We are coming to the middle of week two of Judi's Beehive project for Art Miami, one of fifteen major art fairs taking place during the first week of
December 2008.
On Monday morning about half of the wire structure was covered with the air dry porcelain, the clay like material being molded onto the wire to form the cells of the hive.
As we work Judi and I always stand back and admire the delicacy of the material, and we question if we should let it stay white and pure. "It's almost like lace" she says as she looks up at her new creation. "Just like little worker bees we are building this hive one cell at a time" she comments as we keep molding the porcelain.
The biggest concern this week, aside from meeting the deadline, was to figure out the weight and the measurements for the sculpture. The tent where this hive will be hanging can only withstand 150 lbs., and without a scale in the studio is hard to keep track of the weight of this piece. After doing some calculating we realized that we are way under the weight limit, something that eases our concern.
But what about the crate? Shipping a mobile sculpture of such mass and delicacy needs some serious professional packing. On Tuesday Judi made phone calls to people she knew in the art world asking for references for a crate and moving company that would be able to handle her piece. The final quote from a company was about $2000, a price too high for her to swallow. But the show must go on, so we keep working on the cells as Judi thinks of who can build her a crate.
We are coming to the middle of week two of Judi's Beehive project for Art Miami, one of fifteen major art fairs taking place during the first week of December 2008. 
On Monday morning about half of the wire structure was covered with the air dry porcelain, the clay like material being molded onto the wire to form the cells of the hive. 
As we work Judi and I always stand back and admire the delicacy of the material, and we question if we should let it stay white and pure. "It's almost like lace" she says as she looks up at her new creation. "Just like little worker bees we are building this hive one cell at a time" she comments as we keep molding the porcelain. 
The biggest concern this week, aside from meeting the deadline, was to figure out the weight and the measurements for the sculpture. The tent where this hive will be hanging can only withstand 150 lbs., and without a scale in the studio is hard to keep track of the weight of this piece. After doing some calculating we realized that we are way under the weight limit, something that eases our concern. 
But what about the crate? Shipping a mobile sculpture of such mass and delicacy needs some serious professional packing. On Tuesday Judi made phone calls to people she knew in the art world asking for references for a crate and moving company that would be able to handle her piece. The final quote from a company was about $2000, a price too high for her to swallow. But the show must go on, so we keep working on the cells as Judi thinks of who can build her a crate. 
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