Two-Headed Boy Whirligig Version 3

This third version of the Two-Headed Boy whirligig was made for a good friend's 40th birthday.  It now bookends along with a Howard Finster piece, an original Picasso.  I forgot to photograph the piece, so I asked the recipient of the work to snap a picture so I could display it here.  He holds a jug of moonshine and a flattened possum with tire tracks.  Click on the piece for a larger view.

Man with Heart

 This is a piece I made for my girlfriend Karen for Christmas.  It's about 7" including the base.

New Horse in Hoop

I finished this one last night.  It's a wedding present for a fellow bartender who was married last month.  It's the same size as the last one except this horse is not flat and is balanced without any added weights.  It's based on a turn-of-the-century tin toy that sold for around $2500 in 2006.

My first showing

Here's my set-up for my first ever showing of my work at the 10th Anniversary Blue Genie Art Bazaar.  Hopefully a few of the pieces will sell... if not I'll have plenty of birthday presents for friends for the next year or two.

Click on the picture for a larger version.

Finished Two-Headed Boy Whirligig

Here's a couple of pictures of the finished Two-Headed Boy Whirligig.  The pictures are a little blurry and do not do the piece justice.... I really need to practice a bit with my camera.  The clothes pin attached to the flag is to keep the arms even with the body as they aren't completely weighted properly to stand straight up.  This piece along with a similar brother or two will be available at the Blue Genie Art Bazaar in December.  (the tattoo on his arm is an anchor with Mom underneath it)

New piece (unfinished)

My lovely girlfriend made a comment about a two headed whirligig after I showed her heads I was carving for two Uncle Sam figures.  This and the Neutral Milk Hotel song "Two Headed Boy" lead to this latest unfinished whirligig.

Not the best photograph.  The flash makes the piece look flat.  It's about 16" tall and will be available at the Blue Genie Art Bazaar in December.

Here's the Neutral Milk Hotel song if you're not familiar with them:

Daniel Johnston watercolors from 1982

Daniel Johnston used to come into the record store I worked at in the mid-90s and trade his drawings for credit to buy albums (he'd purchase multiple copies of Beatles LPs that he already had).  I used to have around twenty of his drawings but stupidly lent them to someone who then moved away to a far off land (NYC) and I lost touch with him.  However I held on to four of them.  All of them are watercolors and date from 1982 and some are on the backs of menus to an unknown restaurant.   All are dated on the back and have titles.  One even has his address in New Cumberland, West Virginia written on it which means it was done just after he graduated from high school.  I have no idea what these are worth although his present day watercolors tend to sell for just over $1000.

I Save Ciggerette Butts For A Poor Girl Across Town, May 1982

Hey Soldier Boy, Sept. 1982

I Turned And I Looked And I Saw Myself In The Mirror And I Said "Who Is That Guy?", May 1982

Now I Know Why Ma-Ma Taught Me To Be True, May 1982

Horse in a Hoop Toy

This is a prototype piece I finished today.  It's based on an old rare tin horse in a hoop toy seen below.

As the hoop is rolled on the ground the horse stays upright and gallops.  Unfortunately my piece doesn't gallop as the head is too heavy and the center hole is off but you get the idea (notice the nail supporting the back legs so it doesn't flop over).

The piece is approximately 10 inches in diameter and is carved from pine and basswood.  If I can get a few of these done I'll put them in the Blue Genie Art Bazaar.

New Pieces

Here are a few new pieces that I will be displaying and hopefully selling at the Blue Genie Art Bazaar.  If you click on the pictures they open up a lot larger.

The first is an Uncle Sam whirligig.  I will have around ten or so of this design finished for the bazaar.  Each will be a little different from the last.  He stands around 21" including the arms.

This piece was intentionally done in a primitive style.  Actually I really had no choice as it's made from 150 year old long leaf pine which was like carving concrete.  After painting and distressing, I hit him with a propane torch which left burn marks on the left side of him.  He's approximately 16".

Another whirligig that I'm making for the bazaar.  I'll have around ten or so available there.  He stands around 20" and is based on a design I made around ten years ago.

Blind Lemon Jefferson was an influential Texas blue artist who was murdered in Chicago in 1929.  The figure stands around 15" and comes with his own detachable guitar.  I'm not too crazy about the way the face came out.  Here's a photograph of him and a Youtube video if you're not familiar with his music.

This is a one-off like the Blind Lemon Jefferson.  It's Hank Williams Sr.  He stands around 16" and comes with his own guitar (which I haven't finished so Blind Lemon Jefferson's will do).  The suit he is wearing is based on a Nudie suit.  Nudie was a famous country music and rodeo tailor who made suits for everyone including Elvis Presley, Ronald Reagan, and John Lennon.  Here's a side view to show the music bars that ran down the jacket and pants legs.

Finally, here's the original Nudie suit to compare.

 

Blue Genie 2010 Art Bazaar

I've just found out this week that I've been accepted to the 10th Anniversary holiday 2010 Blue Genie Art Bazaar in Austin. 

The show runs for 24 days and is staffed by Blue Genie and volunteers so I just have to keep up stock on my "folk art action figures" and not have to man a booth for hours on end.

I've been attending the show on-and-off for years and I always wanted to see my work displayed at the bazaar.  The artists and workmanship tends to be far more unique and imaginative than most of the other Christmas/holiday bazaars in central Texas (esp. the extremely dull and waste-of-time Armadillo Christmas Bazaar).

It will be the first time I've shown my figures outside of friends and family so I'm looking forward on feedback from potential buyers and collectors.  The problem now is getting enough stock together by the Dec. 1st opening.

Uncle Sam carving

Old piece I just sent off to my cousin in Brooklyn as a surprise.

Robert Johnson, King of the Delta Blues finished early July 2010

Photos aren't the greatest, that's something I need to work on.  Figure is approximately 16 inches tall. 

New Uncle Sam piece finished late June 2010

One of five different pieces I will be hopefully showing to Yard Dog in Austin to see if they'd like to carry my work.  I got a positive email from them three years ago about seeing my work but I became wrapped up in grad. school for archaeology and never got back to them.

Early Folk Carving

Approximately 16" tall. Carved from basswood