SMC Art Challenge 2010 - John Keeton

[John Keeton]

It is always good to have a target, and being first usually makes one the target!!

So, here it is - fire away!
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First is my "art" entry - art, because I really don't have any idea that one could do anything with this except just look at it!!
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The supported hollow form and lid are Ambrosia Maple. The collar is walnut. Finials are African Blackwood and they are proportionately in the same style.

The form is 5.25" wide, and the entire assembly is 13.5" tall. Walls on the form are about 3/16" thick, and the neck of the smaller finial is .09" Finish is BLO, shellac and lacquer, triple buffed with Ren wax.

The stand consists of three carved walnut scrolls, with a band of Ambrosia Maple encircling the scrolls. The scrolls have a slight flat spot into which the ring sets.

The second set of pics is obviously my utilitarian entry - rather a standard bowl. It is butternut, 11.75" wide at the rim, and 2 7/8" tall. Finish is BLO, shellac, and several coats of wipe on poly, triple buffed with Ren wax.
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[Paul Singer]

You have set the bar too high for me. Beautiful work.

[Roland Martin]

This art form is absolutely stunning John. Along with the awesome carving, the entire form is gorgeous, with all the proportions in harmony with each other. The finial work you've been working so hard at has progressed to such delicate form, a "target" that few can achieve, IMO.

If I was a betting man, I would have put significant money on the first entry being you.:D:D

It's quite hard to come up with a comment about your utilitarian entry, other than it is a very attractive useful piece, after viewing your art entry.

I think you've very well defined "Art Form" verses "Utilitarian Form" and I thank you for taking the time to be part of the Art Challenge.

"WOW"

[Mike Golka]

You have set the bar high indeed!! Too high for me but a definate challenge for others here. Beautiful work John, I am vey impressed.

[Roger Chandler]

Hi John,

Although I am not participating in the Art challenge, I do admire what you have done here. the hollow form is stunning, and the bowl is truly a utilitarian form that would be useful in most any household. You have captured the essence of art form and utilitarian in a most pronounced way.

Must be some very fertile gray matter underneath those gray locks of hair. Very nice work indeed from concept to execution of the skills that produced the end results.

Congratulations!

[Matt Hutchinson]

John, really nice work! I especially like the hollow form's double finial design. Cool stuff!

Hutch

[Steve Schlumpf]

Very nice work John!

Really like the imagination involved in developing your suspended hollow form! Very well balanced piece and am amazed at the level of detail in your matched finials! Excellent work!

Great looking bowl! I especially like the slight ogee to the form! Beautiful wood and the worm holes really add to the character!

Very nice work on everything!

Just a reminder to everyone that the only bar that can be set for this challenge is one that you set for yourself! This is not a competition - just a way to challenge yourself to create!

Have fun with it!

Thanks John! Great work!

[bob svoboda]

Very nice work John. The hollow form is especially impressive.

[Tony De Masi]

Quite impressive my friend. This is certainly off to a great start.

It's evident to me that you need to start selling your art pieces. Of course I have no idea if your local area would support such pieces, I know my area certainly would not. But ya don't know unless you try right?

Great piece of art John.

Tony

[gary Zimmel]

That is one sweet piece John.
The bar is getting higher and higher.

[Donny Lawson]

I too think you have some beautiful pieces of work and think you could sell them pretty easy in the art market.I've been watching your work since your first one and admired every one of them.Your skills are untouched and I think you rank right up there with the best of them.So, keep up the GREAT work and thanks for the inspiration you give us all.
Donny

[charlie knighton]

very nice....

[Bernie Weishapl]

Really nice pieces John. Utility bowl I like. Nice form and finish. The suspended HF well it is just beautiful.

[steven carter]

John,

Both pieces are outstanding, just from different perspectives. The art piece could not be more artistic, and the utilitarian piece is both functional and ascetically pleasing.

Steve

[Paul Douglass]

Duh, I could do that! HA! Why would you want to do anything but look at it. That is amazing. I would build a glass case to put it in and sit and look at it. The bar is set way over my head!

[Tim Rinehart]

I've been working on hollow forms quite a bit over the last few months, and have been thinking about just spending some time with finial form and creation...Ok, time to quit thinking.

The finials really do add another dimension to an otherwise very nicely done HF, and the creativity to suspend the piece as you did would make even Cindy Drozda take notice.

