Sea Monster’s Exception Proves the Rule: Weight Matters

Sea Monster Sundial in the Sculpture Garden @ martincooney.com

Anyone acquainted with my work will know of the importance I place upon lightness and mobility, as exemplified by The Maiden Collection, 1314 Winter Collection, and the Autumn of 14 Collection. After all, the ability to place each sculpture – just so – without need of block and tackle, work crews and cranes…. well, let’s just say it’s more than a tad convenient. Stone generally weighs in at roughly 150 lbs per cubic foot. That’s right: 12x12x12 inches. Inches! A hundred and fifty pounds for every cubic foot of sculpture.

Pearl, the lightest of my hand carved marble bowls for instance weighs in all of 11.4 lbs?  Adam, 14.6 lbs. Bear in mind too that the rough blocks from which these bowls were carved most likely weighed in roughly ten times that amount.

The point being… stone is bloody heavy.

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Sea Monster, Sculpture Garden

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As you may perhaps have noticed in previous posts the Colorado Rocky Mountain Sculpture sure get’s around it’s Garden. I do like to move it around – a lot, to see it in different light, from differing angles, and at various heights.

Paintings, well they are pretty much stuck on one wall or another, but sculpture, ha! – they can, and do, go walkabout.

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Sea Monster, Sculpture Garden at martincooney.com

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At this point it must be noted that many of the sculptures seen here and on other posts, have now withstood many brutal Rocky Mountains winters, endured the tortuously hot Colorado sun, and weathered just about any and all extreme conditions you would care to imagine. These ‘outdoor’ sculptures wouldn’t thank you for a namby pamby life indoors – not for them the warmth of central heating, the cool of permanent shade.

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Today I thought we’d look at a fun little summer project I worked on each glorious August afternoon a few years back using only traditional hand tools – no grinders or such. I thought it would perfectly illustrate my point regarding the importance of… lightness and mobility… for whatever Sea Monster has going for himself these are qualities that cannot be leveled in his direction. Truth be told I’ve no real idea just how much he weighs to be honest. On the day of his completion I simply wheeled him out of the workshop and plonked him down right where he sits, or growls, to this very day.

It’s never really occurred to me to move him. He’s too big and fat and heavy. He’s become like some great static landmark: seasons change, the years come and go, sculptures dart-around-the-sculpture-garden at lightening speed… but all the while good ol’  steadfast Sea Monster maintains his long but far from lonely vigil.

However, comes the time, comes the date… at some point summer’s lease is duly pulled, and all of a sudden its wintertime. Yes, winter in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Brrrrrrhhhhh!!!! 

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Sea Monster Sundial in the Sculpture Garden @ martincooney.com

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Sculpture Garden

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Really, really cold!

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Baby, it’s coldquite takes ones breath away.

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The Star ably protected by Things One and Two, and Sea Monster of course.

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And this is just the beginning. It’s also a long, long, very very veryveryvery LONG winter too!

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Sea Monster Sundial in a Snowy Sculpture Garden @ martincooney.com

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Sea Monster Sundial @ martincooney.com

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Sculpture Garden

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It’s not all blizzards and whiteouts however – of course not, why would anyone live here? No, this is the Roaring Fork Valley, once the storms pass there’s sunshine galore, soon these rough and ready rogue sculptures, just like we mountain folk, are a-frolicking and a-playing like you wouldn’t believe.

Indoors, indeed. They wouldn’t thank you to be anywhere else.

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Sea Monster

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Day 2 January 9 2013 Ice Palace 010913 / Sea Monster Sundial Guards The Ice Palace @ martincooney.com

 

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‘Live long enough and you’ll see everything’ is a sentiment close to my heart these days. Who knows just what is about to spring up once your back is turned…

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Day 10 January 17 2013 Ice Palace 011713 / Sea Monster Sundial Guards The Ice Palace in the Sculpture Garden @ martincooney.com

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Day 21 January 28

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The Ice Palace just about proved all too much mid point through Sea Monster’s first winter. Perhaps at this point he may have been tempted, induced, to slither indoors. But, nahh, I doubt even at this low point in his young life… being so erroneously and unceremoniously upstaged, I doubt even then he could have been enticed to enter those infernal doors.

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Day 20 January 27 2013 Sculpture Garden / 012713 The Ice Palace at martincooney.com

January 27 2013, Day 20, Ice Palace Steals the Show

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Day 42 February 18

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Sea Monster in a Snowy Sculpture Garden @ martincooney.com

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Day 56 March 4 2013 @ martincooney.com

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Sea Monster / Sculpture Garden

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Sea Monster, Sculpture Garden / Snow

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And so it goes – the world shifts, the seasons change, bees disappear, flighty sculpture comes and goes, our hero however remains… resolute, steadfast.

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studio: Reversed Equation, Sea Monster, sculpture garden

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Stack O'Sculpture: Sea Monster, Four Corners, No Strings Attached

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These days he’s often to be found sporting a nifty piece of marble Jewelry for the Home, in place of his sundial. At times he feeds wild birds, and at others he’s the resting place for an ice-cold summer drink.

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No Strings Attached, Four Corners, Sea Monster.

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But either way, proving useful or strutting his stuff, he’s seldom to be found far from the center of things.

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Sea Monster, Mabel, Snowgoyles, Woody Creek CO

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Sea Monster, Wolf Man Jack, Planet Flashing, Top O' th' World, Inner Strength.

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and now

the slideshow

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Sea Monster, Wolf Man Jack, Planet Flashing, Top O' th' World, Inner Strength.

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Visit Sea Monster’s Home Page / click here

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Thanks for visiting martincooney.com

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Author, Owl Creek Road Trail, Aspen/Snowmass Village Express. MARTIN COONEY

Until next time…

Cheers sunshine !!!

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Μ@ℜΤ!∩

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