This is a diary of the creation of a
transformation mask by Gene Brabant. It is a study of an old piece that is in the
collection of the Museum fur Volkerkunde, Stuttgart, Germany and is currently touring with
the exhibition "Down From The Shimmering Skies".
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Feb 26th 1999.......
Starting a piece begins with finding the right wood. The original mask that Gene is doing
this study on was made from alder. This type of wood grows all over North America. It has
been used for furniture, plywood and flooring. When it is dried and cured it is a hardwood
of great strength and hardness. But when it is green it is very soft and grainless. For
this reason it is best to carve when it is fresh.
Aldergrove,
where our studio is located has an abundance of alder trees. In our area they tend to grow
tall and slender, growing until they fall over from their own leverage. For this piece we
needed a clear block 30 cm x 30cm x 50cm and a second clear block 30 cm x 30 cm x 25cm. We
would need to start with a block at lest 40cm wide to allow for shrinkage and removal of
the outer sap wood. It has been raining allot during the past weeks, as winter ends and
spring begins, and the woods are drenched. But the sun is trying it's best to inspire us
today and we are suddenly outside searching the woods for the right tree. The brush plants
are still leafless so it is easy to see the alders standing amongst the towering giant
Cottonwoods. Most seem to small for what is needed. We walk further up the hill behind the
studio. Immediately a tree jumps out at us. I was the first to point at it but we all saw
it at the same time. Growing up on a small knoll set into the side of the ravine it stood
by itself. an individual amongst trees. Gene held up his ruler to it and it measured 60cm
in diameter at the bottom with a good 20' of trunk before the first section of branches.
It felt like the right one to all three of us so Charlie began clearing the area to safely
fall it. The tree was about 100' tall but the upper half didn't appear to healthy. The
rate of growth of these trees are their own demise, growing to tall to sustain themselves.
But the bottom was strong and big, perfect for our needs.
The tree came down easily doing only a small amount of
damage to an old truck that has sat in that same spot for three years waiting for
something to happen to it. That tree was taller than we figured and the top just made it
to where that old truck sat thinking it was safe from harms way. Fate made it's decision,
that old truck will never run again.
Gene quickly
set to roughing out the blocks to the size he needs. Using wedges and a sledge hammer he
squared of the sides, but left lots of wood. The wood seems to have a beautiful white
color to it and doesn't seem to be bleeding much. Alder tends to bleed sap to the surface
when it is wet and discolors, becoming blotchy. But this wood doesn't seem that wet,
probably due to the way it was growing on top of the knoll. Because alder has to be carved
green there is no use in stock piling it for later use. So the remainder of the tree will
be blocked up and given to other carvers to use.
Feb 27th 1999...
Gene is beginning with the inner face. With a transformation
mask the pieces have to fit together well. Because of this some consideration has to be
given to shrinkage. Gene spent the day drying out small pieces of the alder to determine
how much it will shrink. As he started roughing out the face he quickly discovered a
hidden knot in the wood. At first we thought that this was disaster and another block
would have to be started. But I pointed out to Gene that the original has a knot on the
inner face just below the mouth. The knot in his block matched this knot very closely. It
was meant to be.
Feb 28th 1999...
Today we learned that our friend, Oscar Matilpi, had passed away. He was one of the last
of the old time carvers. We will miss him. After hearing the news of his passing the skies
outside darkened. The wind came up quickly followed by lightning and thunder. We gathered
by Oscar's Thunderbird pole that we keep near the front door of the studio as a welcome
figure. Thunderbird was speaking in the sky. As quickly as it started it was over and the
sun came out. Life goes on and as we returned to our work we shared some stories about
Oscar.
Mar 2 1999...
Gene has roughed out the inner face. Care must be taken to
compensate for shrinkage as the wood dries. the block must be put aside for a few days.
Now Gene will start roughing out the outer face. By using pictures of the old piece we can
figure out most of the measurements. He begins work on the outer face by making a
few cuts with a hand saw and then working with his adze. The piece takes shape quickly.
