New Begining - Hair and Face

Spent the day working on the right hand side of the Mountain Man's head. Re-doing his hair and braid three times. Adding ears, and working on his leather coat's collar.
I'll be heading back to Bozeman Tomorrow. A large crack appeared in my van's windshield this morning. I've gotten a ticket before, driving in other states, for cracked windshield, and I'm traveling through Idaho and Utah on Monday.. so need to replace it. This will shoot the day tomorrow. I'll be back in my studio on Friday.



Final photographs.

Story of Courage

I just wanted to add this story of courage. My entry for today is below this entry.
John Bruce is an amazing artist who lives in Mariposa California.
Years ago, we were members of the artist group, A.I.C.A. (American Indian Cowboy Artists). An amazing western painter who a few years ago, got cancer and was in the V.A. Hospital in southern California. Bruce had been in the hospital for months fighting against this cancer. They were moving him from his bed, and dropped him on the cement floor, damaging his right shoulder so bad, his arm was useless.
Over the few years since that terrible incident, he's struggled to regain his ability to draw and paint. With tears in my eyes, I can tell you he's coming back. Below is a charcoal drawing he just completed of a fellow artist who passed away, some years back, Duncan Spencer (1911-1999), and I just wanted to share this triumph with you all.
NEVER GIVE UP.

Got this back from John today in response to my putting his story on my blog.
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Hello again ,
Thanks for the kind words on your blog. Truth is, it's not so much courage as it is Panic. I suddenly realized that the VA was not going to pay for disabling me. They claim it didn't happen in the hospital, and it wasn't their fault. I'm appealing their decision, but the attorney tells me it will take a minimum of three years to get a hearing. I've got to try to produce some work so I can earn a living. I can't seem to paint, due to the limited range of motion of my arm but I am managing to work in charcoal. When I first got out of the hospital, I couldn't even write my name, but now with practice, I'm able to scratch out some drawing. IT FEELS GREAT ! I can't imagine what my life would be like without some art in it.

John

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I'm very angry at the V.A. for dodging their responsibility. Is this what we have to look forward to in Government Health Care. Scary.

Lemon

Another Trip To The Foundry

Another day on the road to the foundry to put a signature on my cowgirl clay. Forgot to do it yesterday. A little maddening.



Some photographs from today's trip. The first photograph is Todd Connor at his studio, and new painting he's creating.

Worked On Three Clays Today

Started the day working on "A New Beginning". The clay of a mountain man and his Indian wife. About an hour into the clay, I got a call from the foundry, Northwest Art Casting in Bozeman Montana. They wanted to let me know that there was a problem with right hand of the cowgirl in "Ain't No Cowboy". A clay I delivered to the foundry last week.
So I dropped everything and traveled the 60 miles to the foundry. Once there, I was able to fix the hand in just a few minutes. Then I noticed that the clay of "War Medicine" had a weird pupal in the right eye.. the good eye. The other eye is gone because of a sword wound to the socket.
So it took just a couple of minutes to fix that eye. Altogether this was a good day.



Final Photographs.




My Valley today

An Afternoon Amongst Grizzly and Gray Wolves

Just got a new Nikon D5000. So I was anxious to use it. So I spent an afternoon just enjoying captured nature, at West Yellowstone's, "Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center. Some may feel sorry for captured animals but these would have been put to sleep.. Actually the Grizzly were going to be killed for not staying away from humans. So instead of putting them down, they live like kings, in a wonderful enclosure.
There are two packs of wolves as well. I was there for their feeding. They shouted...
"Can we have two Volunteers?"

Ain't No Cowboy - Stirrup

Final day.. yes I said final day, on "Ain't No Cowboy". I re-did the stirrup for the saddle she's holding. I only made one stirrup, leaving it to the foundry to make two copies when the piece is cast into bronze. That way both stirrups will be exactly the same size.



Photographs of the stirrup I modeled from and the wax version attached to the saddle.

Ain't No Cowboy - Gus Crease Today

Today I take "Ain't No Cowboy" to the foundry. First I need to redo the hat. This is the forth clay I've delivered to the foundry in the last two weeks.
The next clay I'll be working on is "New Beginning".



Final Photographs of this clay.

Tommy Thompson, From The Hometown of Elvis,Tupelo, Mississippi, Designed My New Header - Thank you Tommy

Ain't No Cowboy - Final Day... Kinda

Worked on both hands of the cowgirl today. Cleaned up the rest of the clay, preparing it to go to the foundry tomorrow.
In the morning I'll be re-doing the crown of her hat and changing the style to a Gus Crease. A term for a particular popular style. This is a rancher style crown on her hat. A style that men wear but woman don't. I've learned a lot over the past two days.. Thanks Diane and Terri...



Photos of a cowgirl hat with a Gus Crease. Curtious of Terri at the Rusty Cowboy Gallery and Gifts.

