Hunky-Dory

This Saturday, September 10th, which also just happens to be my birthday, I will have one Halloween work available on PFATT Marketplace at 10 a.m. Pacific time.  His name is Hunky-Dory, because in his world everything is just hunky-dory, and karma seems to smile upon him.

He is only the fourth fully sculpted Halloween figure I have offered this year so if you are unable to attend Ghoultide Gathering, this will be the only other piece offered in September.

He has long sculpted fingers holding his candy bucket and carrying his jack-o'-lantern companion.  Hunky-Dory is just under 16" in height, and is made of paper mache, wood and wire and comes painted in acrylic paints sealed with a matte polymer varnish.

I have been in contact with a school counselor, and 1/2 of the selling price of Hunky-Dory will be given to a local elementary school that I think will benefit from the proceeds of the sale.  The staff at the school has repeatedly proven to go above and beyond for their students so I am thrilled to be able to help in a small way.  We are so blessed to have such devoted teachers and staff in our community.

I also want to mention that my thoughts and prayers are going out to all Americans suffering from the flooding and damage caused by Irene and Lee, and the drought related fires in Texas and California.  It breaks my heart to watch the weather related emergencies unfold on television, and makes me wish I had really deep pockets to assist more people in need. Lets all hope that the tropical depressions currently in the Atlantic do not find our shores.  

Have a wonderful weekend and here is wishing you all the weather that you need wherever you live.

Laurie 

Little Parker Pumpkin with Bailey Bat

I have finally finished the painting on two new sculptures, and this is one of them, "Parker Pumpkin."  As is normal with many of my figures, Parker has a story.  It seems as though Parker comes with a well-vined pedigree, with his family's seedstock traced back to at least the 1620s, when his ancestors were shared with the settlers of the Plymouth Colony.  Being native to North America, this little fellow's family roots run deep and proud.

Parker learned at an early age the impact his family had on the history of America, and he was raised to uphold the standards of his family tree, uh, I mean vine.  Parker had other ideas, however, after he overheard a group of young pumpkin boys discussing Halloween and all of the mischief and fun of the night.  The other little pumpkin boys shared their love of bats, spiders and bugs, and told him stories of spooky ghosts, witches and ghouls.  Parker decided he wasn't going to become food for the humans; he was going to become a jack-o'-lantern!



After Parker learned that most jack-o'-lanterns were carved and not painted, Parker carefully rethought the idea and decided instead to train Halloween bats.  Over time, what Cesar Millan is to dogs, Parker became to bats... he became known as the "bat whisperer!"

Parker is shown in this sculpture with a bat named Bailey, in his right hand, and uses this well balanced bat to teach other little nocturnal fellows how to get over their fear of jack-o'-lanterns.   After all, you can't have a bat afraid of common everyday Halloween folk. Not to worry, Parker hasn't failed yet with any of his bats, and it is partially due to the talents of Bailey!

Hope you like this silly pumpkin and understand his batty dreams.

Have a creative week!

Laurie

Painted Halloween Portraits

We have been having some Internet problems and I'm afraid my cute little neighborhood squirrels might be the cause...seems as though they like to chew on wiring that is placed above ground.  No wonder the cable company has buried as much of the cable as they can.  Anyway, sorry for the late post, but I didn't have Internet access.

One of the good things I discovered about not having Internet access was how productive I was without the distraction of running over to the computer to check email or Facebook.  (Maybe those squirrels are a good thing!)   I was able to put the finishing touches on this tiny little pumpkin boy portrait yesterday, which is on a 4" wrap around canvas.  I hope to get a few more done in the upcoming weeks to place on these small black wooden easels I found.  I think they will work nicely with other Halloween collectibles to enhance your arrangements of holiday objects.  Yes, I'm all Halloween already, and happy to be so!

Have a great week and St. Patrick's Day!
Laurie

The Dumpty Pumpkin Boys

New to the Monkey-Cats Studio Halloween line up this year are two pumpkin figures seated on paper mache blocks that I have loving named the "Dumpty Pumpkin" brothers, "Lumpty and Humpty".  (They looked like they could fall off of those blocks and hence the names.)

