Our back yard

The Pusch Ridge home was built on a sloping hillside with plenty of wildlife included at no extra charge.  To keep them out of the back yard I fenced it with a small mesh aviary wire.  We had been plagued with javelins, rabbits and even tortuous but this seemed to stop the intruders,  Access to the back yard was through this double gate I constructed.  It had a small gate on the left to allow people access.  When a vehicle or piece of machinery needed to travel through the right gate was opened also.  Square steel tubing was used for the basic frame and the surface was covered with screen. Decoration was added by hanging saguaro sticks on the right gate that banged about in the wind and added to the discouragement of wildlife.

One evening when JoAnn and I returned from an obligation we heard a whimpering sound in the vicinity of the back gate.  Upon investigation we found a lone baby javelin huddled in the corner by the gate.  It had become separated from the herd that had a habit of tromping across the property.  We didn't want to move it for fear the mom might be out there in the dark, ready to charge us and defend her baby so we left the problem to be resolved by natural consequences.  In the morning the baby was gone so we assumed it was reunited with the family.

Prior to fencing off the back yard we discovered a desert tortoise floating in our water pond.  I guess they aren't much of a swimmer.  We were relieved that didn't happen again after the fence went up.  All of these animals had their trails across the countryside established and then we moved in  and disrupted their life.  The least we could do was keep them away from danger with a fence.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Red Bottom Vessel e/P 19

My most recent e/P vessel is shown above.  Built around a larg mouth gallon jar, it stands 12 inches high and has a16 inch diameter.  The wood is oak, grouted with dark filled resin.  Red eculiptus segments are used on the bace.  The turned lid has one eculiptus recessed into the top of the handle. To view the base, a second low angle photo is shown below.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Display Your Art Work

If you have followed my posts, you know I love woodwork and have made  numerous pieces over the many years I have been following this hobby.  Many have sold but there are some special pieces we have held for our own collection.  JoAnn has some sculptural pieces in that collection also.  We have used them to decorate our homes, giving that special personal touch.  Now we have a problem.

When we sold the dream house we built of 6,000 square feet, we moved into a 3,000 square foot home in our planned down-sizing.  The next move to our current home was down-sized to 1,500 square feet.  We find our current abode easy to take care of  and just the right size for us as we age. The problem is we don't have adequate space for all of our art pieces.  We have given some away and sold others but we still don't have room for the special pieces we want to keep and I have a habit of continuing to create new art.  So what do you do?  We certainly aren't going to move to a larger house as we love our little bungalow.  some of the larger pieces are in storage in our garage until we find an outlet to market them.  I decided we heeded a display case for all the smaller pieces so drew up the plans.

My shop has been down-sized too so it didn't seem feasible to try construct a fairly large display cabinet plus a second smaller cabinet in my limited facility.  We had seen the cabinet work of a friends son and were impressed so contacted him with our plan.  He drew up a list of supplies, added in his labor cost and presented us with a contract.  We signed off and after a number of weeks he got back to us with the disappointing message that he couldn't do it.  He had tried but it wasn't working out right for him.  We had paid him a portion of the contract an he had purchased the materials.  At that point I leaped into the situation in an effort to salvage the project.  I offered to take the usable supplies in place of what we had paid and he presented the bills he had so we arrived at a settlement. Now I was faced with the task of constructing the cabinets in my down-sized shop.  It's amazing what you can do when you have no other choice.  When the cabinets were finished I felt good about the outcome.  Take a look at the installation shown below.

The two cabinets contained a variety of size and shaped compartments, each top lit with recessed low voltage lighting.  A transformer was Incorporated in the design with access from the back.  The entire back of each cabinet was enclosed.  After painted to match the wall they looked as though they belonged.  This certainly solved our display need and increased my confidence of what could be done in a down-sized shop.  I like this view with cabinet lights only.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Rusty Pipe Yard Light

Our home we built at Pusch Ridge, close to Tucson, had quite a climb up from the guest parking with many steps to negotiate.  To help evening visitors we installed light fixtures that would make the trip up the many steps easier and safer.  In keeping with our pattern of adding our own personal touches I acquired some heavy 12 inch steel pipe and fabricated a number of the fixtures as seen in the photo above.  I used a gas cutting torch to make the vertical slits around the circumference of the pipe to let the light shine out.  The top was closed with a steel plate, pierced with more torch cuts.  This plate could be lifted off the brackets to gain access to change light bulbs.  A disk of 1/8 inch clear plastic was placed on the brackets under the steel plate to keep most of the rain out.  A buried electrical line with weather proof junction boxes emerging inside the pipe finished the job when connected to a switched outlet.  As far as a finish for the fixtures, the action of natures elements took care of that.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Raspberry Pot e/P 18

