"Natsu No Nami"

Posted Aug 3, 2007, 2:35:46 AM UTC

Well kids, this is my last entry for a little while. Gotta pack up & head out to my biggest show of the season.

In the meantime, please enjoy this piece. The most ambitious thing I've ever made; "Natsu No Nami", The Summer Dragon.

It's about two feet in diameter, a wall plaque made entirely in sculpted leather. I was very much influenced by Hokusai's "The Great Wave" , a famous 16th century woodcut print & my favorite piece of art, ever. I thought it'd be fun to do a 3D version of something like that, which is how this piece happened.

I suspect I may end up selling it at the show I'm doing...so I thought I'd better photograph it while I can. Of all the thousands of things I've made, I'll be saddest to see this one go. It was quite an undertaking.

"Natsu No Nami" is made of over 100 separate pieces of sculpted leather. The dragon's eyes are pewter pearls.

Comments

BogusRed
Mar 2, 2009, 4:17:56 PM UTC
wow this is so amazing.
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pazazz
Mar 9, 2008, 3:43:27 PM UTC
Very beautiful! I can't even imagine the amount of work that went into this piece. It looks very well crafted, a tribute to your patience, I am sure. Thanks so much for sharing this with us.
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KazeToMizu
Aug 2, 2007, 7:49:24 PM UTC
That is awesome o.o, and looks like a real undertaking. I really love the detail you added along his spine. I knew you could do a lot with leather, but not that you could sculpt it like this. Awesome!
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- merimask
  Aug 3, 2007, 6:04:18 PM UTC
  Thank you. I really like your gallery too...you have a lovely pencil technique.
  
  Yeah, I always have to tell people that my sculptures are made of leather...most people guess some kind of resin casting when they first see it. I have to be "clever" with my wording whenever I go through a jury process for an art show or a gallery. Most folks see the word "leather" & automatically assume it's either utilitarian or a craft. I say "mixed media sculpture" or "fiber art" instead...lets me get a foot in the door.
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  KazeToMizu
  Aug 7, 2007, 11:08:14 PM UTC
  Well, this is very far from an "arts & crafts" kinda thing. How do you go about setting the leather in place like that?
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  merimask
  Sep 5, 2007, 11:37:21 PM UTC
  That piece is made up of over a hundred separate pieces. Some of the larger elements I fixed on the plaque (a pine circle covered in suede) with rubber cement. Other smaller pieces were glued with jeweler's epoxy, which stays flexible & is great for glueing leather. It's a tedious process & took hours, as many of the pieces had to be clamped in place.
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