Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Captain John Lovewell - Club Butt Fowler, Not Rifle



Club butt fowlers have a distinctively shaped stock and are aptly named for the unusually large section at the butt. The heavy convex form of the underside of the stock is traceable to early European arms. This style is seen on military matchlock guns preceding the flintlock era.
The oddly bowed contour of American club butt fowlers derived from the design of these European weapons. Imports with club butt stocks from England, Liege and France served as patterns for versions that were mostly indigenous to eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Some collectors call them "Marshfield" fowlers, attributing their origins to an area around Marshfield, south of Boston near Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Generally, club butt fowlers were very plain, only rarely carved and seldom fitted for a bayonet. However, their production continued over a long period of time... (1710 - 1780)


Monday, March 26, 2012

Captain John Lovewell - Rest of the Lower Coat Fleshed in Today

My Heritage - Come Come Ye Saints

My great great grandfather, Alfred H. Harper, was part of a mass migration from Navoo Illinois in 1846. He was one of the first members of what most people know as the Mormon Church.. or as we call it, The Church of Latter Day Saint.
This video shows a depiction of that forced migration, after a hooded mob drove my people from Navoo. They had to cross the frozen Mississipi River in the dead of night. They traveled to the Salt Lake Valley where they settled.
A hundred miles west of Navoo, on April 15 1846, just 99 years before I was born, William Clayton wrote this as they were camped at Locust Creek Iowa. It's an amazing song to be written by someone who had just lost his home and his land.
My Great Great Grandfather Harper was a Wheelwright. He built a lot of the wagons that transported Mormon families across 1,300 miles (2,093 km).



Here are the lyrics to this amazing song.

Come, come, ye saints, no toil nor labor fear;
But with joy wend your way.
Though hard to you this journey may appear,
Grace shall be as your day.
Tis better far for us to strive
Our useless cares from us to drive;
Do this, and joy your hearts will swell -
All is well! All is well!

Why should we mourn or think our lot is hard?
'Tis not so; all is right.
Why should we think to earn a great reward
If we now shun the fight?
Gird up your loins; fresh courage take.
Our God will never us forsake;
And soon we'll have this tale to tell-
All is well! All is well!

We'll find the place which God for us prepared,
Far away, in the West,
Where none shall come to hurt or make afraid;
There the saints, will be blessed.
We'll make the air, with music ring,
Shout praises to our God and King;
Above the rest these words we'll tell -
All is well! All is well!

And should we die before our journey's through,
Happy day! All is well!
We then are free from toil and sorrow, too;
With the just we shall dwell!
But if our lives are spared again
To see the Saints their rest obtain,
Oh, how we'll make this chorus swell-
All is well! All is well!

Birthday Time For Terry Connor



Terry Connor is a great friend.. His son Todd Connor , Donna Evans, and myself, took him to the Willow Creek Cafe. They have the most amazing BBQ Ribs.. ever..

Saturday, March 24, 2012

A New Way of Shoeing a Horse

I put this video I shot on Friday up, here on my blog, thinking there may be people around the world that might find this tool useful.. It's not related to my artwork, but thought you might find it interesting.



The Shoe-TRU™ magnetic toe clip, http://www.shoetru.com, allows you to keep the toe of the shoe in-line with the toe of the hoof until the first two nails are set. Then, simply push it forward and remove.
If you are using a natural balance shoe or just want to hold the shoe slightly back then place the toe-clip in the 10 o'clock position. This still stabilizes the shoe and you can see the extended toe at the same time.
A real asset when shoeing colts, un-mannered or sore-footed horses. or when you're just plain tired and don't want to settle for less than a shoe in perfect toe/heel alignment.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Todd's Studio and Pizza

Not much to say.. Just trying to get my mind wrapped around creating a coat I've never made before.. The fear of failure is powerful. Even for someone who's been doing this for a long while. It took me 4 years to build up my courage to do my first horse, back in the mid 80s

Monday, March 12, 2012

Captain John Lovewell - He Gets a Tricorne Hat



The tricorne or tricorn is a style of hat that was popular during the 18th century, falling out of style by 1800. At the peak of its popularity, the tricorne was worn as civilian dress and as part of military and naval uniforms. Its distinguishing characteristic was a practical one: the turned-up portions of the brim formed gutters that directed rainwater away from the wearer's face, depositing most of it over his shoulders. Before the invention of specialized rain gear, this was a distinct advantage.
The tricornes had a rather broad brim, pinned up on either side of the head and at the back, producing a triangular shape. The hat was typically worn with the point facing forward, though it was not at all unusual for soldiers, who would often rest a rifle or musket on their right shoulder, to wear the tricorne pointed to the left to allow better clearance.