This little vessel is a recent creation using walnut as the base and small limb sections set in a raspberry tinted resin.  I'm not sure what wood the limbs are but would guess they are pruning from a citrus tree like orange, grapefruit or lemon.  This piece in one of the e/P series.  In earlier posts I explained this series I am doing in detail.  The e/P designation spells out the entire concept.  The e stands for the empty containers I build the vessel around or over.  The P indicates the potential promise of the piece to become an artful object.

In Raspberry Pot I used a shallow plastic cup to build around.  It is entirely open at the top and I am still debating if it needs a top,  I could cast one in tinted resin to match the color in the piece and give visual strength to the Raspberry title.  What do you think?

                                     Top View

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

A Gate for all Seasons

This photo shows more do-it-yourself improvements around our Pusch Ridge home.  This low walled in space housed electrical equipment for air conditioning Which is critical in this hot Arizona climate. To cut down on the motor noise, hide equipment from view and keep unauthorized persons out of the area as a safety measure, I designed and built a gate using sheet aluminum and copper over a square steel tube frame.  I extended the height of the wall with saguaro ribs and matched it with similar material on the gate top.  A lockable latch, high enough to be out of reach of little fingers finished the job.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Light Sconce Fixtures

This sconce incorporates features from several other design I have used.  All elements are fastened to a metal frame that has a metal half-circle strap on either end.  The saguaro rib pieces are riveted to this strap and each rib piece is shaped to fit in holes drilled i/n the center block.  This center block is pierced with design holes and small colorful tile are fastened to the surface also.  This fixture directs light up and down, bathing the wall with light.  A soft glow is filtered through  the spaces between the saguaro ribs.   This is a colorful piece both during daylight and when lit at night.   More subtle designs are shown below.

This last sconce uses ocotillo stick instead of saguaro rib.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Tortoise Door

One of the more interesting doors we built was the Tortoise Door as seen here beside the art storage cabinet with saguaro rib doors.  This was JoAnn's studio at the First Ave. house.  Details of the assembly of this door are shown below. The process we used in construction of these doors started with a design JoAnn developed at reduced scale which included the colors used.  This scale drawing was then converted to a full size pattern using the square transfer method.  I wont describe this method here but stick to the main topic.  I usually did this transfer and then had the patterns I needed to cut pieces of wood in the shop.  After pieces had been cut and sanded JoAnn would mix the paint color and apply it to the wood pieces.  I usually stained the main surfaces of the door and applied a clear finish over all surfaces when the pieces had been assembled on the door.  The pattern was repeated on both sides of the door with one side being the reverse of the pattern so pieces were exactly opposite and could be pinned together with dowels running through holes in the central panel of the door.  My, that may sound complicated but after working with it on one door the process became routine.
                                                                             

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>
                  

JoAnn's Painting at Huston, Texas

JoAnn and I had an exciting two-day visit to Huston, Texas.  A major art festival was held there showing painters work in a variety of media.  The show was housed in a wide variety of public buildings all over town.  Each location featured artist's work using specific medias such as watercolor or tempera and all from the same organization like a gild or association.  Participants had their work selected by the local organization to get into the show.  JoAnn's watercolor, "Aunties Hibiscus" was accepted (shown above).  We walked our legs off all over Huston viewing the many exhibitions of good art work.  There were workshops and demonstrations scheduled for festival participants also.  Some of the activity was outside and the weather cooperated but as we were flying out for home the storm clouds started to roll in and we heard on the news when we arrived home that Huston was flooding.  If this had happened two days earlier it would have reined the festival.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Pusch Ridge Interior Doors-1

This is an example of the custom artistic doors we built and installed in our homes.  The Pusch Ridge home was a colorful space as you can see.  Saltillo tile on the floor, bright throw rugs and purple stained doors were found throughout the home.  The accent we added to the doors was subtle and placed in the center division between vertical boards.  Several other examples are shown below.