Final photos of the cowgirl today

AIN'T NO COWBOY - Softening Her Face

The face of AIN'T NO COWBOY is a little angular, so today I tried to soften and feminize her face. Once that was accomplished, I turned my attention to clothing detailing.



Final photograps today.

Saddle, Latigo And Leather Straps Today

Finished up the saddle today. Adding all the hanging stuff on the saddle. Tomorrow, I'll finish up by propping up the saddle so it will stop sagging. Then I'll get onto her face.



Final Photographs today.

Blackfoot Dancers At The CM Russell Art Show

Paintings painted in a 6 hour period and Blackfoot Indians dancing in today's video from Great Falls Montana.



This bluff, south of Great Falls Montana appears in several of Charley Russell's painting from the late 1800's to the early 1900's.

At the CM Russell Art Show, Great Falls Montana

A couple of hours north of where I live is Great Falls Montana. I left this morning and spent the rest of the day at the art show.. The CM Russell Artshow.

Sold My Truck

Well it was a day of paper work and running around. Sold my truck last night and had to get papers and pay off the bank... Love paying off the bank. Also getting ready for my trip tomorrow, so nothing done on the clay today.

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For some reason, when I submitted videos, through OneTrueMedia.com, to Youtube, the setting was for private viewing only. They must of changed something. I just made the last two days videos Public, as well as one a couple of days ago, so you should have no problems viewing them now. I'm sorry for the inconvenience. I'll be more vigilant in the future.

David Lemon
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Ain't No Cowboy - Sheepskin and Pockets and Model

Detailing today. Started the day working on the cowgirls pants pockets. Found a couple of photographs from the models that posed for this piece and so had something to work from.
Spent half the day just adding sheep fur to the underside of the saddle, once I removed it from her figure.



Photographs of the two models for this piece. The first two are of Terri. She's a real cowgirl. She was the original model for this piece.

These photographs are of Lea Anne. She owns a local gift store here in Ennis. This is the pose I based the final clay on.

My Cowgirl and C. M. Russell

Reflections today.. and paintings by Charles Russell. The C. M. Russell Show and Auction takes place this weekend and I may be going up to it. I'll be back on "Ain't No Cowboy" tomorrow..



Photographs of C. M. Russell and some of his paintings.

Ain't No Cowboy - Detailing - In A New Gallery Today

Well the top news today is that I've found a wonderful gallery on the south shore of Lake Tahoe California, located near the gondola at the Heavenly Sky Resort. The name of the Gallery is, The Pacific Crest Gallery. I'm very excited about this latest move. So if any of you live near this gallery, you might take a day and travel up to see my bronzes on display there.
Meanwhile, in my studio, I was back to finishing up number 4 clay out of the 6 going to the foundry to be cast up into bronze. This one is titled "Ain't No Cowboy". It's based on a local lady who posed as a cowgirl for me.
I spent the day cleaning up and adding to the detail on this clay. I started this piece about 2 years ago. The clay is different than the clay I use now, thus the dark brown color.



Final Photographs of the clay today.

War Medicine To The Foundry

Delivered the clay, War Medicine, to the foundry's mold room today. This clay was created over the spring and summer of 2008 and had been in Mountain Trails Gallery, in Park City, Utah, since August of 08. Very exciting to get this into the foundry. Can't wait for this to be finished.

War Medicine - Prepairing for the Foundry

Today, I finished up WAR MEDICINE so I can take it to the foundry tomorrow to be cast into bronze. I created this clay almost two years ago and it's been on display in Park City Utah at the Mountain Trails Gallery all that time. I'm very excited to get this piece into bronze.



Final photographs today of WAR MEDICINE.

Two Videos on Mold Making & First Bronze Revisited from 2009

I'll be going into the studio today to work on the clay of "War Medicine" today, but I thought I'd go back in my blog entries and put on here today a video I made back in May of 2009 when the mold was made of "War Stories". I hope this answers questions on how a mold is made and then see the wax cast from it.



Then in June 2009, I made this video of the making of the shell or ceramic mold of the wax of "War Storie" and the first bronze from that shell mold.



Hope this helps you understand the process a bit better. I'll be adding photographs and maybe video in the weeks ahead on the same process in the creation of the two clays I delivered last week to the foundry. At least that's the plan.

Second Trip to Foundry Today

I made a second trip to the foundry today to clean up a couple of areas on the clays I delivered last week. I didn't see these problems till I reviewed the final pictures of the two clays.
I'll be in my studio tomorrow. So come back tomorrow at 8pm Mountain Time here in the USA.

Two Clays To The Foundry Today

I finished up two clays today. Bronc Stompin, and Somewhere A Cowboy's Walkin. I delivered them to the mold room at Northwest Artcasting in Bozeman Montana. It'll take from 8 to 12 weeks for these to be finished bronze.



Final photographs of the two clays.