20P-7 (Febrary 24) Where did the week go?

Intending to go for a walk on the beach, I looked at the tide chart and noticed the tide going down in the early afternoon. How could the window still be open? I did a sculpture two weeks ago!

I have become involved in many projects in Second Life. Most of these involve writing and performing. Time becomes fluid when doing those, and February 20, when I did the last sculpture, felt like a long time ago. On my way to the beach, camera slung over my shoulder, I realized it was just four days back.

There was construction going on behind the Breakwater, with all its attendant noise and stink. I was tempted to bail, but the sand was better than expected so I started building. The process was a bit rushed by not wanting to be around all the machinery, and my mind wasn't on the sculpture. It developed some default designs.

Later I realized... no, it's not state of the art, but it was done in two hours. Start to finish. Not that long ago, a sculpture like this would have taken much longer... and before that, it would have been impossible. So, a good day. The earthworks are desultory, as I didn't have a good scooping tool like a big Pismo clam shell.

20P-6 (February 20)

After a season of writing poems and working on a longer story, I needed to do some sculpture. Winter brings unreliable weather, so I went lightweight with just the camera bag with some small tools. This day turned out to be very nice, although the sand wasn't quite what I'd hoped for.

The design is a continuation of what I did in 20P-5. I wanted these not to look like they'd started as free-pile sculptures.

20P-5 (February 6)

The tide window opened, and the weather had been disappointingly calm and clear. That's no guarantee, but an earlier walk on the Santa Monica beach had shown me decent sand there. I miss walking in the rain, but storms do remove the sand. Trade-offs. I decided to go make a sculpture.

The sand was an odd mix of fine and medium that felt finer than it acted. Water drained out fast. I had to work very fast in piling to keep everything together, and the pile was relatively narrow and short.

I had this idea for a plan based on a rounded triangle. The sand was good enough to hold edges if I were careful. Then I wanted the spaces to work with the edges.

I also wanted to hide the sculpture's free-piled origin. The only sign of that left is the taper. The long hollow curve in there because I liked the way it felt, and looked.

The flat top didn't contribute much, so after a round of photos I made some small balls as a finial.

20P-4 (January 24) Compromises

Free-piled sculpture comes from a set of compromises different from that for formed sculpture. There is less equipment involved so it's easier to get one off, but the actual carving is more limited. Sharp edges and thin sections are nearly impossible.

But... what if we rethink the process so that a sculpture is less dependent upon those kinds of design cues? For this one, I tried some more subtle curves and hollows.

20P-3 (January 21)

The tide window was still open, and the weather had been calm enough that sand stayed put. Somehow it was cleaner. Less rough material, which made it easier to carve. Why not go to the beach and have a ball?

20P-2 (January 18) Better weather...

The weather was great for this one. Gentle breeze, sunlight to keep me warm. The sand, however, had moved due to days of high wind making currents and waves. It wasn't bad, but nothing like what I'd had before. I was able to finish this one, but I didn't have a brush for the final polish.

The balls are just for fun.

20P-1 (January 9) Fast Rain

The tide window was open. Weather was questionable but good enough to start. This came after a previous attempt that was wiped out by big surf on a neap tide, which left no room for a sculpture.

The sand was very good. The weather didn't cooperate. It gave me enough time to make the pile and do much of the carving, but rain came in fast and looked fierce. I decided to shoot some photos quickly and leave, not being at all dressed for rain.

The camera locked up after three photos. Card full. Well, it had been some time since I last archived the images. I put it away and started walking.

Rain came in, and wind, and cold. I congratulated myself for getting out just in time... but then it all went away. By the time I reached home the wind had calmed, the clouds had blown away, and the arch of blue was over all. Well, I got most of a sculpture done.