         Snake Door to Garage

       Master Bedroon Door

           Guest Bath Door

             Pantry Door

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Cholla Light Sconce

The development of light sconces was both a home improvement and a commercial venture.  Tfey were among the many special features we developed for our homes that were built over the years and we also marketed them at a local gallery that featured our work.  The one shown here was a rectangular box made if oak wood.  It had slats in front that emitted a soft light to cover the immediate area.  The top and base are made of solid pieces of Sycamore wood.  The panels on either side are resin with cholls segments cast inside.

The photo above shows a variation of the same sconce design made of local walnut wood.  The detail shown in this photo gives a closeup of the side panel.  Resin strips on  either side of the box have sections of cholla cactus encapsulated in them and colored resin had been cast in the cavity of each segment.  The shape of the segments, the color in each segment and the richness of the hard wood makes a pleasant combination.  These two sconce should be used indoors or in a protected area to maintain the quality of the piece.  Strong sunlight and moisture would gradually degrade the wood finish and look of these sconce.

For outdoor use we developed a sconce meant to weather and look old.  Saguaro ribs  fastened on a metal frame gave this type of sconce a rugged look.  We made quite a few of this design for our homes and sold a number through a gallery or on personal orders to friends.

*More detail can be found on my art at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

First Avinue Front Door

Our home we built on First Avenue in Oro Valley was to be our dream house and it was in many ways that I will describe in future posts.  This post features the massive front door I built for this home.  It follows the early European thinking that the front door to your home should be an indication of the residence sophistication.  I wasn't that concerned about displaying our sophistication but rather the opportunity to add unique decoration to our special home.

The door is roughly four feet wide and eight feet tall.  It is carried on four heavy duty ball bearing hinges and is held closed with two spring loaded catches.  It also is fitted with a dead bolt lock for security.  We found it necessary to use the dead bolt lock if there was a wind against the door.  The surface area of the door would generate enough forge from a brisk wind to push the door open.  The catches were set so that a person could pull the door open without a struggle.  The setting of the home on a ridge between two washes experienced plenty of brisk breezes and there for the dead bolt was locked most of the time.

The pull was fashioned of flat steel and a 1 1/2 pipe.  The flat steel was used to strengthen joints and repeated the pulls design. These features were repeated on both sides of the door and held together with 1/4 inch bolts.  All metal pieces were blued with a torch.  The decorative pieces were fastened to a 5/8 inch  center layer of plywood.  Notice that a pattern of Saguaro sections were used to ,lead the eye of the viewer around the surface.  Plain strips of fur were used to cover the plywood core around the saguaro design.  A viewing window was Incorporated in the upper portion of the door.  It was constructed with colored glass segments that were transparent enough to allow vision of the person o/n the other side of the door. A lavender stain that Joann mixed was used over the entire door and a clear sealer covered it as a final finish.

  *More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>
The full story of these and other adventures are covered in detail in my soon to be published autobiography, "Which Road Should I Follow?  Volumes One and Two".

                                                           

Pop Out at Pusch Ridge

This was the first pop out we did on our homes and this was our second home,  the one we designed and had built at Pusch Ridge in Oro Valley.  We used the same builder we had chosen for our first home and were pleased with his work.  L. J. McCreary was a young guy that specialized in custom built, Santa Fe homes.  He was receptive to our participation in adding special touches to the home once he was confident we weren't going to destroy the homes design and his reputation.  He explained how we could develop a pop out such as the one shown above and how it needed to be scheduled with the overall construction.  The process was covered in detail in the posts about pop outs at the First Avenue home.  We did a frog and a turtle on that house so wont repeat the details. This pop out was placed on a exterior wall that faced the drive way and in view coming up steps to the front door.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>
The full story of these and other adventures are covered in detail in my soon to be published autobiography, "Which Road Should I Follow?  Volumes One and Two".

Alta Vista Front Door

When we moved to Arizona we looked for a place to rent in the county of my employment.  The choices were disappointing and as an emergency place to stay and continue our search after my job had started, we rented a single wide trailer.  The next phase in home development was to order a manufacture built home delivered to Oracle.  This solution met with numerous problems and after several years we were on the look for property in the Tucson area.  This leads to our custom built home in the Alta Vista development.  My wife, JoAnn and I contributed some special touched such as the  front door pictured above.  I used a fir frame with plywood panels on which Saguaro ribs were fastened.  I chose to use a double door design with the right side locked in place except when wide items were moved in or out.  People traffic used the left door which opened much like a single front door.  I will be describing other aspects of this home in the future posts.  The photo below was taken of the approach to the front entry from the driveway.

