War dance

Alabaster and bronze, brown and red patina.
Each of these guys was sculpted and cast individually. Each was then mounted on the alabaster stone. There was a danger that these guys would not cast well because some of the parts were really thin. For example on the first figure, the staff he is holding is very thin and it is amazing the tip cast. The feathers were also very thin. However, everything came out well.

Note this is a new post of this sculpture. The prior post has been deleted. I added red patina to reflect the details on the figures that did not show well previously. You can now see the detail on the clothing.

This sculpture was completed June 2007.

Lines and angles

Alabaster and bronze. 14 inches high.
The photo does not show the angle cuts in the stone very well. Too bad because that is what this sculpture is all about. The angles in the bronze are meant to pick up on the angles in the stone. The bronze also has tiny lines cut into the bronze. So there are lots of angles and lots of lines in this sculpture. The bronze patina matches perfectly with the brown in the white stone.

This is the second post of this sculpture. I have deleted the prior post because I changed the sculpture by reducing the spikes a few inches. I like the sculpture a lot more now. I think it is better balanced.

This sculpture was completed in June 2007.

Daniel's Dali

Bronze with marble base.
This is a sculpture done at my son's request. He just returned from Spain, the home of Salvador Dali. Daniel toured Dali's home town and the Dali museum. The painting "Persistence of Memory" has been called Dali's most famous painting and the tree with a melting clock is included in the painting. Dali also did sculptures of the melting clock and in England there is a sculpture of Dali with a melting clock. Ebay is selling Dali's original melting clock sculpture for $10,000. Reproductions can be found on the internet for about $2000.

Become a mentor

Alabaster stone base, Bronze figure. 8 inches high by six by eight.
This is the little girl image that I have shown in various stages in this blog. You have now seen this piece from start to finish. The image is from a photo in an ad in New Mexico Magazine that is requesting mentors for American Indian children in New Mexico. The ad says "Become a mentor." The organization is Futures for Children located in Albuquerque New Mexico.

Shawl of many colors

Bronze and alabaster stone. This sculpture did not photograph well. The photo depicts this sculpture as sort of short and squat...but she is really tall and thin. She sits at about 16 inches high. I call this sculpture the "Shawl of many colors" because I used black, white, green, blue and orange patina on the shawl. Some of the colors are visible in the photo. You can see black, green, and orange but you can't see the other colors too well in the photo. It is much prettier in real life.

I'm posting the photos of the sculptures as I finish them. I am in the process of cleaning up a few others before I start my summer projects. I am quickly running out of room at my house for the sculptures.

Moli 2

This is the second version of Moli I did for my friend Kathy. [See prior post] However, because Kathy likes the original Moli I did for her and has taken her home, this is now my Moli. She is sitting next to the Edison sculpture and keeping him company. This sculpture was derived from an actual photo of a Pomeranian. She is about two inches tall. Depending upon whether my son likes this sculpture or not, I may put her up for adoption.

Mother and Child in winter

10 inches tall, bronze upper body with white patina, alabaster lower body.
This is the first project I have completed for Spring 2007 semester. This stone was left over from the Tortuga Grande sculpture and I thought I should put it to use. The stone looked like it could be the skirt for a sculpture of a woman. I added a baby because my mother asked me to do another mother/child sculpture. The mother is shielding her child from the cold by keeping him wrapped in her shawl. I imagined her walking through the snow with her hair being blown by the wind. Hence, the sort of sad but determined look on her face.

Wendy and the Last Supper

This is a Wendy, a fellow student. Wendy is an electrician by trade. Wendy has been working on one major project for six semesters. You can see the Last Supper in brown wax on the table. It is magnificent. Wendy worked on the "art" for five semesters and this semester she made a mold out of rubber. The sculpture in the photo is from wax poured into the mold. The original sculpture was ruined when she made the rubber mold. However, now she will be able to make multiple copies if she so desires. Next semester, Wendy will gate the sculpture and we will pour it. I think we will all be holding our breath when it is poured. We have all admired the project these past few years and are looking forward, maybe not as much as she is but close, to the bronze final product.

Fellow students

These are some of the students in my sculpture classes. This was a pour day so we were discussing the plan for the day. Every single person in these photos has helped me with my sculptures and I have helped them with theirs. You can see a few wax sculptures on the table. Collaboration is key!

