A Windhorse Project
Continued from page 1
I've put the sculpture on it's side. Ordinarily this isn't a good idea as it is better to work on the sculpture in the position the light will be falling on it. It is a bit easier
in this position though.
In the meantime though, I've begun the page The Prayer Flag . Please take a look at the genuine article as I continue to sculpt. You can hear the sound of the
mallet too!
Please click here 
to listen. (You'll notice that the sound is almost continuous; because the sculpture, gouge handle and the mallet are wood most of the
to listen. (You'll notice that the sound is almost continuous; because the sculpture, gouge handle and the mallet are wood most of the shock is absorbed and one only need pause when looking at the piece or when changing positions. This is not the case when carving in stone.)
With The Prayer Flag page begins much work . I've never spun cotton or built a loom or carved a printing block but here we are. The learning continues! We will
go on with this later.
Now, then with newly affirmed resolve, it's back to the sculpture.
As the more careful modelling begins on this side, I've restored the sculpture to it's upright position so that it will be easier to see the effect of light as it falls on the piece. This reminds me of a story of Michelangelo who was once asked how he thought when he worked.
He replied that he simply removed everything that wasn't the sculpture. ( you may know this story already)
As many masters have said, creating is a matter of concentrating more on what you are trying to create rather than on distracting or obstructing elements. This is the way the Tibetans view the cultivation of goodness in the human mind. Every human being is given a naturally good and pure mind that is temporarily clouded by ignorance. This is the reason that people act in the unkind ways that they sometimes do. By focusing on the good and pure elements though, our true mind shows itself.
The atrocities that have occurred and are still occurring in Tibet have done so over and over again, in different times and places and among different peoples throughout our history. and though very horrible, are not unique. What has enabled the Tibetans to survive for so long has been their incredible forbearance. In spite of all that has occurred, the Tibetans do not regard the Chinese communists as evil but simply as suffering from ignorance of their true nature. Tibetans released from decades of torture and imprisonment have indicated that they were afraid at times, not of what was happening to them ,but fear that they would lose their compassion for the Chinese.
And here the sculpture is, a little further along...
I've begun to work on the detail on this side. The crispness of the lines left by the veiner contrast well with the gradual transitions found elsewhere on the sculpture.
It is now quite cold in the studio. I usually don't heat it much when I'm only carving for a few hours though. It is probably 30-40 degrees or so. This isn't hard to endure really when we consider that, in Tibet, the average temperature for the entire year is in the 50's!
With things progressing well, I am thinking that it may be good to venture forth to gather prayers for all those flags! It will be awhile yet, but possibly in a few months this work can be begun. There is more research and preparation to be done first of course. I've begun a little work on the the design of the prayer flag. Please have a look at the progress of The Prayer Flag as I continue to sculpt!
Here it is a bit farther along...
December 7,2002
I 've just discovered that another lama and his attendant are about to be taken from Tibet ( you probably know this already). The article and the action item are on the ICT website but I thought I'd say a little more ( I find it strange that they have only set up correspondence to Colin Powell since there is so little time). Alas, it seems all the focus is on Iraq and war now; the Chinese communist regime in Tibet is most likely taking advantage of the "war on terrorism" to eliminate spiritual leaders. Please take a look along with me at The Face of Kindness.
It is important to write to the leaders of every nation that they may urge China to cease such harmful actions. For each nation it is different but at least for the United States here is a link that makes it easier to write to Congress and the President.
So I've put down the mallet and gouge and gotten to work on this ( as you may well have done also!)
I'm now working again on the arm, and refining its shape. Again a big part of the work is blending the front and side planes together rather than simply carving down into the piece in one direction and then just rounding things off a bit. Please check on The Prayer Flag again while I sculpt if you'd like to see it flying in the wind. Actually, I'll join you !
Back to the sculpture. The arm looks better although there's still more work to be done.
Since the sculpture is going well, I've created an announcement. Please see the Upcoming Events page!
(How did you like the announcement? The cherry tree in the picture was one that I finally found ,or more accurately, figured out what folder on my computer it was in. There a few thousand pictures ; sometimes it's hard to locate a particular one. That was the only picture of the cherry trees in bloom that survived the crash of the computer hard drive last spring so it is especially precious and significant to me.
There isn't a tremendous rush to display the first sculpture; I just liked the idea a lot! Like all efforts from the heart it's true outcome is measured in years and requires both courage and patience ( thus making it special.) . So several months either way isn't all that significant and goes by very quickly when one is this busy! Please be patient along with me as we continue determinedly through the months, however long they may be! In the meanwhile, I'm going to try to learn how to use a drawing program so as to make a map to add to the directions and think of some travelling outreach ideas for the project as well! )
I'm now working on some of the smoothing work. The gouges of rounder curvature leave the deeper cuts which can then be leveled by gouges of lesser curvature. The curvature of each is called a " sweep" and is given a number ; the higher the number, the greater the curvature. So, if you'd like, please bring over a number 3 gouge and the Lignum Vitae mallet and we'll continue! ( Or you can work on the prayer flags, I still haven't researched the loom and printing blocks much!)
In the second picture with the two stages together, we can see how things have been smoothed out a bit!