"Lumpty Dumpty Pumpkin" is the first squatty little fellow shown and he is just tickled pink because a baby bat has landed on his fingers.  (Human children would be delighted by a butterfly, but in the world of Halloween a butterfly just wouldn't do, it had to be a bat.)  Being the youngster that he is, he grins with delight and puts his other hand up to signal his brother about the event.  If he gets too excited and doesn't pay attention that little fellow is going to take a tumble from his perch, and so begins their story that parallels another childhood tale.  

"Lumpty's" brother is "Humpty Dumpty Pumpkin", the elder of the two Dumpty Pumpkin brothers.  "Humpty" is a spider collector and is shown here with his favorite companion"Yo-Yo", named for his ability to go up and down quickly on his spun webs.  "Humpty" also adores his spider companion because he came with a pumpkin shape on his torso so he knew immediately that their relationship was meant to be.

The boys are headed to Michigan next week for Ghoultide Gathering.  Hope you like these silly brothers!

Laurie

Horace Lumina

He is finally done...all 31 inches of him.  This is "Horace Lumina", grand patriarch of the Lumina family dressed for the Pumpkin Ball.  He is shown carrying his Horace (falcon) face mask and his pumpkin bucket, wearing a reversed-scalloped edged tux jacket and vest trimmed with spider buttons.  He finishes his ball attire by wearing color coordinated striped stockings and boots.

Horace oversees the Lumina family using pretty tight reins, and yet no one complains about his rule over the clan.   His demands aren't viewed as too extreme throughout the year, but come October 30, all Lumina family members are required to gather for the family harvest celebration and Pumpkin Ball, which is a two evening event culminating on Halloween night. 

Horace supervises to make sure there aren't any young Lumina boys drinking hard apple cider, that the mischief is playful amongst the frisky family members, and that the pranks pulled on humans aren't too extreme.

Horace has a gentle look, but don't let that fool you.  That appearance can quickly change when he is asked to reprimand a young pumpkin for tomfoolery!!

Horace is headed to Ghoultide Gathering in a few weeks.  He far exceeds the height of any of the other Monkey-Cats characters, but I think he will blend in nicely!

Have a creative day!

Laurie

Works in Progress

Work continues on a group of figures destined for the Ghoultide Gathering show. I can't believe I'm down to about 40 days to get everything sculpted, painted, packed and ready to go. Time is flying!!!

I took a break from sculpting over the weekend and was able to put some base coats on a few figures and completed two heads. It doesn't seem like much when I look at the white paper mache still untouched by paint on most of the figures left on the shelves. I'd better get back to work!!!

Have a great week!
Laurie

Big Head Frankie

I had a weekend filled with painting and final sculpting on a few pieces and thought I would share "Big Head Frankie" with you. This little guy has a thing for Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack crew in Vegas so he was insistent on tuxedo style attire, but picked a silly pumpkin fellow for his bucket. Guess you can't always understand the mind, or should I say seed-pulp, of a pumpkin boy.

I've been using more glazes and experimenting on the finished paint surface of some of the more recent pieces and I think it may show in the close up of "Frankie". Hope you like the change. I'm particularly happy with how it is working on the heads and faces of the figures. Unfortunately, the camera can't pick it all up, but I still think it shows in a subtle way in the images of "Frankie".

Have a great week!! Back to the paint for me!

Laurie

WIP Update and My First Robin This Spring

WIP update...I'm gaining. Hats have been made, scepters sculpted, buckets pinched, faces added and second coats completed. I still have a lot to do to finish this group up, but I feel good about checking items off of my list. Speaking of list, I didn't use to create them. I'm finding now that lists keep me on track so they are now a part of my creative life. Do you create lists?

They don't look like much now, but I'm hopeful!!

