Fun, Factual, Weird, and Breathtaking: June 2021

Saturday, June 12, 2021

“Tach Pollard” – Surfing the Grain

Living in the United Kingdom near the woods, Tach Pollard began collecting oak roots in a wheel barrow while still a child and sold them outside his father’s shop.

Fire Antler
Burnt Hawthorn

Using mostly oak roots from the local woods, Tach views carving as a way to honor the tree from which the gnarled roots were born.

Cordoba
Hawthorn Gold Leaf

The inspiration comes from the skeletal structure of the wood itself. “Oak root often whispers in the shadows that dance and describe ancient faces.”

Ephemeral II
Hawthorn

During the last few years, Pollard has also added carvings from the hawthorn, which is very hard and tight grained and is a tree with mystical ties and designated in folklore.

Melissa Returns
Burnt Hawthorn

The whiteness of the wood combined with the splits, cracks, and shifts during burnishing give each carved piece its own unique design.

Dark Light
Burnt Oak

Forming the dark bodies using a blow torch creates the incredible contrast to the pale, peaceful faces.

Beltane
Burnt Hawthorn

Worldwide myths and traditions, along with Celtic and Inuit traditions, help create the inspiration from which Pollard works, including a fascination to the ideas of shapeshifting and sea creatures.

Unicorn
Burnt Hawthorn

“I love carving. I really feel honoured to go on a journey with the spirit of whichever wood I’m working with. It feels like a dance, a way in which to express and give life to the folkloric songs embedded and infused into the wood.”

Wolf Mother
Burnt Hawthorn

RA
Hawthorn Gold Leaf

Visit the links below to see many more fluid sculptures by Tach Pollard.

SOURCES:

Art Toy Gama

Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize

Note: My mother, who was also a wood carver, stated that she simply removed the unnecessary wood to allow what was already there to emerge. (N.F. Lewis)

All images used with the courtesy of Tach Pollard

Sunday, June 6, 2021

“Bruno Romanelli” – The Art of Lost-Wax Glass Casting

Hand-held Bowl 2012
Collaboration with Peter Layton

Based in London, Bruno Romanelli specializes in the technique of lost-wax glass casting.

Telesto

First experiencing glass in the 1980’s at Staffordshire Polytechnic, he then continued his study at the Royal College of Art.

The Offering

Romanelli made a name for himself by incorporating body casts of his own body when creating some of his glass sculptures.

Caelus 1

In the last 15 years, Bruno’s focus on the relationship between form, colour, light, and material have resulted in more abstract pieces of art.

Daphnis

His quest to achieve the perfect balance of form, colour, and light has required the use of many complex processes and techniques, particularly lost-wax glass casting which often results in one piece taking from four weeks to four months to reach completion.

Triton 1

Romanelli’s most notable commission is producing the Rising Star glass trophy for BAFTA’s annual award ceremony.

BAFTA Commission
EE Rising Star Award

“It is this combination of light, colour, form, material and their relationship that creates harmony and energy within the work.”

Beethoven

His more than 30 years of experience working with glass has led to him becoming an established artist who exhibits both nationally and internationally.

Blown Vessel

Visit the links below to see incredible art sculptures by Bruno Romanelli.

SOURCES:

Peter Layton - London Glass Blowing

Pyramid Gallery

Website

NOTE: Lost-wax casting, also called “investment casting,” is a process by which a duplicate can be cast from an original. My father used lost-wax casting through his work with the dental industry for many years but later used it to cast gold and silver jewelry from small pinecones. I have one I still wear. (D. D. Lewis)

All images used with the courtesy of Bruno Romanelli

Friday, June 4, 2021

“Paper Comes to Life” through Lisa Lloyd

Finding her inspiration in nature, Lisa Lloyd creates her amazing sculptures using only paper, except for the feet, with different finishes and colors following construction of the internal structure of her subject.

Chameleon

Lisa began in London as a graphic designer and animator for television commercials for the movie industry until about eight years ago when her career evolved into only the use of paper.

Great Spotted Woodpecker

The installation of the White Egret Orchid in the denim brand’s flagship store, 7 for all mankind, on Regent Street in London was the end of May and will be on display until the beginning of July (2021). This Orchid has been replicated for six more of their stores in Paris, Knokke, Geneva, Milan, Frankfurt, and Amsterdam.

White Egret Orchid
Special Commission for 7 for all mankind

After studying the subject through videos to capture their personality, Lloyd begins her sculpture by creating the skeleton using card and paper, then completes the work through the addition of a variety of different papers to portray movement.

Mary Katrantzou vs Bumble Bee

Details are labor intensive and defined by scoring, folding, and fringing the paper which at times has culminated in the use of 4,000 pieces on a single project. Weeks or even months can be spent on a single project.

Prawns

Her local natural history museum in Hove, the Booth Museum, provides additional subject study by allowing Lisa to go behind the scenes to study their more exotic animals.