Roxanne, the artist

This is Roxanne, a fellow student. Roxanne is an artist by profession. She is depicted with a sculpture she did a few years back. In addition, to sculpture, Roxanne makes beautiful tiles and has worked on tile projects with students at many, many schools. She has done other public art projects and has had several commissions including one at Barona Casino we were able to observe. She is very knowledgeable and very kind. She helps many students, including me, with advice and encouragement on our sculpture projects. This semester, Roxanne very patiently started to show me how to weld. I made practice welds on a spare piece of steel and she was very encouraging. I have a long way to go but it was a fun start.

Sara and her mermaids

This is Sara, a student in my sculpture classes. Sara took sculpture classes for many years then took a break. She has been back for two years and I have been in several classes with her. Sara does very fine work. She did some sculpture for the San Diego Chargers a few years ago. The large piece with the multi colored stained glass to the right of Sara was done by Sara last year and won Best of Show in the student art show at the college. The piece further to the right with green stained glass won an Award of Merit in this year's show. My favorite piece is the sculpture of the woman in a red dress which is on the table right in front of Sara. Sara has many more pieces than depicted in this photo. She does a lot of bronze mermaids. Her work is finely detailed and exquisitely produced.

My Teacher

This is my Sculpture professor Jim Wilsterman. Jim is extremely knowledgeable, creative, kind and generous. All of his students love him. He knows how to use every machine in the building and can fabricate anything. Often, there are parts for some of the machines that are out of stock or no longer made and Jim will fabricate whatever we need. He can build anything and if something is broken he can fix it. More than anything he is extremely supportive of his students. He is very encouraging of students' vision and creativity and offers suggestions to help make every project an improved reality. He tirelessly works for improvement in the art department and there would be no sculpture program without him. In fact, Jim has been unable to create his own sculpture pieces for years due to his devotion to the students and college. I have learned so much from Jim and am so grateful to have stumbled upon his classes.

Breaking the mold

The molds are removed from the tub and banged on the concrete to try to crack and remove the investment. We use hammers and chisels to remove the rest of the investment. In the photo, there are several pieces strewn around in various stages with investment pieces and dust laying on the ground. Candace is shown using a hammer and chisel to remove the investment on her piece. Her piece is a woman wearing a long skirt. You can see the gating and cup which were also filled with bronze. After the major part of the investment is removed, the gating is cut off and the piece is sand blasted. Later, comes the clean up with our trusty rotary tools. It takes hours to cut off the gating and clean up the pieces.

The molds are filled

After the molds are filled with bronze, they quickly start to cool and the bronze turns from red molten to black as depicted. The molds cool upright as in the photo, for about 30 minutes. Then, the molds are removed from the rack and placed in a tub of cool water. As the molds are added, the water steams and hisses and sometimes boils. Cool water is constantly added and the molds begin to crack open. The molds are left in the tub until the water becomes tepid. This takes about another 15-20 minutes.

The pour

After the molds are heated, they are placed in a sand pit for the pour.
The crucible is raised and with the overehead crane it is moved to the molds.

The crucible is hanging on a mechanical crane but it is tipped by hand for the pouring of the bronze into the molds. In the photo, you can see bronze being poured into the individual molds. At this point, anyone who has a mold in the pour is holding their breath until their mold is filled. The folks who had repairs done to their molds are especially happy when their mold is filled without cracking open. Sometimes you can hear a mold cracking and we are all crossing our fingers it does not break open.
Notice the persons closest to the crucible are wearing protective clothing and face masks. It must be obvious how hot and potentially dangerous the pour can be.

Melting the bronze

This photo depicts bronze ingots being loaded into the crucible to melt. This crucible holds 450 pounds of melted bronze.
While bronze is melting inside the crucible, other ingots, later to be loaded, are placed around the crucible to heat.
The crucible is checked periodically to determine if more bronze should be added. There is a pile of bronze ingots depicted above left of the open crucible.
Students weigh their wax piece and gating before the very first dip in the investment process. That weight is used to calculate the amount of bronze the student must purchase before the piece can be poured. If the wax piece and gating weighs 1 pound, 11 pounds of bronze must be purchased. I have never had a one pound piece. Most of my pieces weigh at least 2 pounds which would require 22 pounds of bronze. Bronze can be purchased at metal supply stores and is currently selling for almost $8 a pound. Students get a small discount. We also re-use gating and cups from prior projects after they have been cleaned and sand blasted. Now you know why bronze sculptures are so expensive: the bronze is expensive!

