Pretending

Let's pretend that I actually posted weeks ago about how the whale went up and that the show opening was great even though I barely had time to even shower and that the night was awesome and involved booze.  Let's also pretend that I've been posting oodles of photos on the progress of the whale decaying and explaining how the eye mysteriously held on allowing my whale to still appear alive and that people have been coming to see it.  Here is a link to the photo album that really does exists that shows the whale over the past few weeks.
 http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=619367&id=501635715&l=2b39f0df41

Now that you we've spent some time in the land of make believe where Lindsay can keep up with a blog, I can write about what is happening currently.  I was prompted to finally return to my blog because today was the last day for me to spend at the studio with the whale on the wall.  Tomorrow, it starts coming down.  There have been a few visitors in the past days who made a specific stop just to see the whale before disassembly, which is really flattering.  A professor from NKU who teaches a class on Melville and the Arts was on such visitor.  We had a long discussion on the subject of Moby Dick (even though I have never read it), and he is extremely involved in the New Bedford whaling museum in MA.  There is a possible exciting connection there, and this marked just one fantastic conversation that was sparked by this project.

So tomorrow, sadly, the deconstruction begins.  We won't get into the mixed emotion of it all.  Tuesday, the frame moves to the Dolphin Room at the studio for temporary storage.  Yes there is a room called the Dolphin Room...very fitting for my whale.

Eileen Swims with the Whale

Here it is.  For some reason the I couldn't upload it on the last post.  Eileen demonstrates a size comparison.

Tail Tuesday and More

The 'frame' is done!  I have frame in quotes because I think it is too pretty to be just an undercarriage. 

To recap a bit, yesterday was Tail Tuesday which marked the hanging of the tail structure.  I was planning on having to use 6 or so cables from the rafters, but to my delight the construction was sturdy enough that only two were needed.  Even those cables were not 100% necessary.  It wasn't only the tail that got done yesterday, but also priming and painting panels. Tail Tuesday carried well on into the night and then slightly into Wednesday because gravity is not the friend of paper mache.  We switched gears from newspaper to canvas stapled onto the frame and over the chicken wire.  It isn't as sturdy, but it is in an area that doesn't matter.  I had hoped to get the entire tail covered in labels last night, but when I realized the only way to do so involved climbing onto a 8 foot wall when nobody else was in the studio,  Since I lack a Life Alert system, I opted to head home at 1:30.  I had a great crew helping on Tail Tuesday, and it is so nice to have people  who are able and willing to jump in to get the project completed.

The crew evaluating the tail.

Prepping the tail structure before it is installed.

Jess and Eileen covering the tail with canvas
because the paper mache did not work.

Today was adding the rest of the aluminum in between the panels.  Tony figured out how to dart it so that it would flow better between body sections.  I worked on decoupaging the tail.  This involved standing under the tail and having glue drip into my hair and onto my face and run down my arms. 

In the early afternoon, I was put in contact with Jay Bachemin, a photographer who is working with Funke Fired Arts help students get professional shots of their work.  He said that he had a small window of time available at 4 o'clock.  This meant I had less than 2 hours to get 3 sheets of aluminum put up, on which involved the dorsal fin of the whale.  Eileen and I rocked it out with me being in a slight panic.  The photos will hopefully be used to promote the project. 

Eileen priming around the body.

Anyway, the frame is finished and clay work is starting tomorrow!  I am not feeling too much pressure yet though we will see how the next step goes.  At worst, the whale is really beautiful without clay.  Stop by and check it out, hand me some clay.  This is also the last opportunity to have your name listed as a donor for the night of the show.  The money is going towards Sea Shepherd and Whaleman Foundation.

Fins and Glue



The crew holding the panel while Eli an Kirk secure it.






 Okay, so here are some more photos from the install last night.  As you can tell, there were times when it was similar to playing  game of vertical twister, only involving drills.  It was very exciting to walk into the gallery and see the whale actually taking shape on the wall. 

Carrying the last panel...yea teamwork.

Today, I decided to stop by Home Depot to get some Polycrilic to give a final seal to the labels.  2 coats later, the whale had a nice semi-gloss finish.  Tony came by in the afternoon and we worked on positioning and attaching the pectoral fin.  By a process of trial and error, we found the right cut to give the fin a natural look.  Then it was onto more chicken wire and paper mache!  Due to the angle of the flipper, I had to go underneath to cover the chicken wire with the paper.  This lead to glue running into my hair and down my neck.  I did actually leave the studio early (10:00pm) so I can start fresh for tomorrow when we hang the tail.

Against the Wall

Eileen and Eli decoupage the tail.

