Copyright © 2014 Regina Hurley, All rights reserved.
Bingo! I've definitely captured his likeness. If you go back to the rough lay in you can see the jaw line was more correct and as I added muscles and folding flesh, the jaw line grew and needed adjustment. I do enjoy rough textures and would head in that direction except the commission is for a smooth surface. So enjoy this rough version now because in future post the goal will be to continue on with honing in on a likeness, but smoothing as I go.
Oh, and hair does help!
This is a scary time because after weeks of sculpting it doesn't really look like him yet. My husband says,"put hair on him, that might help." Oh, if only it was that simple.
The real solution is a fresh eye. Each day I come into the studio I get a fresh look at it and get closer. I remind myself not to get to caught up on details but to bring up the sculpture with all elements equally. It never works when you doubt the process and try to rush by focusing on details of one part. I move from shape of head to features, more suit. For a real break I work on the ears!
These two photos show the slow transition from rough to smooth, always observing and developing the form as I go. In the lower photo (earlier) you can see how I covered the construction of the plinth with aluminum shim.
When I met with the collector, I showed him different ways I could design the portrait and he decided on the fuller chest rather than the partial portrait suspended. After more sculpting of the figure I decided the plinth needed to be larger to balance the visual weight of the figure so I cut some plywood and hot glued it around the tile. Then to achieve a smooth surface, I covered it with aluminim shim.
