ROCK TALK
MONTOYA SCULPTURE & SUPPLY since 1973

Interesting sculpture related news, technical tips, special offers and other important information

By Jeff Halverson
Sculptor and Owner of Montoya Sculpture & Supply
www.MontoyaSculpture.com

Sept 22, 2003
Issue 4
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IN THIS ISSUE:

1. Editor's Note
2. Interview with Marny Glasser, Sculptor and Montoya Teacher
3. Honeycomb Calcite- A Carvers Viewpoint
4. Current Sale- only one 1939 Sculpture Inside & Out by Malvina Hoffman
5. Upcoming Events
6. Please send sculpture quotes (maybe win $25 gift certificate)

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SCULPTURE QUOTE
A sculptor wields the chisel, and the stricken marble grows to beauty.
- William Cullen Bryant, The Flood of Years
Contributed by Jo Hilpert

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1. EDITOR'S NOTE

It was hard picking the Sculpture Quote this month. We had so many good submittals. I want to thank: J Petry, A Ford, B Berger, W Crain, J Hilpert, M Norris and E Simard for taking the time to submit sculpture related quotes for consideration.

Just purchased a new digital camera that has a 10x digital zoom so I will be including some pictures soon. Still working on getting ROCK TALK available in HTML so I can include pictures and diagrams to make the eNewsletter a little more enjoyable and less wordy.

We are posting the updated Workshop season on the website
[ http://www.montoyasculpture.com/workshops.html ] by the end of the week. It will have our latest offerings for stone carving classes and workshops. It also includes our second year teaching Mosaics in Italian glass as well as stone tessare. In case it helps there is a reference from this page of the website with a list and phone numbers of local accommodations. The closest is the Marriott (just changed from Sheraton) but there are certainly cheaper accommodations.

If you have an interesting stone carving related story or historical sculpture related story please send it along and I will post it for others to read and enjoy. The first of this type of stories (articles) is posted below in “Honeycomb Calcite”.

Because you have given us your email you will soon receive an entry form to enter a free drawing for on of our 18th Season Sculpture Workshops. The value of the workshop is usually a $395 value. But I also include stone, and free equipment rental so the value climbs up to about $700. I hope you will take advantage of the opportunity to enter. They are unique and interesting events.

If we are sending you two copies of the newsletter please let us know so we can correct it. We are not intentionally crowding up your mailbox with our newsletters

I really liked this site www.williamsstudiogallery.com so I have included it here in case you want to check it out. Lots of nice works and other interesting stuff to see and read.

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2. INTERVIEW WITH MARNY GLASSER,
SCULPTOR AND MONTOYA TEACHER

Last year we were very fortunate to have a local sculpture teacher join us. Marny Glasser taught a three-hour class on Tuesday mornings. Starting with just two participants the class quickly filled up. We are glad to welcome her back again this year. Those of you who are not within a quick drive of us may want to consider taking her four-day workshop starting on Wednesday Jan. 21 through Saturday Jan. 24. Besides being a good sculptor she is also a very good teacher. Good teachers adapt easily to the different levels of expertise and ability in a class, and because our workshops are small she does a very good job at working with each person at the level they need. I hope the interview helps you get to know her.


Interview by Jeff Halverson (JH) with Marny Glasser), by email September10th, 2003

JH- Marny Please tell me little about what got you into sculpture?
MG- From Childhood to adult I have always loved art. My parents took me to various art classes where I grew up in Yonkers, New York. Following these experiences I decided to make this my major in college. There were intense classes involving all media, except stone. Following years of teaching art in several public school systems and working in design for television programs, sculpture appealed to me in part because of the choices the artist has to make.

JH- Please tell me about your education and teaching experience.
MG- My education includes credits from the University of Rhode Island and a BFA from Boston University. I taught art in the Massachusetts school system for two years and then three years in the New Jersey school system. I then went on to design for television production.

