Zag

[grommet]

very cool line going there.
Are the segments hollow?

[evaldart]

Yeah, they are old pipes. Bottom most diameters begin at a foot and with every change of direction as it ascends the diameter decreases...down to 3/4 of an inch at the peak. These, of course, will be mostly clad entirely with the activity of the heavier material.

[grommet]

So is it strictly pipe welding, or is there additional stuff to aid structurally inside... though the outer stuff will support, scaffold-like.

[evaldart]

You're not mistaking the scaffold for the Art, are you. That will be going up and down throughout the process as I'll have to establish better than just ladder footing to wrestle properly. I'll be taking down the scaffold today and have my first look at the things linear presence...from which point I will be informed enough to add mass. Stacks of eager scrap peering from the boneyard, bristling to get involved.



another view.

[grommet]

Originally Posted by evaldart

You're not mistaking the scaffold for the Art, are you. That will be going up and down throughout the process as I'll have to establish better than just ladder footing to wrestle properly. I'll be taking down the scaffold today and have my first look at the things linear presence...from which point I will be informed enough to add mass. Stacks of eager scrap peering from the boneyard, bristling to get involved.

nope, scaffold seen as intended, just wondering about the pipe's ability to support in that way...
though this last pic... the only spot that has a caution going in my head is the 90 degree angle after the red piece at the bottom, because of the length of the next piece...
No knowledge here, just what my gut tells me.

[evaldart]

Oh, okay, At the joints the pipes have interior bar-structure and the open "elbows" will all be patched and fortified as well (mostly to avoid distracting gaps). Plus there are wall-thicknesses here up to half inch (some of the "pipes" were actually old compressed gas tanks) And, the thing gets relatively light as it ascends. It wont be my heaviest sculpture...just the tallest (which was the intended "springboard" for the ensuing activity and ...pain - the good kind)

[grommet]

thanks for humoring my curiosity.

[chris 71]

looking good matt, maybe a little early to tell but, i like the bottom foot, somehow has me thinking about some kind of horn or sound device.wish i had some scafolding its on my list. and is that one of your black walnut trees

[evaldart]

Zag update.

22 feet tall, scaffold dismantled to make room for work.

elbows all patched and solidified...and so the "skinning" begins...

[grommet]

lookin' good. I'm hoping you're not gonna totally bury it in bracelets though. I like the play of busy-ness to empty/clear (so to speak)

[evaldart]

Originally Posted by grommet

lookin' good. I'm hoping you're not gonna totally bury it in bracelets though. I like the play of busy-ness to empty/clear (so to speak)

Oh. I'm gonna wrap it ALL up tight. If there is any visual relief from the steel binding it will only be because I got tired.

[GlennT]

If you're gonna get tired, you should get tired of that thin crust stuff in NY that you call pizza, and get the real deal deep dish Chicago....ooops, wrong thread!

[grommet]

Originally Posted by evaldart

Oh. I'm gonna wrap it ALL up tight. If there is any visual relief from the steel binding it will only be because I got tired.

That's true, this is a maximum event, a long hill, with no room for rest. How silly of me.

[cheesepaws]

Wow - looking cool.

Wondering why you didn't start from the top with the wrapping? Do you worry about the direction the twistings pull the eye?

[evaldart]

The wrapping directions will not be consistent enough to "screw" the eye upwards or downwards. I COULD, and might well, attack at different heights (to ensure this). The bottom is the most troublesome as the diameters are much larger and the steel stocks much thicker (they will go up to 3/4 inch strips). So I suppose I am tackling the most vicious area first (to get it over with?).

[Duck]

This has the potential to be your best piece…looking forward to seeing in about a week.....

btw, If this were mine, when finished, I’d dig out an area big enough for the base to fit in and grass over it..(the base)

[StevenW]

Originally Posted by evaldart

So I suppose I am tackling the most vicious area first (to get it over with?).

There you go again asking the tough questions..

When I was up in the mountains last week I saw an old abandoned rail car, dilapidated and packed full of 100 year old rail road tracks, 25 ft. long and 3-4 inches thick all solid metal and rusty old metal everywhere, 20 loads for old snowflake there.. I thought to myself; I know guys who could make this stuff sing and I thought it a pity it just sat unused or uncared for..

Anyway, getting the hard part over first is not a crime. The medium dictates those kinds of priorities as much as the form, almost.. With rock it's another story, the last strike of the chisel always makes or breaks it..

[evaldart]

So Zag debuted...Wilt Chamberlain amongst a crowd of Bob Couseys. Install was pure hell...but we both survived.

more than 3 Wilt Chamberlains, actually.

[evaldart]

Oh, and as we have been on the subject of statements, THIS was on the placard.

"Zag"

As I imagine the possibilities of the most raw elements of enacting my will over solid-matter in a manner that addresses only the rigors of aesthetics, it turns out that verticality is the dominating concern. The lateral and diagonal seem less urgent. So, as a sculptor, a manipulator of matter, I have engaged this piece ZAG to climb upwards with a linear quality, both geometric and organic, that permits a personal relationship (contest) between those adversarial rudiments of visual formality, my medium and myself. All of this catapulting the notion that line and mass afflict, affect, infect and quite determine everything I "see".

It was how I felt about it that morning.

[jOe~]

Over the top. In all regards.

[GlennT]

Looking for the "like" button!

[chris 71]

awesome matt. its a great thrill to look at it. can only imagine how much of a thrill it must have been for you to make it great work

[chris 71]

so how did you transport it ? did you lay it down in your truck? musta been like 12 to 14 feet hanging out the back with a red flag. trailer? you couldnt have stood it in the back of your truck power lines and what not? did you make it to come apart somewhere?

[evaldart]

Chris, I can stand it up all by myself with the help of the portable tripod gantry and it lies down in the back of my trailer in two parts; a 13 footer and a nine footer. I have the act down-pat; can install it in 45 minutes (the first time it took 4 hours - locating balancing centers and identifying which sides should bear the weight (2500 lbs). Henceforth I will try to be sure the venue has a crane. I had to make the debut happen at any cost this time, if for no other reason that to get amused by some interesting thoughts.

[jOe~]

the help of the portable tripod gantry

How a bout a foto of said "portable tripod gantry"?