watch you go about your way while you are carving. When did you first start carving? How often do you practice carving? What were some of the challenges you experienced when you first started carving?
That is one hell of a smooth looking stone. Great job.
🤣 It does look like chocolate! It'd write off your teeth on first bite though.
I plan on doing a post that includes images of my tools, which will go with upcoming sculpture posts. I started carving when I was in my 20's, so it's been several years. I've carved ever since. I am in the process of finishing a new piece I started last year, so carving is ongoing. It really depends on what time is available to do it; but it's a regular practice.
Challenges....teaching myself how to carve. I've had almost no formal instruction. When I was in a particular niche part of the art world, producing a form of Japenese art, I acquired a mentor in terms of the type of art (an old form), but not about carving itself. I've picked up a few tips from a couple of fellow carvers in that world, but generally with that form of art, techniques, tools, and so forth are mostly kept very secretive, which is a whole other story. LOL
Thank you so much! Now don't much on stones that look like chocolate, no matter how appealing 😜
Yayy I look forward to that post! I have so many qs I would ask you about why you got into carving and what intrigued you about it but I don't want to overwhelm you with a flood of qs.
You have pretty much been self taught in regeards to carving.
bites into rock oops too late
Ask any questions you like, I welcome all of them. Originally, metal and additive process was my focus with regard to sculpture. I wasn't even interested in carving (a subtractive process). An artist (carver and more) gave me some pieces of cherry wood board offcuts to try out after he saw a maple carving I'd done (larger). I had to work small to do the relief carvings and I started down the miniature carving path and I focused on that because it has been the most challenging art form I've ever done. No matter how good I get it at it, there is always an ever present challenge, so that's why carving.
Yes, I'm primarily self-taught with regard to carving. There's no other way to learn what I have, other than apprenticing to someone who has mastered carving.
Your poor teeth, I can hear them shattering 😢
Nine you are full of never ending creativity. I am happy with the progress you have made but I won't underestimate the effort, time, and dedication it must have taken to get to this stage.
A bit more of a personal qs but do you feel satisfied with your progress?
Thanks, but born beaten with the creative stick heavily, so I have no idea what it's like not to be creative, LOL.
Absolutely I feel more than satisfied with my progress. That said, there is no end point for learning where I'm concerned.
Yay! 🤗
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