Chris Howes' Sculptural Creations

[Anzik]

No Summer Glau?

 

[Buttmunch]

No Summer Glau?

Thats because it is Winter Now.

 

[C.Howes_Sculptor]

No Summer Glau?

I am but one human being.... gimme some time!

Remember, I'm doing these pages in between my day job sculpts and my custom sculpts. I do like to sleep occasionally too.

She'll be up soon along with other stuff, don't worry.

 

[KarenRoss]

Don´t forget about Sawyer, he is rocking this Season! (well he always was but his work is just getting even better this Season).

Sleeping is overrated, Chris

 

[Anzik]

I am but one human being.... gimme some time!

Remember, I'm doing these pages in between my day job sculpts and my custom sculpts. I do like to sleep occasionally too.

She'll be up soon along with other stuff, don't worry.

"Sleep is for the weak!"

 

[abake]

I'm sort of paying attention to different threads in a rolling fashion as I work on different projects! I figure I can spend my time most efficiently actually getting the work done rather than cruising the threads.

ST and Bald Milla are underway. I hope to have updates on all in just a couple weeks.

Updates on Gorman soon, Tom Baker (fourth Doctor Who) soon, Maximus armor today or tomorrow.

Excellent news, thanks Chris.

 

[C.Howes_Sculptor]

New entry page for my sale pages!

Items For Sale

 

[Lord Vicious]

Updates on Maximus armor today or tomorrow.

:chew:chew

 

[cloudfilter]

Thanks for the sculpting advice, Chris.

The only problem with SS Firm is if it has been sitting around too long it tends to dry out a little bit and get slightly crumbly. You can recondition the clay by kneading in a TINY amount of petroleum jelly or a TINY drop of mineral oil. Be very conservative in your use of these.

Roughly how long do you mean by "sitting around too long", is that three hours or three weeks? In the past I've used Apoxie, which you can only work on for three hours max before it starts to dry.
This week I've been practicing with basic plasticine, and I love knowing I can take forever on it tweaking back and forth without it crumbling a bit.

 

[C.Howes_Sculptor]

Thanks for the sculpting advice, Chris.

Roughly how long do you mean by "sitting around too long", is that three hours or three weeks? In the past I've used Apoxie, which you can only work on for three hours max before it starts to dry.
This week I've been practicing with basic plasticine, and I love knowing I can take forever on it tweaking back and forth without it crumbling a bit.

Apoxie is an epoxy based material, once mixed the inexorable march towards rigidity has begun.... there's no turning back the chemical reaction.

Polymer clays lke Super Sculpey Firm are different. They are made of PVC particles suspended in conditioners that allow the material to stay pliant. Heat drives off the conditioners and allows the PVC molecules to form bonds and become rigid. If stored in a cool dark place the uncured SS Firm will stay nice and fresh indefinitely. But in the real world where storage is not always optimum, some of the conditioners can be driven off and the clay drys out a little. This can take weeks or months depending on the environment. Hot = bad.

The addition of very very small amounts of mineral oil or petroleum jelly plus the physical action of kneading the clay can restore the pliancy of the clay.

When you buy it in the store, pop the box open and poke the clay..... just don't let Mr. Whipple see you (old TP commercial reference for you youngsters). It's pretty evident when you have a box of old crumbly clay versus a nice fresh box. Mmmmmmm..... fresh clay.......

 

[**16k**]

Hey Chris, I still haven't received my Austin head! Have you sent it yet?
Any update on the Star Trek heads!

 

[eighthsamurai]

hey chris,

do you have a blog? perhaps you could set one up just for progress on your numerous projects (or even a twitter to show what you worked on each day). that way people who have questions on how far things are along they can just check the blog rather than send you a pm, email or post here. i think it might save you some time, and duplication of work.

 

[C.Howes_Sculptor]

hey chris,

do you have a blog? perhaps you could set one up just for progress on your numerous projects (or even a twitter to show what you worked on each day). that way people who have questions on how far things are along they can just check the blog rather than send you a pm, email or post here. i think it might save you some time, and duplication of work.

This thread essentially serves that purpose plus I post the updates for individual threads in those threads. If you don't see it here or in the thread then there is no update ready, simple as that.

I find the whole idea of twitter offensive, to tell you the truth. Call me old fashioned, but the idea of broadcasting my every moment of existence just seems a bit much.

Folks might have noticed a lot of activity from me lately, updates to various projects, new streamlined purchasing system, etc. There's a reason for this..... I'm working my butt off getting these projects done for you.

Here is my general official statement in response to the question "is it done yet?"

Yes, your project is underway, no I can't tell you exactly when it will be done. At the risk of sounding flip, it will be done when it's done. This isn't paint by numbers where I simply fill in A, B, C. Each head is unique. One head might take 15 hours where another might take 80. This is a creative process, dare I say, an art. Plus, I have my commercial work to throw into the mix, the work that actually supports me and my family. So, accurate prediction as to when any particular project will be done is impossible.