JH- Last year was your first year teaching at Montoya. You had such a good response from participants that this year besides your weekly class you will be conducting a 4-day workshop. What do you try to accomplish with your participants?
MG- Last year was a wonderful year at Montoya. Every participant, sculptor, was great to work with, talented with great possibilities. The four-day workshop [January 21-24th Wednesday thru Saturday. "Visions in stone"] will aid beginners and advance sculptors to use various tools with new techniques, from start to finish. The vision within the stone is very important. We will discuss what they see, how to discover a vision and then find a stone with their vision. They will be shown how to finish the piece and the mounting of it.

JH- Tell me about a teacher, artist or event that most influences your teaching style.
MG- To choose one artist would be very difficult. My style is a combination of various artists and techniques. Depending on what design I am creating, abstract, realistic, highly polished or leaving texture, it is the stone that speaks to me and determines what the vision is within it.

JH- If you had to pick just one, what would be your favorite subject for sculpture and why?
MG- Again I have not favorites. The coloring of the stone, the shape, or if it is a commission, finding the stone that has the vision I will create.

JH- Marny, what sculpture large or small, have you recently completes?
MG- I have completed two large sculptures. Two dolphins weighing about 1,500 Lbs. and an eagle alighting in a tree, six feet tall, carved in travertine marble.

JH- We have come across many people who seem interested in stone sculpture. Some are afraid of the hardness of stone. Some are comfortable with clay (an additive medium) but are very hesitant about stone (a deductive medium). What is the best advice you would want to give to a beginner interested in stone sculpture?
MG- Do not be afraid. Just try it and you will love it. It is not that difficult, with today's tools, pneumatic air hammers, die grinders, etc. it is very manageable for every age. There are people in their 80's sculpting with me. It is the most exciting medium, to take a rough stone and carve it into a beautiful sculpture is so rewarding.

JH- Is there anything new you wish to inspire your class participants with during this coming sculpture season?
MG- This year I look forward to seeing old friends and making new ones. The inspiration comes from the stone and the creativity of the people. Whether it will be a small or large sculpture it will be here now and for future generations. Something beautiful for everyone to see. Participants in my classes will be learning how to express themselves in a visual way, it will assist them to express in a concrete way, feelings and emotions hidden within themselves.

A PARTING THOUGHT- Marny is also teaching a weekly stone carving class in our studio. It meets for 12 weeks starting Tuesday October 14 from 10-1. The fee ($420) includes free studio time the rest of the class day and on Wednesdays. As of this date there are only 7 of 10 spots left and we have not really started advertising for the season yet. Please call soon if you are close enough to attend this weekly class. It's a lot of fun and you will learn not only from Marny, but from seeing what others are creating.
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3. HONEYCOMB CALCITE - A CARVERS VIEWPOINT

Below is a short article related to the use of Honeycomb Calcite. The article is unedited. The writer, Mike Stanley is from South Dakota. During his summer college break he visited relatives in South Florida and visited us a few times to purchase stones and tools. One of the stones he worked on while here was Honeycomb Calcite. Pictures of the beautiful sculpture he created with this stone are posted on the bottom of the home page of www.MontoyaSculpture.com. as well as next to the stone name in the online catalog. The stone is translucent and comes in colors ranging from light honey yellow to dark rich amber. Below he shares his experience with this beautiful stone.

Honeycomb Calcite

I purchased a piece of this beautiful stone, about one and a half feet square, in June of this year. This stone has become one of my personal favorites. I decided to give a softer stone a try and honeycomb calcite was excellent. Not only is it an extremely beautiful stone, but it is also a pleasure to carve. It is harder than alabaster, but significantly softer than marble. This made it easier to carve because I could be a little rougher with the stone without having to worry about gouging too deeply or breaking it. I used the thumbnail chisel to rough out the form, but switched to fork chisels to do the tight work.
I did not use the pick or point to rough it out for fear of bruising the stone and leaving discolored spots on it after polishing. It's soft enough that it doesn't take much time to get the shape you want anyway. The only ‘problem' I ran into was a surprising outer shell on the stone. It was about an eighth to a quarter of an inch thick.
After you remove the shell it carves beautifully. It's nice and smooth with very few weak spots; consequently, there are no aggravating chunked out spots you get with lower quality marble. If there is a fissure crack it's pretty easy to spot because the stone is almost translucent when wet. One other ‘problem' that I ran into was that the white veins in the stone carved a little bit deeper than the actual stone did. By this, I mean that when you run your hand across the stone, there is a tiny bump where the vein meets the stone. However, when polished, they come right out.
I really enjoyed working with this stone and plan to buy more of it in the near future. If you have never seen or worked with the stone, I strongly recommend it. It is such a beautiful stone that it is definitely worth the price and looks stunning when polished. It looks great in the sun because it will refract light and gives off a glowing quality. In conclusion, this stone worked rather quickly because it is soft; it looks great when polished; it is quite strong; and would look good in open air or with strong lighting.