Kirk, Sean, and I carry one of the larger portions through the gallery annex.

The whale armature is up and secured! It looks good...too good.  I am not posting photos yet because I like the surprise factor...you just get teaser shots  Seriously, come by the studio tomorrow or Tuesday to see it.  Tuesday will be when we hang the tail, hopefully earlier in the day.  I had a small army of people who came in to help put the panels up, and the process went waaay faster than I expected.  Kirk first had to take out electrical outlets so that the panels could sit flush against the wall.  Jason, one of the potters at the studio, works as a camera man for News 5 and took footage of it.  All in all, it was a really good evening and now I am way too tired to even type.  Maybe tomorrow's post will be more fluid...to bed I go.

Old and New Photos

Discussing the front of the whale with Kirk a few weeks ago.

Pieces and parts...when I see this photo I realize the project has come a long way.

So, I was at the studio 'til really late again putting the labels onto the whale body.  Tony helped prep some more today...what a good little construction monkey.  I am too tired to write, but progress is good and I am posting some of the older photos and a couple new ones too.

Tony attaching ribs to the panels.  He did most of this construction while I was away.

Attaching the whale meat labels.  This is how I spent my evening.

Fininshed panels in the warehouse.

Whale Watch in the Twilight Hours

Well, the duration in time between blog posts may give you an idea as to the state of my life over the past few weeks.  Things with my family went from bad to worse and then worse still.  Days were spent away, and one week felt like a year. 

Back at the studio though, progress was being made by Tony who was busy helping with the construction of the panels to make the whale.  Thank goodness too, because now I am behind but not impossibly so.  In reality, a ton of work has happened in the past two weeks.  The whale went from being 31 "ribs", 8 sheets plywood, and over 60 handmade brackets to what actually looks like a whale placed onto 8 separate panels.  After an all-nighter with loads of people pitching in, everything is pretty much paper mached.  In reality though, if it weren't for all of the help I have received, there is no way I would have gotten done.  I also realized that it would have been completely impossible for me to do this all by my onesy like I had thought I would.

Me and helpers Jackie, Carolyn and Helen doing paper mache.

The whale set up in the warehouse.

Work is going to continue well into the night tonight and the next few nights.  The main objective now is to tie up the lose ends and cover the whale with the whale meat labels so it can be ready to install on Sunday evening.

Snow, C-Clamps

You know that thought that I would regain the calm I had in mid-December? Well, take that idea and go in the opposite direction at an exponential rate and you may find me.  Some serious health issues with my family have brought not just bumps in the road, but rather those spiky puncture strips that deflate tires and render your car immobile.  I am limping along on my axles, but still going. On top of that, it snowed today.  There are few things which I hate more than snow, and today it caused the studio to close on the one day this week when I had a lot of time to work and make plans and get organized.   I hope snow burns in hell.

The little progress that has been made is mostly thanks to Mr. Tony Weiss.  We have been working on attaching brackets to each of the ribs before they can be attached to the panels.  To me, it is a gruelingly slow process.  Tony managed to develop a jig with a system of c-clamps which helps hold everything together while driving screws and such.  During this entire process I have learned that I am exceptionally good at breaking drill bits.  Today, I went to Home Depot to stock up on them so I can reload when needed

So, time ticks on, anxiety creeps up...but I got this. 

Of Panic and Plywood

Did anybody else note that yesterday was January 4th?  No?  Nobody else felt that wave of anxiety over the greater Cincinnati area?  Well, I guess it was just me realizing that I have less than a month now to finish the whale.  With little to no progress over the past two weeks, I have been feeling way behind.  There have been many distractions around the studio, some dental surgery, and that little holiday called Christmas to get in the way, but now it is time to put my blinders on and really focus.  I wonder if a doctor would give me a one month supply of Ritalin...


A lot of the time that I have been spending in my whale building arena since my last post has dealt with cleaning up scraps of plywood, making plywood brackets, cutting plywood into ware boards for the studio, and digging plywood splinters from my hands.  Do you have any idea how much plywood weighs?  Good thing I work out.  Anyway, today I finally cleared enough room to start laying the ribs onto the panels that will be installed onto the walls.  Then I tackled the problem that I knew was looming in the shadows like the terrifying giant prawn that lives in the one aquarium at work.  The model whale has dried and shrunk in the month or so since I first made it, which means my guide as to how high each rib should be on the wall is no longer of any use.  So, yet again there is a sense of panic and the need to disregard measurements and just eyeball it.  I'm an artist, not an engineer, so that means it will all be okay.


Tomorrow will be dedicated to finalizing some of the plans for installing and finding that sense of calm I had in the second week of December..