But, rest assured, I treat every project as if it was the most important project ever. This philosophy has served me well over the last 20 years (* see next post about this ). It keeps me on my toes, assures that I don't slack off and start putting out crap. I will never choose speed over quality. Sure, I could step things up really rush and release work that doesn't stand up to my normal standards..... but do you actually want that? I thought the whole idea here was that, together, we are making something different, something new, something better.

There are sculptors who will pump the work out in huge quantities at the price of releasing work that sort of looks like the intended subject, is close to the right size, looks a bit rough, doesn't quite satisfy. That isn't me and I would hope you never want that to be me. I want you to to think, as you hold that head you so patiently waited for in your hand, "man, this is even better than what I expected!" I may not always reach that goal, but I put my all into trying to make it come true.

And, apparently, there was a great hunger for someone who is willing to do this. The response over the past 9 months since i introduced myself to the custom world has been unbelievable. Seriously. I literally can't believe it! So many folks have come to me wanting their particular dream project done that I can't keep track. I have had to ask so many folks to wait, it just kills me. I wish I could do it all, and I'm doing just as much as I can! But to reiterate, I'm not going to just pump out crap just to get it done. That would defeat the whole reason folks are coming to me in the first place: quality.

So, to sum up, your project will be done when I finally finish breathing as much life into it as my less than perfect hands can, and no, I don't know exactly when that will be, but I hope you will love it as much as I do. Please be patient, I promise to try and make it worth the wait!


Keep your eyes on this thread and any individual thread you are interested in. I will post updates to both when they are ready.

 

[**16k**]

Sure chris, take all the time you want!
As for the Austin, you've told me several time you were about to send it and it's just that I'd like to know when I'm finally be able to have the luck to tackle with one of your masterpieces. You said it was ready to be sent since december! I'd like so much to pain it!

 

[eighthsamurai]

This thread essentially serves that purpose plus I post the updates for individual threads in those threads. If you don't see it here or in the thread then there is no update ready, simple as that.

I find the whole idea of twitter offensive, to tell you the truth. Call me old fashioned, but the idea of broadcasting my every moment of existence just seems a bit much.

Folks might have noticed a lot of activity from me lately, updates to various projects, new streamlined purchasing system, etc. There's a reason for this..... I'm working my butt off getting these projects done for you.

Here is my general official statement in response to the question "is it done yet?"

Yes, your project is underway, no I can't tell you exactly when it will be done. At the risk of sounding flip, it will be done when it's done. This isn't paint by numbers where I simply fill in A, B, C. Each head is unique. One head might take 15 hours where another might take 80. This is a creative process, dare I say, an art. Plus, I have my commercial work to throw into the mix, the work that actually supports me and my family. So, accurate prediction as to when any particular project will be done is impossible.

But, rest assured, I treat every project as if it was the most important project ever. This philosophy has served me well over the last 20 years (* see next post about this ). It keeps me on my toes, assures that I don't slack off and start putting out crap. I will never choose speed over quality. Sure, I could step things up really rush and release work that doesn't stand up to my normal standards..... but do you actually want that? I thought the whole idea here was that, together, we are making something different, something new, something better.

There are sculptors who will pump the work out in huge quantities at the price of releasing work that sort of looks like the intended subject, is close to the right size, looks a bit rough, doesn't quite satisfy. That isn't me and I would hope you never want that to be me. I want you to to think, as you hold that head you so patiently waited for in your hand, "man, this is even better than what I expected!" I may not always reach that goal, but I put my all into trying to make it come true.

And, apparently, there was a great hunger for someone who is willing to do this. The response over the past 9 months since i introduced myself to the custom world has been unbelievable. Seriously. I literally can't believe it! So many folks have come to me wanting their particular dream project done that I can't keep track. I have had to ask so many folks to wait, it just kills me. I wish I could do it all, and I'm doing just as much as I can! But to reiterate, I'm not going to just pump out crap just to get it done. That would defeat the whole reason folks are coming to me in the first place: quality.

So, to sum up, your project will be done when I finally finish breathing as much life into it as my less than perfect hands can, and no, I don't know exactly when that will be, but I hope you will love it as much as I do. Please be patient, I promise to try and make it worth the wait!


Keep your eyes on this thread and any individual thread you are interested in. I will post updates to both when they are ready.

here's your answer folks. maybe this should be appended to the first page somewhere.

as for twitter - i agree with you wholeheartedly. it's in fact quite scary to think people can see your every move. i've not seen it yet so i don't really know how it's used fully. but i can imagine it has its uses for some things. i left facebook after a few months for the same reason. i didn't want so much of my information to be "out there". and besides, most people seemed to just add me as a friend to get their friend numbers up. then i never heard from them again. people still managed to have good friends in the 80s. and we didn't have mobiles, facebooks, myspaces or twitters back then. we had empty cans and lots of string - but we made it work dammit!

 

[nicky]

New entry page for my sale pages!

