1. Christmas on the Beach
Loading goes more smoothly than the last time and I'm on my way in good order, riding through sunlight pouring into my eyes from an unclouded sky. A man walking his dog greets me with a "Merry Christmas!" from the sidewalk on Rose. There's not much activity yet, few cars, just some joggers and boardwalk vendors getting set up.
My new bracket seems to work OK, even if it's a pain to install the mic onto it. The connections are threaded, and have to be turned just right so the mic faces forward. I need something better. In operation, the combination is unwieldy, with a strange topheaviness that causes the image to wander in unusual ways. It also hurts my shoulder. Well, some sacrifices must be made for the sake of fame.
The sand is pretty much the same as I used Sunday. Today, however, I use buckets to haul the slightly better low-tide sand to my work site, saving some time. The pile is zebra-striped with strong horizons, sign of the mixed sand. The Latchform allows good tamping but the sand is the final arbiter. I just hope the pile holds together.
There is some design fatigue. Faced with the pile, I have trouble visualizing. I'll also need to be conservative, so no wide-spreading top. Bring it in. Taper it. My best went out Sunday, today we work with leftovers. Still, it's a very nice day to be on the beach.
People are beginning to show up. It's warm, until the onshore breeze starts just before 1100.
2. Carving
First I carve a tensely curved panel from top to bottom. Then I take the center out of it, planning a big bulging area that will have some small holes. These will continue on to the east through the remnant of the tall panel. The idea is to catch sunset light in the holes.
The coarse sand carves well, but doesn't hold an edge. A chunk splits away as I'm drilling the topmost hole, so the area is trimmed. I meant to do that.
The big bulging piece isn't very attractive. I continue fussing with it, trimming it at the top and bringing it behind the other elements on top. This is an improvement but it's still nothing great.
Then it's time for big spaces. I carve the inside of the bulge upward to a hole in the top, and another slot to the east. This is in a narrow crease that runs to the bottom, gradually widening. I cut through to the center of the base here, joining the space in the bulge and another space from the south side.
3. Groupies
There are people I'd just as soon not have nearby when I'm carving. One is Will, who was here one day when some friends of Michael's came down. All women. Will thinks he's great stuff and nearly drove them away. Now he nearly drives me away with his harsh voice and bragging about all the things he's done.
And then it's the guy who gathers pebbles from the beach. I guess these guys have nothing else to do but hang around and make silly comments. I have little patience for them. They don't help the design process at all. Where are Rich and George when I need their moral support and intelligent comments? I appreciate their filtering, and feel rather vulnerable out here by myself.
4. Finishing
Finally Will goes on to somewhere else. Quiet returns. The pebble man is still around, having hidden his pack inside my form. I laid this on its side because Sunday, when I had it standing up, someone thought it was a trash can. Now it's a cache.
I'm running out of steam. Sunset will probably be nice but I don't think I'll make it, and the sculpture is done. I've fixed what I can and the rest will just have to stay. I work around with small tools and brushes to polish the surfaces. These look very nice with the strongly differentiated laminae.
The last step is to clean up the base and spread loose sand to randomize the area. And then I sign it. People watch me build up the signature pad, wondering. Then I press my hands into it.
"That's his signature!"
"That's it, folks," I say.
The gathered crowd, quite a few people actually, breaks into applause. I take a brief bow.
With new batteries the 6X7 works just fine. I shoot a round and then get the camcorder. It's manageable but definitely a load with that mic on there. The last step is to finish off the roll in the sand-proof camera.
All right, that's it. I'm hungry and very tired. I leave Pebble Man to guard the sculpture, and then drag my trailer off the beach. Riding away north I pass the Boardwalk, fairly quiet, and trash bins full of Xmas wrappings. In Kansas they're freezing. I'm sunburned. I'd rather be here on Christmas Day.
| Human Touch Museum | Library | 2002 Sculpture Index |
Written 2001 December 25
Edited and amended December 28
Data updated 2002 January 11
March 24 (HTML conversion)
All contents designed and made by Larry Nelson