Repairing and heating the molds

After the burn out, the molds are removed and inspected. Notice how the molds are now white. Very often small cracks and less frequently huge cracks are found in the molds. Cracks appear for many reasons: the mold was too thin in a section, there is a stress point or simply because it was dropped or banged up against something. The molds are very carefully inspected for even the smallest cracks because when the melted bronze is poured into it, the entire mold may break. All cracks are repaired with cement and fiberglass. In the molds in the back of the photo, you can see molds with gray. The gray is the color of the cement repair. The students slab on the cement, wrap the crack with fiber glass strips then put on more cement. We do the burn out the day before a bronze pour so there will be time to do the repairs.
After the molds are all inspected and repaired, they are placed in a kiln to heat before the melted bronze can be poured into them. Sometimes additional cracks form in this second heating and if so we repair them again.

Cut off and burn out

After the molds are dipped and sanded 12-15 times, a final dip is done. The final dip does not include sanding. After the mold is dry after the final dip, the top of the cup and metal handle are cut off. The photo depicts molds that have been final dipped and the cut off has been completed. You can see the brown wax inside the mold. Note: the thickness of the mold. The mold has to be thick enough to survive the heat of the melted bronze.
The students are loading the molds into the burn out kiln. The molds are loaded into the kiln so the wax will pour out from the opening created after the cut off was completed. The molds are heated for at least two hours until they are completely clean of wax. The wax accumulates at the bottom of the kiln. We reuse the wax to make the cups discussed in a prior post.

My first "show"

I finally did it. I entered two of my sculptures into the student show at Grossmont College. These are photos of the two sculptures I entered: Las Comadres II and Turquoise. There were 322 entries including drawing, painting. photography, jewelry, 3-D Design, computer art, and sculpture. There were about a dozen awards given juried by the Art's Council which includes college instructors from the various disciplines and community members. Las Comadres II won an "Award of Merit." I am thrilled and humbled by the other art exhibited. My friend Jeff said I can now refer to myself as an award winning artist. I don't think I'm quite ready for that but it sure feels great.

The investment process

The images depict the investment process. The investment process is the means by which a mold of the art is created.
The tub in the first photo is filled with slurry. It is a liquid substance that when dry is much like concrete. The slurry looks bright yellow in the photo but it is actually a lime green. When the slurry is dry, it changes to yellow and we know the mold is dry enough to be dipped again.

The gated project is dipped in the slurry for about 30 seconds. Here, the mold has been dipped and is hanging from the hook so excess slurry can drip into the tub. While it is hanging, the artist makes sure to blow out any bubbles that have formed in the slurry on the mold. Bubbles create air pockets which weaken the mold or may allow cracks to form.

The next step is for the wet mold to be covered with sand. The second photo shows the mold in the sand container. The artist must make sure sand is poured over all sides of the project. All nooks and crannies must be covered with slurry and sand. For the first four dips a very fine sand is used. Care must be used because the mold is still quite fragile. For the remaining dips, a thicker sand is used and the mold builds up more quickly and becomes quite sturdy and very heavy. In fact, some of my molds have become so heavy [Tortuga grande especially] that I cannot dip them myself. I am grateful for the help of fellow students.

The mold is then hung on a hook to dry. In the earlier post about gating, a couple of molds are seen drying on hooks. When the mold is dry, usually at least 2-3 hours after being dipped, it must be dipped and sanded again. It takes about 12-14 dips and sanding for the mold to achieve the thickness necessary to withstand the high temperatures and stress involved in the burn out and pour.

The mold depicted here is the little girl sitting on a rock project documented in prior posts. It might be hard to tell because she was gated upside down. The round tip pointing to the slurry tub is her head. In this photo, it had been dipped seven times already. It needs to be dipped 5-6 more times before it will be ready for a final dip. In the final dip, no sand is used.

The investment process takes weeks to complete because it can only be done during class hours and at most two dips can be accomplished in one class session. Sometimes, I go to school during a break in my day to dip my work. If I didn't do so, I don't think I would have been able to complete all of the projects I have done thus far. I am grateful for my flexible schedule. Also, many of us agree to dip each other's work if we are at school at different times so we can get our molds finished faster! There is a lot of cooperation during the investment process. Everyone is excited to get their molds done so they can be burned out and included in a pour.

