Tanya Ragir Studio exploring the feminine

To Work or to Blog…

Clearly it has been a long time since my last post. This is not for lack of content- sometimes I feel like there is a gun to my head to both create work and find the time to share it. Wouldn't it be great if you could all just come by the studio, have a glass of Prosecco, and have your own experience from time to time.

In any case, I am now working on an enlargement of an element from my life-size piece 'Doubt Kills the Warrior' (formerly known as 'Sara'). It is the heart of the piece that embodies the core of the movement: "Axis."

I've never built an armature in foam before. My friend and artist, the awesome Nick Petronzio, is helping me. It has been quite a learning process. Many (most) sculptors are now employing laser technology to enlarge or reduce sculptures. This is not a choice I was interested in at all. Even when I sculpted 'Doubt', I made a decision to sculpt the hands 10% larger than life-size; first of all because I love hands, but more importantly because when you look up, they are way above your head, and would appear smaller if they were true to scale. These and many other kinds of aesthetic decisions cannot be made by a machine.

Here are some early progress shots - so far I have about 900lbs of clay on her. It's just the beginning, the sculpting hasn't really started.

Here's the original and the 8' bock of foam. We decided to incorporate the base into the piece, took preliminary measurements, and started adding dimension to the bottom.

We added foam in some places, and then, using a hot wire tool, cut off major sections from others to block out the general shape.

Disaster struck. The ceramic broke in ??? pieces. By midnight, she was back together...I needed the master to work from. Shit happens.

Analyzing the next phase...subtler angles and high-tech sculpting tools; sawzalls, any manner of knives, and my favorite - curry combs (a metal brush for horses)!

And finally, clay! We went through 600lbs in the first day. Most of which was on the base.

By the following weekend, we got her covered!

Also, 'Doubt Kills the Warrior' will be having her coming out party at the Autry in Griffith Park for the California Art Club's 101st Annual Gold Medal Juried Exhibition, April 1st- 22nd. More details to follow.