Posts by Bridgette
Goodbye Florencia- I’m Looking For a New Apprentice.
My apprentice, Florencia must leave the studio for a time. I am hoping she will be back and she has stated she will be in on weekends when she can. I was happy to hear her say that the studio was not only a wonderful place to work, but a sort of creative refuge. I feel that way, and the surrounding area with pond, stream, turtles and fish also aids in that.
I have been sending out press releases to schools, summer is a good time to find a junior or senior student who loves art. Feel free to pass this along to those you know who may be interested.
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Houston Sculptor is seeking summer apprentice.
This job consists of working in a real art studio with a master sculptor as well as in the foundry for bronze casting when necessary. Work is figurative. Your duties would include anything from smoothing clay, helping to make armatures for life size sculpture, assisting artist with working waxes for the bronze process and clean up. The work can get dirty. Desire for art and a summer commitment is the only prerequisite.
This is not a paying internship however there are sometimes bonuses involved and the learning experience and exposure are invaluable. The artist’s studio is located just north of the 610 loop off of shepherd. Hours are flexible, we can work around your schedule if you can committed to at least 5-10 hours a week. Upon completion of the summer the artist would be happy to write a letter of recommendation for the student for college or job.
If you would like to see some of the artist work or look at how other apprentices have helped check out the blogs listed below.
https://creativesculpture.com/blog/
http://www.dickhathaway.blogspot.com/
Artist’s web site is located at https://creativesculpture.com
Please contact Bridgette at
Bridgette@creativesculpture.com
And put Intern/Apprentice in the Subject headline. Be sure to let me know when you are available and your desire. If you are under 18 we will need to meet at my studio with your parents and they will be required to sign a consent form.
A Trip To The Foundry
If you have read my blog then you are familiar with this part of the bronze process. After the bronze is cast and the pieces are welded together I am asked to come to the foundry and look at the metal. Marker in hand I go over the piece and look for any blemishes or things that might need a little work, perhaps some clarification. I like to bring the clay bust with me so that I can compare the two. My apprentice came with me and we had a wonderful conversation with Miguel at the foundry. He is always a delight, and then a quick stop over at Ben Woitena’s studio to see how his work is coming along. I especially enjoyed our conversation as we compared figurative sculpting to the type of work that Ben does. Here is a link to see Ben’s work.
After these minor details are taken care of the bronze enters the patina stage and is mounted. Soon this sculpture will be home.
Jeanine’s Life Mask
Last year when I was contacted by Jeanine’s parents they sent her life mask to me. It was taken when she was about ten years old. They wanted to know if I could cast her image from the mask. I have documented this in the book, “Bringing to Life the Spirit of the Deceased- A Sculptor’s Journey.” It was strange to look into the life mask. It felt like I could look deep into Jeanine. It is also odd… when you shoot a photograph of a life mask or the inside of a mold, you never really can tell if it is something that is concave or convex.
This is a wonderful thing to have. I have included photographs of the life mask, as well as the cast.
Artist Carves History in Bronze
I have been working on creating some new pages to my web site. The newsboy gallery can be found by clicking on the Newsboy category
And I have uploaded pictures of the newsboy placed in Austin. There are no pictures of the number two in the edition, as my client has not given it to his father yet.
I have been sending out press releases about creating the newspaper to match newspapers in history. I’m hoping to sell out the edition of the newsboy, there are eight left, and creating newspapers throughout history. I really would like to see one of these in Buffalo, N.Y. and also one in Washington.
The press release follows.
Newspaper Headlines Through History are Being Carved in Bronze.
Is it not interesting to think about which newspaper headlines stand out in the history of our country? What newspaper headline would stand out in the publication of your own newspaper?
In 2005 Texas based sculptor Bridgette Mongeon was commissioned by the Texas Press Association, to capture an important time in newspaper history—the age of newsboys. You can almost hear the cries of, “Extra! Extra! Read all about it…” from the mouth of the bronze newsboy who is caught in full stride as he hawks his newspapers on the street corner. The artwork, originally created for the Texas State Capitol building, presently resides outside the offices of the Texas Press Association in Austin, Texas. A table-top bronze of the Newsboy was also created as a limited edition art for home or office.
In January of 2007, Ms. Mongeon was contacted by a client wanting to know if the life-size bronze newsboy was part of a limited edition, and if it was available for purchase as a gift for his father, a former newspaper publisher. He inquired if the newspaper that the Newsboy was selling could be recreated to resemble his father’s newspaper capturing the year they were awarded the Pulitzer Prize. The artist created a bronze Newsboy to the client’s specifications, and it became number two of this edition of ten. It will soon be presented to his father. The story of the Pulitzer Prize winning paper is intriguing, but cannot be revealed until after the surprise bronze is presented.