Mike Stanley

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4. CURRENT SALE

There is no current sale going on but I do have something special.

Remember last month Vince Ricci said in his interview that he had worked with Malvina Hoffman (B - June 15, 1887, D - July 10, 1966). She was the only American to study with Auguste Rodin. She was quite a sculptor and lived to be 81.
Well, she wrote three books. The most popular is “Sculpture Inside and Out”. It was printed in 1939 and is still a classic. Occasionally I find one and it gets posted in the “Books –Antique” section of the website catalog. It usually sells fast even at $55. I have an original copy without the dustcover. I am offering it in advance to the newsletter subscribers at $42. It is in very good condition and is signed “J.J. Pullen Jr. 1962” on the title page.

It includes chapters such titled; Origin of Form, A Brief Outline of Sculpture, The Timelessness of Art, “Having Eyes, See Ye Not”, The Sculptors Studio, Carving, Garden and Architectural Sculpture, Reliefs and Medals, Animals, Enlarging and Reducing, Bronze, Plaster and Terra Cotta, and others.
It's a great book by an American Master of Sculpture. Look her up on the web or check out this webpage http://www.sandycline.com/sculpture/malvhoff.html
I only have one, so if you want it please call soon 561-832-4401

“Sculpture Inside and Out” By Malvina Hoffman, hardcover, 330 pages, 1939, $42

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5. UPCOMING EVENTS

ITALY STONE CARVING WORKSHOP SLIDESHOW- FREE
Our first workshop teacher this season is Vince Ricci. Vince has been teaching sculpture in Italy (his 19th year) since June and will be returning to the United States at the end of September. He will be conducting a four-day workshop in November (Wed-Sat, Nov 19-22). If you are in the area you might want to stop in at 6:30pm on Thursday, November 20th for a slide show hosted by Vince. Italian wine and cheese will be served. He will be showing slides of Italy and the area where he teaches, at Center For The Arts Villa Maria. It will be an interesting chance to meet Vince, even if you cannot attend his carving workshop. The slide show is Free but please call 561-832-4401 to reserve a seat. You will really like this show. Please visit his website at http://www.CFAeuroart.com

Montoya's 18th Season, Workshop & Class Schedule.
I think you will enjoy the selection. Watch for some more interviews with our teachers in coming issues. See our workshop schedule at http://www.montoyasculpture.com/workshops.html. for more information. You can also find area accommodations from this page. The closest hotel to us was The Sheraton. In case anyone wants to call them for reservations in the future the hotel is now a Marriott.

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6. PLEASE SEND SCULPTURE QUOTES (maybe win $25 gift certificate)

I have included a sculpture related quote at the top of this issue. I hope it is inspiring and interesting. If you have an interesting sculpture related quote please send it to me. Please include the name of the person who said it. All of the quotes that are sent are being compiled into a list of quotes related to sculpture that I will soon be posting on the Montoya website. I would appreciate your help in building this list of quotes directly related to sculpture. Quotes can be from recognized sculptors of the past or from a teacher or friend. Send me your sculpture related quote by September 10, and if it is selected I will send you a Montoya Sculpture & Supply $25 gift certificate and put the quote in the next issue. Email me at Jeff@MontoyaSculpture.com

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(c)Copyright 2003 Jeff Halverson

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