So, what does a self-described STICK ARTIST actually DO with all these flood sticks?

Dressed for mosquitoes and hazards.

So, what does a self-described stick artist actually do with all these flood sticks?

Well...harvest them, of course!

Sticks just have a way of hopping into my arms.  I swear they do.  Often, when Molly and I stop at the Cache La Poudre River to just look, invariably a few incredibly great, unusual, funky, twisty, remarkable sticks manage to make the home trek with us.  

Carrying a few at a time, it's surprising how one can amass quite an inventory over the winter and now through the spring and summer.  But, that's all good because it takes a "village" to create a sculpture.  And, I like to have choices.  Lots of choices.

Let me remind you of how the river water changes so quickly.


This is one of my favorite gathering places at the end of June, which I used in my last blog.

Channels filled with fast-flowing water around willow "island."

 
This is the same location as I saw it last week when I was stick "harvesting."

Channel dry with marooned rubber raft lying on the rocks.  

It's amazing to me how much change can occur in just a few days.  When I visited it yesterday the water was higher than this because of our recent heavy rains but the channel was still dry.

When one looks at a "stick jam," as I refer to them, it's easy to get overwhelmed because of the sheer number.  But, I'm very selective.  I don't want them all.  I want the best.  And, for me the best might fit what creative idea I've got in my head, or what piece I'm currently working on and realize THIS particular stick is EXACTLY what I need NOW, or it is a stick with POTENTIAL.  Those, I think, are some of the sticks I can't wait to play with.

It's easy to get overwhelmed when looking at a "stick jam" such as this.  Where to start?

But, look closer and you'll see some lines that catch your eye, follow them and see if they take you where you want to see more.  Look and admire the layering, a puzzle of pieces that somehow fit into a greater whole.

All winter I stacked my sticks in an area we originally designed as a dog showering space in our garage.  In addition to spraying mud off of Molly, I discovered it's also a fabulous area to scrub sticks.  I'm very careful to remove mud, debris and anything yucky.  These sculptures are designed to go into people's homes (I have one hanging in mine) and I don't want anything "extra" going in with them.

I also realized that as I scrubed each stick I reacquainted myself with its contours, weight, particularities, notable characteristics and so on.  Since some of these sticks had been waiting since September it was not only a playful job on a hot afternoon but an important renewal for me as I created a mental inventory of what I had. 





After a whole lot of washing and scrubbing I soon had a palette of flood sticks, clean, drying and sorted somewhat by size and type.

My beautiful, precious flood stick inventory "somewhat" according to size.

Sorted according to smoothness.

Sorted for creative possibilities.

These are sorted according to unusual funkiness!

 Now that you see what I have to play with, in my next post I'll show you the first steps in creating a wall sculpture I call, "It Takes a Crooked Stick to Float a Crooked Mile."


(NOTE:  If you want to see the poster for the exhibit I'm preparing for please go to:

http://www.boardwalkgallery.net/mastery-in-nature.html

Thanks!)