The idea of carving and capturing history in bronze so intrigued Ms. Mongeon that she is committing to do the same thing for the remaining editions of the bronze Newsboys and is presently seeking newspapers and placement for the remaining eight life-size bronze sculptures.
Upon request, the new masthead and headline are painstakingly carved into the front of each paper. There are several papers in the sculpture that need to be changed, there is a newspaper the Newsboy holds, several under his arm, and a stack at his feet. The back of the newspaper remains the same, a subhead line that reads, “In Memory of Skinny and Others.” This was created from a historical article that the artist read about how newsboys would take out an ad in the paper if one of their own died. It is the artist’s way of posthumously recognizing the contribution of the newsboys.
When the artist is asked if there is a specific newspaper in history or place that she would like to see one of the bronzes installed she replied, “I live in Texas but was born in Buffalo, New York. I would love to see a Newsboy placed in my hometown, and if I could pick the place, I would love to see one near the Albright Knox Art Gallery. To have one in Washington D.C. would also be great.” The Newsboy is not Mongeon’s only newspaper related art sculpture. She was also commissioned by the Houston Chronicle to create a small sculpture of Jesse Jones that is given as The Jesse Award to outstanding individuals at the Houston Chronicle.
A writer as well as a sculptor Ms. Mongeon has a heart for journalism and communication and has created an online journal of the entire eight-month process of creating the life-size bronze Newsboy and small Newsboy collectible. The journal extends from research to casting and placement of each of the pieces in the edition. She has added an educational section to help students and teachers learn and teach about art, journalism, history and even politics, all relating to the bronze Newsboy. The journal is rich in online resources for further education. The sculptor expresses a desire to be involved in the education of the children in each area that the Newsboy is placed. “The Newsboy is not only a symbol for the newspaper industry, it is a symbol of the strength of children. These newsboys and girls changed history with their newspaper strike of 1899, which affected the child labor laws. Just because you are small doesn’t mean you can’t make a difference, and this is an important concept for children to learn,” state Ms. Mongeon.
The Newsboy journal can be found at the artists’ web site located at www.creativesculpture.com. If you are interested in one of the remaining editions of the Newsboy and have a headline to match, Ms. Mongeon would love to hear from you and can be reached at her contact form. Then together the publisher and artist will carve history in bronze.
This article/press release can be used word for word. If you would like to interview the artist or require more information for a story please contact the artist.
Approval Process
There are many ways to approve a sculpture. Some people come to the studio and others work with me through the internet and the phone. The process does include the clients suggestions. After viewing the previous photographs I have some thoughts from the client and I go back and work some more on the sculpture. The one difficulty about creating a sculpture with a quick deadline is that I have no time to be away from the sculpture. Sometimes distance is good. A few days away from a sculpture and many things can be noticed. Here is the most recent version and once again a tracing of the original photograph imposed over the sculpture.
Awaiting Approvals… or Direction
I often say that all I do is copy photographs. Of course when your resources are limited there may be a bit more intuition involved. I have hovered over the sculpture for days. My husband cracks the center of my back regularly and in off hours I try to stand up right avoiding the affects of poor posture caused by hours of sculpting. This is approval time. The photographs are sent to the client in hopes of approval or direction. This is how it looks at 10:44 pm on Sunday evening.
Working Along
Mr. Hockett Moves Upstairs to The Graphics Table
The process of sculpting, for me, does not always stay in the downstairs studio. I have taken the picture of Mr. Hockett upstairs into my husband’s office to work on his graphics tablet. It is a wonderful tablet that allows you to draw right on the tablet. I trace the outline of one of the photographs of Mr. Hockett. Then I transfer that in Photoshop dropping it over the photograph of the sculpture taken from the same direction as the Hockett photograph. This helps me to see some of the corrections.
I find I need to move the nose and eyes down. Instead of resculpting them I opt for carving those areas out and trying to move them down. It is a bit of work, but, much easier than resculpting the entire area. The ears need to be pulled up as well, the shoulders/back raised. Then I take another photograph to see how things are lining up, much better. Getting there. Just a little trick to help me see things that I might not otherwise see. I wish I had a photograph from the side, but am told one might be coming today.
I’ll post the revised sculpture this evening or in the morning. Gentleman that he is he would like to have his hat on before I take the picture.
The Process-Hockett Sculpture – Intuition?
Bound by deadlines of a memorial service I precede with the sculpture. I cannot control the foundry process, they need the time they need to prepare it, and so I work night and day trying to figure out who this Mr. Hockett is. How much of this process is intuition. I often wonder. Photographs, especially when you only have three, only show so much.
The Process-Hockett Sculpture
Creating a sculpture with little reference is challenging at best. Often I can capture the likeness in one direction, however when a sculpture is viewed from the side it might not look like the person at all. I have only three photographs of Mr. Hockett- a challenge. The clay has been added to the sculpture and the hat. Florencia works on putting details on the hat, carving in the vents, smoothing the clay and putting the designated texture.