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Ilenora — Kusuma - Crystal Ball Forest Dragon

Published: 2012-06-02 08:38:36 +0000 UTC; Views: 2147; Favourites: 53; Downloads: 0
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Description Well, it's been a while since I submitted a sculpture. I am really proud of this one though and I think it shows a huge improvement in my skill

So meet Kusuma, which means "flower" in Indonesian. He was sculpted for my mother as a mother's day present. He proved to be a huge challenge, especially the wings.

Main view of him here:

His is sculpted from a mix of green, black and gold clay over a tinfoil armature. He was brushed with gold, bronze and a very small dusting of spring green PearlEx powder which gives him a beautiful, sparkling lustre. He was then baked on a temporary tin-foil ball as I couldn't bake the crystal for fear of it cracking or something.... Thankfully he fit onto the real crystal properly after baking.

The wings were tricky. I layered 4 layers of individually made and placed clay feathers over a wire bone - there are over 30 feathers on each wing! They are very heavy. I sculpted the wings separately and glued them into shoulder sockets after baking. This worked okay, but I want to find a better way to do it in the future since they warped a bit during baking and don't fit flush against his body as they should.

He was glazed with satin Sculpey glaze. It's the first time I've glazed a sculpture and I love the look it gives. So shiny and smooth It really brought out the sparkle of the PealEx.

The crystal is glued to the base and the dragon was then glued to the crystal. The weight of his wings has made the sculpture a little off-balance - the stand holding the crystal is a little too small and I would like to replace it with a larger, heavier one to make him properly balanced, so any future crystal ball dragons with have sturdier stands.

But despite some little flaws, I am incredibly proud of him and my mother is too! I am now at a level where I believe I can sell these sculptures, so I am already in the process of making a shop. It may be a while, but be on the lookout in the future if you would like to buy a custom sculpture of your own!

Details

Materials - Sculpey polymer clay, tinfoil, wire, PearlEx powder, Sculpey satin glaze, crystal ball & resin stand
Height - 13.5 cm (5½")
Length - 13 cm (5")
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Comments: 11

ShaidySkyDesign [2013-10-07 23:17:38 +0000 UTC]

Overall

Vision

Originality

Technique

Impact


I am really enjoying this piece. What a lucky mom!

Your use of color and form is strong and harmonious. I really do love the color, but would also like to see you press your comfort level a little more in your future pieces. I would really enjoy a harmonious yet unexpected color pallet

The wings do look like they may have wilted slightly during your baking process, but as u stated u are currently still experimenting with the armeture. When I do wings that are large or heavy I use a wire armeture attached to the body armeture and sculpt around it. I then add the wings last. You can also add a wire attached from the base of each of the wings while baking and then snipping it away when it has cooled. That would help with the wilting.

Overall I would say this is an effective piece and that you did a very good job portraying your vision and design. The only improvement I see that you need is really just practicing and familiarizing yourself with different techniques you can use to continue to improve your skills.

Keep up the good work, I see steady improvement and want to see more sculpts from you!

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Talty [2012-08-31 15:02:05 +0000 UTC]

Hello, I wanted to let you know that you were featured in my latest artisan crafts newsletter [link] have a good weekend!

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Ilenora In reply to Talty [2012-09-03 04:52:28 +0000 UTC]

Oh, thank you so much!

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Talty In reply to Ilenora [2012-09-03 05:12:19 +0000 UTC]

My pleasure

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CMWVisualArts [2012-08-23 04:47:55 +0000 UTC]

A wonderful sculpture

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Ilenora In reply to CMWVisualArts [2012-08-23 05:07:28 +0000 UTC]

Thank you so much

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CMWVisualArts In reply to Ilenora [2012-08-23 06:23:35 +0000 UTC]

No problem

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Pufferzsola [2012-06-06 09:01:57 +0000 UTC]

Best... want one!

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Ilenora In reply to Pufferzsola [2012-06-07 01:15:14 +0000 UTC]

Thank you! If you are interested in buying a custom sculpture, you can note me for more details ^_^

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Pufferzsola In reply to Ilenora [2012-06-08 07:47:45 +0000 UTC]

I'm interested but i don't have money

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Ilenora In reply to Pufferzsola [2012-06-27 05:36:35 +0000 UTC]

Oh well, thank you anyway!

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