This morning when I opened the door blind I was greeted by a robin (on the grape vine), a Eurasian collared dove (on the ground) and a group of house finch (everywhere). Why is this exciting? This is the first robin I have seen since winter started here, and the doves just returned to the yard the end of last week. I also heard them report that the first Sandhill cranes have arrived on the Platte River (just south of town) for their annual migration rest before starting north. We have about 4 good weeks of crane viewing and it is a sight to behold. They rise in groups off of the river in the morning and then return to the river in the evenings for overnight protection. The skies are filled in the morning and night and their ballet in the sky is something everyone should see at least once in their lives. Yes, there are crane fests, crane watch gatherings and the Rowe Sanctuary where you can have guided tours. Such a wonder of nature. Shhhh, I think Spring is coming

Have a great day all. I need to get back to this group of white clay misfits!!
Laurie

2 New WIPs

It has been a busy week in the studio making paper mache clay, making armatures for hats and then building the hats, building faces, making elf shoes and boots and making bodies. Below is my first ever Pumpkin Elf. He will be a crossover piece from Halloween into Christmas and comes with an elf hat with balls on the tips and elf shoes designed in the same manner. He carries a teddy bear and candy canes and I plan on painting him in striped stockings with a little ornamental vest. The figures don't have much of a personality punch at this point....that will have to come with the paint.

I also roughed in several snowmen this week. The little fellow below has a carrot nose and an over sized top hat. and two "stick" arms. I think he gets a scarf today... he needs it to break up that large body of his.

That's how I work. I sculpt, set a piece down, work on another, then look back on the piece I worked on earlier and let it tell me what it needs. That little bit of separation during the creative process is very necessary for me to keep moving forward in the design of the pieces.

That's this weeks peek into the studio and my artsy little mind.

Have a great weekend!
Laurie

"Arachnie" Pumpkin Almost Done!!

I've been painting the last several days because I just wanted a mental break from the clay. I think it is something we all go through...wanting to sculpt when we should be painting or wanting to paint when we should be sculpting. I just like to change it up every now and then. I really think it helps the creative juices to address an idea when it is beckoning us to a particular piece. Below is the first in a number of new Halloween and Vine pieces, Little "Arachnie" Pumpkin. This fellow loves his spiders and is shown with an asymmetrical vest with a spiderweb design on one side with a scalloped edge, and a straight edge on the opposite side with a spiderweb kerchief. I'm thinking he needs bling on his little bow tie so German glass glitter will be added this weekend. I also want to do a little bit more on his lip area....it needs a little more definition in color.


Hope you liked the peek at this spider loving character....he tries to wear one everyday to go with his attire . (They do his tailor work after all!!)

Have a great weekend!
Laurie

Friday WIP Update

Here is an update on the WIPS for Halloween and Vine and STJ. Faces have been built, boots have been added, arms and legs have been "grown" and I have suddenly realized I was really into the pumpkin heads this session. I have big heads, medium sized heads and little heads, and almost all of them are pumpkins! (Nana Lori, have you been in my head influencing the pumpkin creations? Lots of cobwebs in there so don't get lost!!) Anyway, I did build two witches, one of which still needs her arms, and I have skelly figures and vampires in the sketchbooks to get done.

I made one more squash figure as well with a big forehead and a stem hat.

I also finished the new coat on the paper mache bowl. The bowl is now drying, and I have about three cups of paper mache clay left over to work with so I better get back to work on the new skelly heads. La Te Dah Te Dah....squishy stuff!!

Have a great weekend!!! (I'll be in the clay again, but might have to break out some paints for a change of pace for a few hours!!)

Laurie

Wednesday Orb Update

I had a great painting day yesterday and was able to get two more of the figures painted onto the Halloween and Vine orb. Below is a bat-winged skelly figure emerging from behind the tombstone, and.....

the second figure is the lumina pumpkin-vine figure carrying his "comfort" pumpkin (kind of like us with a teddy bear) and his cat bucket. I also added more stars and swirls to the spiderweb sky.

One more major figure goes on the orb today and then the background filling begins. If all goes well I will have another peek available for you tomorrow or Friday.

Fingers and toes crossed hoping for another great day of painting!!! (Toes are hard to cross!!)

Have a great day!
Laurie