Sculpture Source

The mechanics of movement is another aspect of kinetic sculpture that is rigorously designed, and as much or more agonizing goes into crafting the movement of the piece as goes into the overall concept. The key here is “trial and error”, and sometimes a dozen different versions of the same piece are laboriously built and tested before a flawless design results.

Some artists shorten the trial-and-error phase by using SolidWorks, computer software used in mechanical engineering, to prototype how the center of gravity will shift as the sculptural members move in the wind.

Trial versions, whether virtual models or physical mock-ups, must also be constructed to test the lateral forces acting on the piece, and to simulate the effects of using different counter-balancing strategies. An intriguing piece that graphically demonstrates the concept of counter-balancing is “Rockette 1″ by John Tyler, which uses actual rocks to keep the flow steady and smooth.

How the pieces are connected is critical to the harmonious movement and proper functioning of a wind sculpture over time. Masters of this art (and science) include but are certainly not limited to Lin Emery, Moto Ohtake and Jeffery Laudenslager.

Joinery typically incorporates pivots, pendulums, rotors or gimbals depending on whether the intended movement at that joint will be in a two-dimensional (back and forth) or three-dimensional (up and down, around and around) plane. A “down and on the ground” movement is not an option here, so as one can imagine, a lot of time and effort is spent designing those movement joints.

The engineering of wind sculptures encompasses a final level of design complexity over static sculpture in that the piece is designed to be experienced dynamically over time. To complete each work, kinetic artists design the equivalent of several different sculptures so that all the various permutations that will occur over the dimension of time are captured. Computer animations and physical mock-ups illustrate how the different sculptural elements move in relation to one another, and provide a preview of the negative space and positive forms that will be created at any moment in time.

Sculpturesite Gallery in San Francisco and A New Leaf Gallery in Sonoma feature kinetic sculptures in various materials by artists who each approach the engineering, as well as the aesthetic design process, differently. Come compare and contrast, and learn more about these fascinating works of art!

On May 25th, 2009, Brigitte Micmacker conducted an interview with Mark Chatterley. Chatterley opened a new solo exhibition at Sculpturesite Gallery on June 25th.

BM:  Your large groupings are extraordinary! Some evoke circus feats, while others seem to have sexual overtones. There are often recognizable yoga positions. How do you get the inspiration for these compositions?

MC:   I do a little yoga and try to keep somewhat fit.  Understanding how my body works so I can translate it into clay.   I do a lot of drawing to get an idea of where I want to go with group figures.  What I want to say.   Sometime this includes sexual overtones or psychological situations. On the stacked groupings, I start with one figure on the bottom, then I build on top using the figure underneath to support the upper figures.   I have to build them so they can come apart as individual figures and I can move them to the kiln.  For the glaze firing, I fire them in the group.  That way they shrink and warp as one piece.

BM:  What other sculptors’ works do you admire most?

MC:   I like looking at Anthony Gormley, Robert Brady, Isamu Noguchi, Louise Bourgeois, Martin Puryear, Lee Bontecou,  But I also like looking at two dimensional artists’ work like Robert Parke Harrison  and Paul Wunderlich.

BM:  You have taught many workshops and classes. What is your favorite aspect of teaching?

MC:   It keeps me on my toes mentally.   I have to figure out why I do things so I can teach it to students.  It also forces me to learn something new.   I have been teaching an advanced ceramic course for years, and there is a core group of students who have been taking the class from me year after year.  I thought that I had told them everything that I knew the first year, so coming up with something new is a challenge.   And I like to think that I take the same challenge of always coming up with something new with my work.

BM:  Thank you, Mark. I look forward to seeing your new exhibition of figurative sculpture, BEINGS: Clay Musings on the Human Condition at Sculpturesite Gallery next month!

On May 25th, 2009, Brigitte Micmacker conducted an interview with Mark Chatterley. Chatterley will open a new solo exhibition of figurative ceramic sculpture at Sculpturesite Gallery on June 25th.

BM:  Mark, you mentioned in a recent interview in Ceramics Monthly that your favorite part of what you do is the building of the figures, and that the glazing is not as exciting to you. As a gallerist who has sold quite a number of your works, I would say that your unique use of glazes is actually a very important part of the appeal for your work. How did you come about your particular “recipe” for what you call the “lava glazes” with the distinctive craters and flowing details?

