The Great Blue Heron: Pt. 2

Here is the very nearly completed model of the great blue heron. The legs are sketched in and the feet have yet to be added, other than that, the rest is finished. The body will be cast separately from the feet.

The Great Blue Heron: Pt. 1

I’m long overdue on giving an update on the work I’ve been doing. One project in particular that I’ve invested a lot of time on I’ve had to wait to reveal online as it was commissioned by my grandmother for my grandfather’s birthday.
I have been asked to make a great blue heron garden sculpture. I decided to make a cast resin piece that stands 27” high. I chose to model in oil-based clay, which I would then make a mold of in silicone. From the mold I will cast the final resin piece.

The base structure didn’t look like much to begin with. I started out with just a soda bottle and some pipe insulation.

I then built up the form using one of my favorite understructure materials, spray insulation (Great Stuff).

I then began building out the form in clay. This was a very time consuming part of the process as I had to soften the clay in order to work with it, and it always seemed I needed to add more.

Once the major forms were where I wanted them I began adding minor forms such as the primary feathers, tail, and beak.

After that the real fun began: Details! Here I’ve started adding the strand of feathers around the neck and belly and penciling in the detail on the head.

I really got into the detail work. More to follow soon.

Angel Wings Commission Complete Pt. 2

The Angel Wings are now 100% complete! They are all rolled up and ready to package and ship. In total this project took just under 100 hours to complete and, after all that, I’m still not tired of making wings. In fact, I’ve already begun drafting new frame designs – there is always room to improve.

Angel Wings Commission Complete!

The Angel Wings Commission is 99% complete now. The final 1% is just some final touch-up work and a little bit of tweaking.

The articulated frame is hand operated via draw strings. These draw strings are fitted with swivel hooks so that when clipped into place the wings can be held fully open, hands-free.

Some of my other wings have been longer when fully closed. I redesigned the frame for this pair so that the wing tips would be further off the ground when the wings are folded. Greater length makes it very difficult to go down stairs. (In my Angel of Death costume I had to walk down stairs backwards.)

Overall I am very well pleased with this design. There are many improvements over the last pair of wings I made. I would be happy to make this model of wings again and would probably make very few alterations to this design.

Harness and Frame

Low Temp Setting Thermoplastic Harness and Wood Latice

It’s been quite some time since my last post. I’ve been exceedingly busy working on two commission pieces and putting together a portfolio for this year’s USITT conference. Progress on the wings commission has been steadily paced. I’ve completed all the necessary calculations for the harness, frame and cable system that will be used to open and close the wings. Construction of these components is now underway and should be completed in the next couple weeks.

I’ve decided to use a low-temperature setting thermoplastic for the harness this time. There are a number of advantages to using this material instead of fiber-glass. First, it is very easy to work with and fast setting which saves a tremendous amount of time. Second, it is more cost effective. Third, In the event that it does not fit the wearer comfortably it can easily be heated and reformed by the wearer at any time. Usually I would want to do a life casting of the wearer and form the harness in that mold. In this case I can not do a custom fit so it is nice to use a material that the wearer can adjust themselves if need be.

Angel Wings and Things

Angel Wing Back

The commissioned angel wings are coming along nicely. All of the hand-made feathers are completed and sewn into place. I’ve started to work on sewing down the layers of turkey and ostrich feathers now. I’m glad to say that this part of the process is going faster than anticipated now that I’ve got a system for doing it. I feel much less stressed now that I have one half of one of the wings completed. Now I’ll be able to start on the other commissioned pieces I’ve got on the backburner.

Valkyrie Helmet Parts

Like always, I have more than one project going on right now. There are two or three other commission pieces I need to start drafting up including a pair of fairy wings and possibly a life-casting project. Right now I give myself a break from all the wings by working on the Valkyrie costume here and there. The cuirass is still half completed, as I ran out of steam making all that piping, but I have amassed quite a pile of scrap junk and have started piecing together what will soon be a helmet…of sorts.

Angel Wings Commission

Angel Wings Draft

Lately I’ve been spending most of my time working on a commissioned pair of angel wings. They are going to be a 10ft wingspan with an articulated frame. I’ve made a few modifications to my previous design for the Angel of Death costume and I’m convinced that this pair will be my best yet. The materials are more durable, realistic and, easier to work with.

Hand-Made Secondary Feathers

I’m off to a good start on the assembly of the hand-made feathers. In order to create wings of this size that are proportional and have an accurate arrangement of feathers, the primary feathers must be at least 30” long. Since, to my knowledge, no primary feathers of this length and style exist in nature, they must be made by hand. The addition of ostrich feathers should give the piece a richness that it was lacking before.

Valkyrie Cuirass: Assembly

Valkyrie Articulated Cuirass

Starting this week I’ll be able to spend considerably more time working in my home studio. Today I was able to put in a decent couple hours work on the Valkyrie costume. I’ve got the technique down for creating the finish I want on the articulated cuirass, now it’s simply a matter of sitting down and doing it. To finish off the assembly I plan on using elastic links between the plates so that the pieces will be able to slide over each other when I move. It seems like a durable means of linking the pieces without having to build on top of a fabric base.