Sunday, March 11, 2012

Madison Valley's Veterans Memorial - David Lemon's Monumental Bronze - Veterans Legacy, Revisited

This video was first uploaded in June of 2011. I just wanted to revisit it because.. ENNIS WAS GREEN AND I'M GETTING SICK OF WINTER.... LOL

Friday, March 9, 2012

Captain John Lovewell - Upper Clothing Begins

Baje Whitethorne Sr. Art Of The People

Baje Whitethorne Sr. is an amazing Navajo Artist. I'm proud to have him as a friend and He is having an exhibition of his artwork at the Gallup Cultural Center in Gallup, New Mexico from April to June 1st 2012. If your in the area or live in that area, please stop by and see his amazing work.

A Painting by Baje Whitethorne Sr.

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Captain John Lovewell - Gathering my Reference Photos Today



I've been commissioned to create a 1/2 life size bronze of a famous early American hero. Captain John Lovewell, who was killed by Abenaki Indians in a battle near Lovewell Pond.
John Lovewell (October 14, 1691 -- May 8, 1725) was a famous Ranger in the 18th century who fought during Dummer's War (also known as Lovewell's War). He lived in present-day Nashua, New Hampshire. He fought in Dummer's War as a militia captain, leading three expeditions against the Abenaki Indians.
Lovewell was commemorated by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow with his poem, "The Battle of Lovells Pond", and by Nathaniel Hawthorne with his story, "Roger Malvin's Burial".
View my online gallery at http://bronzesbydavidlemon.blogspot.com
I'm using a 36 inch tall TruForm human armature as the base for this clay. You can purchase a TruForm armature at http://www.truformarmatures.com

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Sculpting Tutorial on How to Use Your TruForm Horse Armature



TruForm Armatures http://www.truformarmatures.com
My Gallery Online http://bronzesbydavidlemon.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Sculpting Tutorial on How to Use Your TruForm Human Figure Armature



http://www.truformarmatures.com

My Gallery Online http://bronzesbydavidlemon.blogspot.com/

Captain John Lovewell - Leggings, and an amazing story of survival



Stephen T. Gough's Book "COLTER'S RUN"
http://www.coltersrunthebook.com/about.html

Stephen T. Gough, on the land where part of the story of Coulter's Run took place, near Three Forks Montana.

Friday, March 2, 2012

Captain John Lovewell Commission - Puckered Moccasins or Center Seam foot ware



John Buxton's website http://www.buxtonart.com/bio.html
Elk Hide Center-seam Moccasins
Center-seam moccasins are one type of traditional North American footwear. Made from a single piece of durable elk hide, they can be made to fit from a tracing of your foot. The word moccasin, which has language origins with Eastern North American tribes, traditionally referred to a shoe with a puckered u-shaped 'vamp' over the instep. The name of the Great Lakes Ojibwa tribe means 'people of the puckered moccasin'. The southern New England Narragansett word for shoe is 'Mocussinass' or 'Mockussinchass'. Today the word moccasin, still with innumerable spellings, generally refers to all types of hard and soft soled shoes, with and without puckered toes.
I've been commissioned to create a 1/2 life size bronze of a famous early American hero. Captain John Lovewell, who was killed by Abenaki Indians in a battle near Lovewell Pond.
John Lovewell (October 14, 1691 -- May 8, 1725) was a famous Ranger in the 18th century who fought during Dummer's War (also known as Lovewell's War). He lived in present-day Nashua, New Hampshire. He fought in Dummer's War as a militia captain, leading three expeditions against the Abenaki Indians.
Lovewell was commemorated by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow with his poem, "The Battle of Lovells Pond", and by Nathaniel Hawthorne with his story, "Roger Malvin's Burial".
View my online gallery at http://bronzesbydavidlemon.blogspot.com
I'm using a 36 inch tall TruForm human armature as the base for this clay. You can purchase a TruForm armature at http://www.truformarmatures.com