Items For Sale

Hmmm, no Gorman and yet there's a Denzel

 

[C.Howes_Sculptor]

20 years....

I can't hardly believe it, but my 20 year anniversary in this business is rapidly approaching. It was the second week of April, 1989. I had just turned 22 years old, was fresh out of Art School (SCAD, man do I have me some stories about SCAD) and several crappy jobs.

My Mom (yes, my mommy, go ahead and laugh) pointed out an ad in the newspaper looking for a sculptor. Well, I had studied illustration, but I had dabbled in sculpture for years and I figured it could only be better than the job I had in a hazardous waste disposal plant, so I applied. To my surprise I was hired at $5.00 per hour! My introduction to the glamorous world of Toy sculpture? Scraping resin, rubber, and general grime off of every surface of the casting room. This took a while. Then I set about learning how to make molds and cast resin. EVERY sculptor should have to do this. It gives you knowledge you need, an understanding of how you should form things to make them work in production.

Fast forward a couple years.... I've taught myself how to sculpt (oddly, my employer resists training me in any real way, almost as if he's afraid of me getting good!?! ) and the owner of the company is leaving, selling out to his son. We had just moved out of his basement and into an actual office building. I became the head sculptor very quickly. We hired a mold maker, taking that off my shoulders, and a mechanical model maker. I started training new sculptors.... over the years, I built that business into something. We took on many hundreds of projects, all sorts of really cool stuff! I had my hands on every project that came through, assuring the highest quality. Our reputation grew in the industry despite the rather lackluster promotion and performance of the owner. Our work in the sculpture department was top notch I'm very proud to say and it paid off. I worked my butt off to make us a success.

Ultimately, I stayed there 10 years. I had built the business up into one of the best sculpture companies in the country. But I came to a parting of the ways with my employer. He just didn't have the vision for the company that I did. So, I went freelance. I moved back to Savannah, GA and left the company and "my sculptors" behind. It was sad but exciting at the same time. Within 2 years, unfortunately, the company that I spent 10 years building had failed. Very sad confirmation of my opinions. Oh, well.

So, I've spent the last 10 years on my own and I'm still alive and kicking! 10 years as a company man, 10 years as a freelancer.

I've done so much work over the last 20 years that I can't avoid it. It's everywhere. Just this weekend, I saw 4 different pieces of my work on TV. Seriously, no joke. It's really strange to be watching "The Dog Whisperer" only to notice something you made 15 years ago in the background. Or to be driving down a street and there, in someone's front yard, is a tacky piece of lawn "art" from 8 years ago (I've sculpted my share of lawn ornaments!). I can only speculate as to how many millions of units of my work have been produced over the years, how many families in China my work has fed!

Anyway, Have a drink for me in honor of 20 years of work sometime over the next couple weeks. And thanks for indulging me with this reminiscence for a few minutes....

 

[C.Howes_Sculptor]

Hmmm, no Gorman and yet there's a Denzel

No Nicky, there is no Denzel yet. Just the thread to get him started. Do you get it?

Gorman is coming. He will be done LONG before Denzel. Just because there are other threads talking about upcoming projects doesn't mean the one project you are interested in isn't happening.

Get it?

Ask yourself this, you want it now, or you want it good?

 

[C.Howes_Sculptor]

Sure chris, take all the time you want!
As for the Austin, you've told me several time you were about to send it and it's just that I'd like to know when I'm finally be able to have the luck to tackle with one of your masterpieces. You said it was ready to be sent since december! I'd like so much to pain it!

That's just bad organization on my part. That's why I'm trying to streamline things and get better organized with the new system for purchasing and inventory. Plus, as you might imagine, I have a conscious and subconscious bad taste in my mouth about that particular project. It keeps coming back to haunt me. Perhaps you have read the posts about Bionic Joe selling counterfeit copies of my work, using my name, making false claims even after I thought we had worked out our misunderstanding about the Lee Majors head and despite the fact that I have stuck to my side of the bargain, not selling any more Lee Majors casts during his period of exclusivity? You are one of only 3 or 4 people to get my version of Lee Majors. Not sure if I'll ever bother trying to sell any more after his exlusive period....

But that shouldn't affect you. I just made a "sticky note" to remind me. You will get a "freebie", too, to make up for the inconvenience.

 

[JediMike71]

I can wait for Lt. Gorman Chris. I would much rather have a better quality sculpt, than one that was thrown together in haste. I completely agree with what you are saying. Quality. That's a big factor in this market, as I'm sure your 20+ years of experience can attest to that fact.

I know, like with Les Walker's work, the wait will be worth it. I'm blown away every day by the custom "spikey-haired" Cpl. Hicks from Les! I'm sure I'll feel the same about Lt. Gorman after I get it from you.

I have the patience, and I know it will be worth it in the end!

As for "twitter"....I don't want to have anything to do with it. No one has to know, or needs to know, or likely doesn't want to know what I do every frakkin' (yeah, a BSG plug there ) second of my day!