Gating the art

After the art is completed, the gating process begins. The artist must construct a method for the molten bronze to reach the art. In the photo, the three pieces depicted in in red and brown are gated projects.
The artist creates a "cup" which is where the molten bronze will be poured into the mold. A paper cup is sprayed with mold release and a piece of metal is bent and inserted so the mold can be hung to dry during the investment process. Scrap wax and used wax is melted and poured into the paper cup. The metal hook is inserted so it will be embedded in the wax and will hold the completed mold. When the wax cools, the paper cup is removed.
The next step is for the artist to use long strips of red wax to construct a path for the molten bronze to fill the art. Thick strips of red wax are used to create a channel from the cup to the art. Smaller tubes are placed from the top of the art piece back to the cup to allow the bronze to escape. The wax must be cut to the right length then attached to the art. It is critical for the gating to be sturdily attached at all points. Toothpicks and wooden sticks are used to reinforce the joints and a very strong wax we call "sticky wax" is also used.
In these three gated pieces, the art is in brown wax in the middle of the gating. Once the piece has completed the investment process, the top of the cup including the hook will be cut off which will proved a wide opening for the molten bronze.
Many beginning students get very frustrated at the gating stage because if the joints are not really melded well, the structure will fall apart. Attaching the cup to the structure can be very difficult because it is heavy and an awkward shape. However, the cup is a critical component because it holds the entire structure together.
I had many mishaps when I first started from the cup falling off to gating detaching from the art. I have learned from many mistakes.

Abstract: It is what you think it is.

Bronze, alabaster stone, turquoise stone, unpolished granite base.
This is an abstract. You can determine for yourself what you think it is. Two people independently have said it reminds them of a bear hugging a rock. One person said it was a male and female figure hugging. Neither is what I had in mind but I can see their interpretations in the piece. If you have read this entire blog, you will know my typical themes. This is an abstract of one of my typical themes. If you are familiar with my sculptures, you will see, in this one, symbols, perhaps techniques taken from others. However, I wonder if anyone can guess what I really intended? I think a person could make a good guess if they knew the order in which I made all of my sculptures. But since I have been pretty vague about the exact order in which I produced after the first few, that hint might not help.
My friend Laura, who is so kind and supportive of my sculpture endeavors, remarked repeatedly that this was her favorite. So, it is now happily ensconced at her house. Bill, Laura's husband, is very patient and like Laura, very kind. Laura, myself and two other friends have an art group. We have lunch and do art at one another's homes and often go on art related outings. Bill tolerates our "art lunches" and has even attended some of our outings. He actually sketched with us once at the Zoo. I'm not sure what he thinks of this sculpture sitting near his TV! No complaints thus far.

Creating the image in wax

In an earlier post, the brown wax used in bronze sculpture is shown in slabs and pieces. That wax was used for this sculpture. The wax is shaped into the image a person wants to become the bronze sculpture. In this sculpture, I created the image of the little girl then placed it on the stone for final shaping.
The shape of the girl was formed by pushing together two large pieces of wax which eventually became the torso and legs. The head was a ball pushed onto the torso then shaped. The hair and hands were added. The blanket was added last and molded to fit the stone. Decorative symbols, etc. are added last. The red wax used for the necklace [we call it spaghetti wax] is usually used in the gating process but because it is the perfect size I needed for the necklace, I used it for that purpose. The red wax is a sturdier wax which is necessary for gating. Gating is the next step in the process.

I will continue to refine this image until I am satisfied with it.
The image is inspired by a photo of a little girl sitting on a rock in an ad in New Mexico magazine seeking mentoring volunteers for American Indian children.

Tortuga grande

Translation: Big Turtle. Turtle shell: bronze Head, tail, legs: alabaster stone. I used alabaster on the head, tail, and legs to cut down on the weight and to allow me to move it more easily. The shell simply rests on the head, tail and legs and can be lifted off to transport.
My son likes this sculpture because he puts his CD player on top of the shell when he is hanging out on the patio. I wanted it to be big enough for a small child to sit upon.
This sculpture received a lot of attention in sculpture class because of its size. It required two people to carry it during the entire investment and casting process. Luckily, there are some very nice male students in class who helped me every step of the way. When I started this sculpture, bronze was relatively reasonably priced. But, when it came time to cast it, bronze had sky rocketed. Fortunately, I had lots of left over bronze from the gating in other projects so it was not as costly as it could have been. This sculpture required metal clips on the edges but luckily my instructor did not suggest pins. When the stone deteriorates, as it will [and has] because it is outside and alabaster cracks with moisture, I will make, cast and weld on a new head, tail and legs like the ones I later did for the NM Turtle for Chris.
This sculpture has a brown patina. However, Edison has added a patina of his own. Ammonia will turn bronze green/blue. The Tortuga has become one of Eddie's favorite watering spots. In fact, one side has become quite green. I have turned the Tortuga shell so that the other side can benefit from Eddie's contributing artistic touches.