The outer face is quite compact and will have to fit the inner face perfectly in order to
function.
Mar 3 1999...
The outer face has been roughed out. Gene left
lots of wood to work with. "I want to sneak up on this one. Over the next couple of
days it will begin to dry out and shrink and I will be able to take more reliable
measurements." Gene's attention to detail borders on obsession. We have blown
all the pictures up to exactly life size using the computer. Measurements can now be taken
directly from the pictures. The wood carves beautifully but the inner face has begun
to bleed, leaving red blotchy patches on the surface. To most carvers this is an inherent
quality to this type of wood. But Gene has shown me that by repeatedly carving off the
surface of the wood the bleeding will stop and the surface will remain white.
inner face, outer face and bottom jaw
Mar 9 1999...
The wood has
turned completely red over the last few days. Gene has begun carving off the surface,
leaving the white wood showing. The picture shows how the alder wood bleeds. The cheek
still has to be carved. He will do this to all three pieces and then put them aside,
letting them discolor again. The wood will eventually stop turning red and will stay a
beautiful white. The wood is also shrinking while it dries.
Mar 18 1999...
Work continues on the Raven (outer face). Gene has sawn it
into two halves that will close around the inner face. The Raven must be made as thin as
possible so that the inner face will fit inside of it and also to reduce it's weight. The
hinges will be made from leather and any extra weight will cause sagging.
Mar 24 1999...
Care must be taken to fit all the parts properly before any attempt to
assemble it. The shrinkage of the wood has made adjustments necessary. At this stage
progress seems to be slow but the extra effort should pay off when we begin putting it
together. The exact positioning must be determined in order to plan the hinging. Room has
to be made for the "fins" that protrude from the mouth and the top of the head.
April 19 1999...
We were able to see the
original mask at the "Down From The Shimmering Skies" exhibit in Portland
Oregon. Pictures never tell the whole story and after seeing the original some things had
to be changed on this piece. Our jaw was much to chunky and has to be thinned and rounded
on the bottom. The top and bottom of the inner face has to be flattened so that the jaw
and top skull piece can fit.
May 18 1999...
Gene has been dividing his time between the transformation and a large Bukwus
(Wildman) mask that he is doing for our show in Seattle in June. The rim of the inner face
has been trimmed to the shape of the Raven. Copper eyes were cut out with a jeweler's saw
and slightly domed then inlaid in the inner face. The leather hinges on the rim of the
face have been tied on with sinew and the panel that covers the top of the head is
attached. At this point the face will be painted.
June 9 1999...
The outside
Raven's face and the lower jaw has been fitted to the rim of the inside face. Copper eyes
have been cut out and inlaid in the Raven. A small appendage has been added to the top of
the mask. The string that opens the top of the Raven's head will operate through this
"stick. Appendages will be made for both sides that will work in a similar manner to
open the two halves of the Raven's head.
At this point the project stalled. The alder
was moving dramaticly as it dries. The outer face had been ajusted many times but won't
stay still. The wood panels for the inner rim were also are proving to a pain. A set of
1/4" thick boards were made from an alder block. They were roughed out with an adze
and then run through a thickness planner to a uniform thickness. By the next morning they
were totally cupped and had to be scrapped. A new set was made and this time we piled
wieghts on top of each board to keep it flat as it dried. This worked well but slowed down
the drying process. It took about 2 weeks for the boards to dry enough to be stable. Then
the boards were cut to shape, or I should say to what was thought to be the correct shape
for when they were fitted together there was an ovious mistake. They had to be scrapped.
To this point the mask had been fairly strait
forward. Gene has done many 3-way and 4-way Transformation masks and was confidant he
could do this one. The mechanics of the inner rim were new to him and had to be learned
through trial and error. The panels were made again and after much adjusting they reached
their proper shape and were drilled and sewn together with the canvas panels that fit
between them. The rim was painted and the control strings were added.