MC:   I realized early on that I didn’t want to use a typical shinny glaze on the work. The Netsler’s  were a husband and wife potter team in the 50s that used an interesting texture glaze.  So I set out to see if I could get an interesting texture of my own.  It took several years with lots of experimenting  to where I am today.  Now I am playing with the bubble size with different chemicals.  Bone ash and silicon carbide, to name a few.  But it is not an exact science.   Atmosphere in the kiln, weather outside, how thick I apply the glaze, all affect the results.  It is always exciting for me to open the kiln after the glaze fire to see what is in there.   The one nice thing that I discovered by working this way is I can load the kiln so the pieces touch each other, Supporting each other so they don’t melt down.  When I open the kiln I take a hammer and chisel and separate them.  Giving them another added texture.  This is something that was told to me not to do when I went to school.  Maybe that is why I work this way.  Maybe the one reason I don’t like glazing as much as building the sculptures is  when I apply the glaze all the different colors look the same, a dull gray.  I have to imagine what it will look like after it is fired.

BM:  Your sculptures have a primordial presence that transcends time and geography. Viewers sense a deep connection to mythology and philosophical anthropology in your work. Have you studied or developed a personal interest in either field of study?

MC:  I have an interest in past cultures and how my work will be viewed a 100 years from now.  I am also interested in world religions, past and present.  And how artwork conveys these belief systems.   I am currently thinking of art as instinct and how if affects our every day lives and how it was used for survival and passed down through the generations.  

On May 25th, 2009, Brigitte Micmacker conducted an interview with Mark Chatterley. Chatterley will open a new solo exhibition of figuartive ceramic sculptures at Sculpturesite Gallery on June 25th: BEINGS -Clay Musings on the Human Condition.

BM:  So do you build your clay sculptures using slabs or wide coils?

MC:  I use slabs, 5/8 inches thick by 8 inches wide.  I have a slab roller that can roll 50 pounds of clay flat at a time. 

BM:  How do they hold up while they are drying?

MC:  I work 8 inches a day on each sculpture, with as many as 12 sculptures going on at one time.  I let the clay stiffen up each day so it will support the clay of the next layer.   The one problem working this way is I can’t go back and work on the bottom once I reach the top, for it will be dry on the bottom and wet on top.   On skinny, tall work I use cement blocks on the outside to support the work as I build.   I do drawings for each piece before I start so I know where I am going with the sculpture as I am working.

BM:  I understand that you have developed your own clay body that is mixed especially for you. Are you after a certain workability, or strength for the finished sculptures when you determine the properties you want in a clay body?

MC:  Clay is such a great material to work with.  You can make anything with it.  But one problem is in green ware the pieces are fragile, so I add materials to the clay body to give it strength at that stage of work.  Another problem is when you fire the work to vitrification, there is a lot of shrinkage.  So I add material to help with that.   The work still shrinks 10%.  Some materials are Kyanite, mullite, grog.  Different clays from around the country.

BM:  About how much clay do you go through in a year?

MC:  18,000 pounds.

On May 25th, 2009, Brigitte Micmacker conducted an interview with Mark Chatterley. Chatterley will open a new solo exhibition at Sculpturesite Gallery on June 25th.

Brigitte Micmacker:  Mark, you have been making life-size figurative sculptures in clay for close to twenty years now. What was the impetus for moving in this direction?

Mark Chatterley:  I didn’t realize it has been so long, it seems like I am just starting on working on the figure.  I started out my career by making vessels, but they soon got boring, everything was round or distorted round.   I came to think of the pots as human forms.  The names you use to describe a vessel are human: lip, foot, belly, neck, shoulder.   So I decided to go right to the figure and take the functional quality out of the work.  The ancient Greeks postulated that Man is the measure of all things.  So I set out to understand the human condition.  Proportions, relationships, survival.

BM:  You built your own walk-in kiln, which you fill with many works and fire every three months. Did you adapt your work method to this huge kiln, or did you build the kiln to match your natural work rhythms? 

MC:  My kiln is 700 cubic feet, 8 feet high by 9 feet wide by 10 feet long.  I like that I can walk right into the kiln to load the work.  The reason I built such a big kiln was that I wanted to work big but did not want to fire the works in parts.  I found the seams to be visually distracting.   I thought I would never build anything bigger then this kiln.  The second time I fired it I had to dig the floor out to get the work in.  I fire a body of work around every 3 months.  I build non stop 6-7 days a week to fill the kiln.  Then I bisque fire, next the work comes out and I glaze for 2 weeks, and re-fire.

(interview will continue tomorrow)