Valkyrie Cuirass: Metal Piping

Completed Portion of Valkyrie Cuirass

I’ve made some major advances on the Valkyrie costume today. All of the segments for the cuirass have been cut and ironed, and most of them have been surfaced. I wanted each segment to have “piping” around the edges, but the vinyl tubing I was trying to use was much too difficult to cut and bend into shape. Even at 1/8” it was too stiff. I figured a way to make the seams using piping cord and ribbon and still achieve a neat, smooth surface almost as smooth as the vinyl tubing would have looked. Up close it looks pretty good, but a few feet back it looks perfect. It took over two hours to do this one section though so, I’ve still a long way to go.

Cherub Wings

Completed "Cherub" Wings

I was able to spend some of this morning working on the “cherub” wings for the choir of angels in my church’s Christmas production. The choir of angels will consist of 6-7 children from the church. For each of them I’m making a small pair of wings made with whatever I have around or can find for cheap: coat hangers, nylon, turkey feathers and boas. I’m keeping them simple since I’ll need to make multiples and need them finished within the next week.

Modeling Homura's Mask

Homura's Karas Mask

I received my life-size head mannequin in the mail yesterday. I haven’t had my hand in any modeling for a while so I started sculpting right away. I’ve started making the mask and helmet for the female karas: Homura from the 6-part animated series Karas.

Gabriel's Angel Wings

Wire Wing Form with Turkey Feathers

This year for Christmas my local church is presenting the story of Christ’s birth through music and drama. I’ve volunteered to help with the production as much as my tight schedule will allow, taking on projects one at a time. To start, I’m making the wings for Gabriel and the choir of angels (a small ensemble of 6 children). It took some time to make Gabriel’s wings, but fortunately I already had all the supplies I needed on hand.

Beginning with some scrap chicken-wire and some heavier gauge wire I made simple understructure that I could glue and tie everything to. I covered this with fabric that had a couple rows of turkey plums sewn in place. For the major coverts I simply glued some turkey quills in place. Glue will do since the production is soon and will only run once. For a longer show I would have glued and sewn the feathers in place.

Wings with Primary and Lesser Coverts

Some scraps of turkey feather boas were used to the lesser coverts. Then I attached the primaries that I had made. To my great fortune I was able to make the call that these wings will be static, not articulated. Therefore, I was able to use a rigid wire understructure and, only needed to make a couple primary feathers to achieve the look of a full pair of wings. All that’s left to do is find some gold rope to use as a harness.

Gabriel's Wings Completed
Height:4'

Valkyrie: Wings

Valkyrie Wing Sketches

I’ve begun drafting the wings for the Valkyrie costume. They are quite different from the Angel of Death wings, although they will still be based loosely on a bird's true wing structure. The structure for animating the wings should be significantly simpler as well.

I’ve decided I want a vertical span when the wings are fully open instead of horizontal, which is much more a fantasy wing design than anatomically correct. A vertical design, however, has the benefit of being easier to wear in crowded areas (such as Salem on Halloween)

I’ve split the wings into two main sections, the Primary and Secondary Wings. The Primary section, containing the primary feathers, is the piece that will accordion fold, and pivot to open to full span. The Secondary section, containing the secondary feathers and coverts, will be completely stationary, housing the pulley/gear system that will animate the Primary wings.

As exciting as it would be to have exposed gears operating the animation, I simply can not afford the type of gear motor I would need. Chances are I’ll be using a network of pulleys. Pulleys shouldn’t need to be so precisely aligned as gears, (so the wings will be able to flex a little). Additionally, the wire rope can be pulled and fastened using a belt, which works for a costume that already has a number of belts on it.

Valkyrie: Skirt Design Progress

Asymmetrical Skirt Sketches

I’m closer now to a skirt design that suits the Valkyrie character. Switching to an asymmetrical design added more interest instantly, plus I think the drape will be considerably more elegant and much less like curtain drapery. I’ve pretty much thrown out the idea of fish-scale armor completely; it made the design feel too “mermaidy.” I’m toying with the idea of including some asymmetrical/ broken off chainmail instead, but it seems likely this will be edited out later. I will definitely want belts and bands throughout the piece and have played around with them in sketches. When it comes to construction though, the belts will be assembled randomly depending on what I manage to scavenge.

I’ve yet to come up with a way to make the belt work appear truly functional as opposed to merely decorative. It isn’t fitting for a post apocalyptic warrior to be wearing a whole lot of decorative pieces (the Costume is about the Character). The only true decoration in the costume should be remnants from pre-apocalyptic periods particularly Nordic Dark Ages and Early Renaissance Design. I think that I can get away with using the belts as "holsters" for ammo and/or projectile weaponry and, in some areas, for "added protection". I’ll have to work with it more when the time comes. As for the assemblage of junk and scrap metal that will constitute a good portion of this costume, I’m getting away with saying it functions as protective armor. (even though it will be elaborate, eye-catching and primarily for effect)

Valkyrie: Skirt Design

Skirt Sketches

Lately it’s been fairly difficult to find the time to work on the Valkyrie costume. This weekend I’ll have a break from work though and should be able to finally make some serious headway on my various art projects. I’ve started playing around with the design for the Valkyrie skirt. I’m thinking of using a blue chiffon. I’d like something a bit “flowy”; loose, comfortable, pretty while at the same time battle appropriate. I’m toying with the length and placement of darts. I’d like my legs to be visible from the knee down, at least on one leg, because I’ll be wearing armor that I want to show off, plus it is more practical for a warrior to be wearing a slit skirt that is easy to maneuver in.

I’m not satisfied with any of my first drafts yet (hence “1st draft”) but the bottom left design is getting there. I think I need to start working some asymmetry into the design.