The front entrance is up these steps. through the gate and to the left.

*More detail on my art can be found at my website <www.apatchablue.com>
The full story of these and other adventures are covered in detail in my soon to be published autobiography, "Which Road Should I Follow?  Volumes One and Two".

Apple Moon

On October 8, 2014 a major portion of the world was positioned to see a total lunar eclipse of the blood moon.  This was the second time this phenomena occurred this year.  I have witnessed many lunar eclipses but not of the blood moon.  The moon appears orange or red, the result of sunlight scattering off our atmosphere, hence the name Blood Moon.  This is what the recent event looked like in progress.  The photo is by AP, a part of coverage by the BBC.

I have been fascinated by this phenomena and in my earlier art work, a piece was constructed from a glued block of apple wood pieces that created the impression of an eclipse.  Part of the piece is encapsulated in resin, thus producing the fade of brilliance over part of the surface, characteristic as an eclipse progresses.  A cast bronze base is used to hold the piece above the surface of the table or other object used to support the Apple Moon.  A side view is shown below.





































*More detail can be found on my art at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Fantastic Frog

 

 The pop-out art forms we constructed on our home made quite a visual impact.  This frog pop-out is approximately 10 feet in both directions and protrudes 1 1/2 inches from the wall.  The construction process took a considerable amount of wire work over the foam shapes, resulting in sore fingers.

In this photo I am adding the full size foam pieces of the frog over the layer of insulation foam on the wall.  The metal lath or chicken wire as we call it, will be placed over the frog outline and tied to the wire already on the wall.  Timing was critical for this work as the stucco was to be applied to the wall soon.  We had to waite until the wire mesh was on the wall before we could add our pop out.  When the stucco crew add the stucco to the wall they cover our pop out and shape around the pattern. You get a feel as to the size of this frog design from this photo.

*More detail can be found on my art at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

The Horn

This wood sculpture is made with a piece of scrap I rescued at a furniture shop.  I'm not sure what wood it is but would guess it is walnut.  Notice the bark at the bottom and sap wood next with the final layer of heart wood on out to the tip of the horn.  I molded the base in wax and cast it in bronze which gives the piece sturdy support.

At first glance, the name "horn" seems to imply an animal horn but I guess it might also indicate a musical horn or device to sound a signal.  It is fun to mentally twist this piece to different positions to fit the various possibilities of the "horn".

*More detail can be found on my art at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Population explosion

My oldest daughter drew this design quite a few years ago while in college.  She was an art student at the time and made this design as a gift for me.  Over the years the ink started to fade and I sought a way to preserve the piece.  It occurred to me that a permanent form would be to copy it in a wood carving.  The results are seen in the photo above.  I used an African Walnut wood that had a good grain and carved will.  The carving is an exact copy of my daughter's work for I laid the paper pattern (her work) on top of my board and transferred the lines with carbon paper.  Carving the lines in gave volume to the figures.  It has hung in several of our homes and created interest from viewers.  As we passed through our home building years and started to downsize it became evident we would have to limit our treasures.  I asked my daughter if she would like to have "population explosion".  She was very pleased to receive it and in so doing completed the full circle of this arts existence.

*More detail can be found on my art at my website <www.apatchablue.com>

Orbs

When I work with resin there always seems to be some excess left at the finish of the job.  What can you do with this left-over resin?  I have made it a habit to have empty pill bottles around to put this unused resin in and let it set up.  I also have saved drops of resin that have set up on the plastic surface under my piece.  When these drops and puddles set they can be pealed off the plastic easily. They are also saved to add in the pill bottles where liquid excess resin is poured.  These various color, shape and sized pieces create designs in the resin tubes when filled and hardened.

                                                                                                                                                                       

                                                                       















I cut the tubes into segments 5/8th of an inch thick on my band saw as shown above.  This exposes the designs created by the various color and shapes cast in the tube.  These slices or orbs as I call them can be used to decorate the surface of art pieces. The piece shown in the photo below, that I created some years ago, is an example of orbs use.

                         
*More detail can be found on my art at my website <www.apatchablue.com>