New Mexico Turtle for Chris

Bronze About 13 inches head to tail. Brown patina.

My brother Chris has a turtle named Baby Lucy. Baby Lucy gets baths and she loves cherry tomatoes. Last summer, Chris mentioned he would like a turtle sculpture. Because he lives in New Mexico, I decided to use New Mexico Indian designs on the turtle shell. In the two sections closest to the head and the two sections closest to the tail of the shell, are designs of birds from four different New Mexico Indian tribes. I used American Indian Design and Decoration as a source for the designs. The remaining sections contain my own interpretations of American Indian designs.

Luckily, Chris likes his New Mexico turtle and she happily resides at his house. I wonder what Baby Lucy thinks. At least she doesn't have to share her cherry tomatoes.

The wax used to create the sculpture

People are surprised to learn the sculptures are created in wax. The school has large chunks of the brown wax that we melt and pour into molds for thin slabs. The pieces of wax on the right are remnants of slabs I used in prior projects. Some students carve directly in large chunks of wax like the thick piece on the left of the photo. We use dental tools, ceramic tools, putty knives and other items in shaping the sculpture. Jewelry torches are used to melt the wax and warm the tools for carving. A soldering iron is also used to melt the wax.

Shaping and polishing the stone

A prior post showed the stone selected. The next step is to shape and polish the stone. I use power tools [power grinder and a power sander] to obtain the general shape for the sculpture. The stones usually have divets, cuts, and cracks throughout. I like to incorporate as many of the divets as possible into the sculpture because I find they add interest. I use the power tools to even out and smooth the surface. However, tool scars remain. Hand sanding is required. I start with 100 grade, sand thoroughly to even it out. Then sand again thoroughly with 200 then 320 then 400 and finally with 600 grade sand paper. I like to sand the stone until it looks translucent. The colors come out and the stone is smooth to the touch. When I am finished sanding I clean the stone and apply mineral oil to create a sheen.
This is the stone depicted in the prior post after the process is completed. This will be the general shape of the stone section of the sculpture. Further sanding and even modifications to the shape may take place after the bronze is cast. However, this will be used in the process of creating the wax sculpture.

Santa Fe Basket Weavers

Alabaster stone and bronze. 12 inches high by 3 inches by six inches. The lower part, the skirts of the basket weavers, is alabaster stone. The shawls/baskets/heads are bronze. The bronze sections fits on top of the stone. The bronze was polished to its gold color to pick up the gold in the stone. White patina was applied then wiped.

This sculpture was inspired by a photo in an ad for Santa Fe New Mexico in Sunset Magazine. Apparently, there is a life size sculpture in Santa Fe of four female basket weavers. The original depicts the women facing each other at an angle, they each have the same hair style and are not wearing shawls as in my depiction. A friend asked if this was a Christmas sculpture due to the designs on the baskets. The designs on the baskets are representations of designs I found in a text entitled American Indian Design and Decoration, a resource I use for most of the designs I use.
I am going to Albuquerque and Santa Fe in July and I hope to see the life size sculpture then.

Abuelita

Abuelita means little grandmother in Spanish.

The grandmother is bronze. The baby is polished alabaster stone and the base is natural alabaster stone. The baby and base were fabricated first. Because, according to my instructor, the design is complex, he suggested separate casting of sections of the sculpture. The skirt, shawl and torso/face of the grandmother are individual sections and fit together. My instructor volunteered to weld the sections together after it was cast but I like the ability to deconstruct it for transport. The baby, when inserted in the shawl, holds the sculpture together.

