“Velouria” is a kinetic sculpture with a guitar amp hidden in the base of the sculpture. The sculpture is hand cranked; as you crank the sculpture, ports open and close muffling or distorting the sound from the amp. This piece was inspired by the Pixies song and will be part of the “Dig For Fire” show at C.A.V.E. Gallery in Venice California Sept 9-October 1, 2011.
The last few weeks have been fairly toxic in my shop – lots of layers of paint and clear coat. My shop is trashed at this point, but I’m almost done with “Velouria.” She just needs some fine tuning – adjusting spring tension, lubing & adjusting all the hubs, and general tweaking.
The base of “Velouria” is a functioning guitar amp and as the sculpture moves,
ports on the top of the amp are opened & closed to distort the sound.
The gauge measures pounds of something – not sure what – but the louder you play and
the more gain you use, the more the dial moves.
The levers that open and close the ports are driven directly by the hand-crank on the front of Velouria.
“Velouria” is going to be part of the upcoming show, “Dig for Fire” – an Art Exhibition inspired by the Pixies. I’m stepping out of my known comfort zone a little for this piece. While the body of the sculpture is in keeping with my body of work, the base is going to incorporate a guitar amp and hopefully will be a functioning amp with mechanical distortion/pitch/sound-related-stuff. Cross your fingers for me…
I started this newest piece while I was finishing John Deer. I wanted to use the same mechanism but explore different shapes and finishes for the body.
As you may know, my wife and I have been running a temporary gallery space in Portland, OR since April. It’s been great so far, but between traveling, showing, and trying to get work done in my shop, I’ve been too busy to post any progress updates. I managed to snap a few in progress shots, and I’ll be posting finished images and video soon.
The last piece I worked on was a complete struggle from start to finish. This bird is so much easier for me. Isn’t it strange how somethings just flow? Even the linkage has been smoother.
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