LS-126
LS-126 |
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| This is one of the reasons I put up with life in Los Angeles. January First comes in with sunshine and a mild breeze. I've done hikes and bike rides to celebrate no longer living in Kansas, but lately I've turned to sculpture. More recently, it has turned into a small-scale party as various friends come by. |
| Build number: | (complete construction failure, lifetime start #126) |
| Date: | 1998 January 1 |
| Location: | Venice Breakwater |
| Start: | 0830; building time: 6.5 hours |
| Height: | 4.1 feet |
| Base: | 1.75 feet, cylindric |
| Photography: | some shots of ruins and Lorna working, RA135, w/WR |
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There's unlimited sunshine today, but good sand is harder to find. Storms and the County's bulldozer have torn up the beach. I sample various places and wind up taking it from the berm the bulldozer so patiently built. Although dry, it's finer than anything else available. If I were a normal artist, I could just buy my materials.
Building went slowly as I was recovering from a cold. South of me the Penguin Swim was getting set up. These people swim every New Year Day, no matter what the weather. Last year the surf was very rough but today it's much more cooperative, and warm enough to tempt me to join them. Sculpting won out. It's becoming harder for me to turn away from the pile of sand once it's made. I enter the Sculpture Zone and disappear from the normal world. The original idea was for a backbone with shoulders wrapping around, but I couldn't stand doing something symmetric. Another idea was for a sculpture made of the intersections of bubbles. The reality turned into something more within the capability of the sand at hand. 300 people ran down the beach after the horn went off, hitting the water with a collective gasp and thrashing onward. They whoop, they holler, and the lifeguards go along to make sure everyone floats. It's a festive occasion. The organizers know me because I've been a peripheral part of the proceedings for three years.
The nice weather brings lots of people to the beach. Eric and Jeannie, co-workers, come by for a few minutes, but there's not enough stimulation to keep him occupied. Rich, Lorna and her friend Anna are there for the duration, watching the slow transformation of sand. Vince, another co-worker, brings his wife and brother. All of that happens outside of the Sculpture Zone. The sculpture develops swooping legs and hanging parts. As I burrow into the lower section, Rich asks me if I'm sure it'll work. I respond simply: "Do you have safety shots?" A couple of minutes later, it's on the ground. Gravity has its way, leaving a slender spire and lots of big chunks of sand lying around. Well, it was fun while it lasted. I come out of the Zone. Lorna takes over. She's never carved sand before, but wants to feel it. Gently she smooths the shear faces and removes the rubble. It's fascinating to watch her slow, steady movements. The process calms me. I wind down and wander around. Steve, Virginia and their son Dean come down with video camera in hand and promptly become the center of attention. Babies have a special magnetic field. People come and go and I just drift.
Bruce swings by in his bright yellow truck. He's on duty, and it has been a busy day. The water's not rough, but there are lots of folks in it, surfing and swimming on this warm afternoon. We watch the sun set, and then I pack up. An attempt to find an open restaurant with Lorna and Rich fails. We split up at my house and I stagger in to make dinner. The sculpture, in memory, doesn't look good. In photographs, seen the next time I'm with Rich, it looks good. There are some interesting moves and nice complexity. The year's off to a good start. | ||||||||||
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Original: 98-Oct-30 (direct to HTML)
Photography by Rich Johnson
All contents copyright 1998 by
Larry Nelson | ||||||||||
ls126rpt.htm 99 February 13