This was a difficult project because if the bronze warped during casting the shawl and skirt would not fit together. Accordingly, my instructor had me fabricate metal plugs to be inserted into the shawl and skirt in order to help hold the shape. After casting, the plugs had to be removed with special tools and bronze nuggets had to be inserted and pounded to fill the holes. Although the insertion of the plugs did hold the shape, I don't ever want to do that again! The patina is brown with rust highlights.

This piece very happily resides in my parents' home.

Getting started: Selecting materials

The first step in designing a sculpture is determining the subject matter and the materials to use. If I decide to use alabaster stone in the design, I look at individual stones in our pile at school from different angles then try to imagine an image. In this case, I like the colors in the stone and the general shape. The bottom is pretty flat and will not need much modification. The stone does not have major indentations that will need work. Once the stone is selected, I purchase it from the Sculpture Club at school.

Years ago some kind person donated a ton or so of alabaster stones to the Sculpture Club. The stones come in various sizes, shapes and colors and is available at school for students to comb through, select and purchase at a very low cost. Alabaster is a very soft stone. Power tools [sanders/grinders] and regular sand paper can be used to shape the stone. Water is used sparingly because alabaster tends to crack easily.

The real Edison

This is Edison a.k.a Eddie, Edisano, Edmyson, Sonaman, good boy, pie boy, sweet pie. He is the subject of three sculptures. All at his owner's request. He is named after my son's favorite scientist, Thomas Edison and he is 11 years old in April 2007.
This is the first sculpture I did of Edison for my son. He takes it to college with him during the school year.

King of Corn

Bronze on marble.

Eight inches tall.

This guy is solid

bronze. He is very

heavy. He is

inspired by Hopi

Corn Kachina images.

This is my only project thus far that came out perfect. Very little clean up. No defects. The patina came out the way I liked it on the first try.

Hopi Tribe

Bronze.

Each is about 4 inches by four inches.

My first project. The guy with the big wings

on his head in the middle is the tribal leader. He is flanked by his tribe members. The stands were painted to enhance, hopefully, the images.

Home on the range

Bronze on marble.

I think the buffalo is a very majestic creature. I liked the idea of a buffalo family. Many folks think the baby looks like an elephant...but I used a photo from an encyclopedia as a guide. Oh well! Since these are on separate platforms, they can be displayed singly or in a group as shown.

The buffalo family members are depicted grazing in a field.

The hind legs of theses images were the thinnest part of the sculpture and when the bronze was cast, it did not spread into those areas. Thus, although the front part of the images cast perfectly, none of the images had hind legs! Despite the defects, they looked pretty good and some students suggested I leave them as they were. I also contemplated just starting over. My other alternative, encouraged by my instructor, was to construct hind legs, have them cast then welded to the front portion. I did the latter. I have not learned how to weld yet. My instructor did the welding for me.

Escher Fish

Bronze 4 inches by 4 inches.

Inspired by an M.C. Escher

wedding invitation.

I made this for my son since Escher is one of his favorite artists. This was my second project.

We were learning how to do reliefs.

Blue Moon

Bronze 4 inches by 7 inches.
Inspired by an M.C. Escher design. The moon is surrounded by interlocking birds. The birds are difficult to see in the photo. If you put the cursor on the photo and click the mouse, the photo will be enlarged and you can see the birds in better detail. The same is true for all photos.

This is the second project I did for my son.

Kathy's Moli

Bronze on alabaster base.

Three inches tall.

My friend Kathy asked me to make a sculpture of her dog Moli, a Pomeranian/Pekinese mix. Moli is a certified therapy dog. Kathy dresses her up and takes her to schools, nursing homes, etc. Since some folks have said my Moli sculpture looks like an Ewok instead of dog, I am in the process of making another Moli. Kathy will then be able to choose which one she likes better.

UPDATE: A year ago my friend Jeff scolded me for not giving the Moli sculpture to Kathy. I was concerned because although everyone who has seen the Moli sculpture thinks it is cute many said she looks like a bear or an Ewok. Well, I never told Kathy about the sculpture. As mentioned above, I intended to make another Moli and give Kathy the choice. In fact, I currently have a new Moli, that looks like more like a Pomeranian in the investment process. This May, I saw Kathy, she asked about the sculpture and I confessed. Kathy has now seen this Moli and loves her! According to Kathy, people often comment that her live Moli looks like an Ewok, so sculpture Moli does in fact correctly depict her. So, my Kathy's Moli is now on its way to Kathy's home. Happy ending! Except Kathy says she wants the new sculpture too.