The ogee in the butternut bowl is pleasing with no heaviness at the bottom, something I still have to work on as I've incorporated similar shape in a few turnings.

Excellent work John. I'll be getting mine posted this week, thanks for the friendly reminder and setting out a great pair for the Art Challenge.

[Cathy Schaewe]

The HF is phenomenal, although I suspect we'd all expect nothing less from JK!

I love the bowl, too.

[Aaron Wingert]

Great looking pieces John. That's the first piece I've seen with a finial on top and on bottom....If you had a HUGE Christmas tree it could be one heck of an ornament! Beautiful work as always.

[Rob Cunningham]

Holy cow John, give the rest of us a fighting chance :D.
Seriously though, very beautiful work and great photography.

[Harvey Ghesser]

You did it again, John! As soon as I saw your entry, I said to myself "damn, he's good!"

Beautiful work, John!:D:D

[brian watts]

WOW. your the man....

[Toney Robertson]

Excuse me, I must have stumbled into the expert division accidentally, could someone direct me to lower category?

Your art piece is well ---- artsy, unique and well executed.

NEXT challenge - this one is already over. Call me when there is a mere mortals division.

Toney

[David E Keller]

Very nice. You certainly have an eye for proportion and design, and it shows nicely in both pieces. Wonderful execution of a fairly complicated art piece. Great finish as well.

[Roland Martin]

Excuse me, I must have stumbled into the expert division accidentally, could someone direct me to lower category?

Your art piece is well ---- artsy, unique and well executed.

NEXT challenge - this one is already over. Call me when there is a mere mortals division.

Toney

It aint over 'till "ALL" the cows come home:D Click your heels, you'll be in Kansas in no time:)

[John Keeton]

Thanks for stopping by and looking, and for the nice comments

Now, get out in the shop and get started on your entry!!!;) Roland is right, there is a tremendous amount of talent in this community, and I am betting we see some great entries. This thing has just begun!!

By the way, this piece of Ambrosia Maple came from Mike Smith, and I bet is some of the same maple that Roland used for his #8 square bowl! It is very nice wood, with great color and character.

[Jeff Nicol]

John, It looks as though I will have to put on the smock and beret to come up with something comparable to your entry! Very nice work and well thought out design. I think I have the utility piece ready, but even that will look bland!

Jeff

[Brian Effinger]

Bee-U-T-ful!

I'm not so sure your utilitarian piece is, well..... utilitarian. It can't hold soup. ;)

[Curt Fuller]

Sheeesh! Talk about a couple of beautiful examples of art and utility.

The butternut bowl really grabs me because I'm one that tends to think of a turning as something that should be both functional and beautiful to look at. You've nailed both aspects in this piece.

But the art piece, the elevated or supported hollow accomplishes something that is almost always lacking when elevating a hollowform. It has BALANCE! It's got all kinds of nice components like many elevated forms do. But to me this one successfully pulls off the art of being balanced and proportionate. Everything seems to fit as though it was designed to be not just pretty but also practical. You could sit this on your mantel and enjoy its beauty without worrying about if falling over every time you walked by. And I really like the double finials. John, even you will have a hard time topping this one.

[James Combs]

... The bar is set way over my head!

Ditto Paul's last comment. Duh, I'm toast.

[Allen Neighbors]

I have nothing to say about it that hasn't already been said... color me speechless...

[David DeCristoforo]

It's beautiful, John... but what would you use if for? I'm thinking a rice bowl in a really expensive Chinese restaurant... Or the worlds most beautiful salt pig? It really looks like it should be orbiting the Earth. OK... I'm being a wise guy... sorry... just can't help it sometimes. Truly, I can't recall ever having seen anything quite like this. It's very original, well proportioned, flawlessly executed and fascinating to look at.

[Don Alexander]

1 simple little 3 letter word pretty much describes that HF WOW!!!!!!


being new to turning i have to say that my turning skills need plenty of fine tuning before there is any reasonable expectation of making anything in that league , BUT that will not stop me from busting my butt to get into that league :D:D:D

rather than discourage us lesser mortals it should inspire all of us to strive
to reach for the target (if thats the target hehe )

i personally was inspired to buy a lathe and start turning after stumbling across Malcolm Tibbets web site and literally spending hours and hours looking through his gallery photos and reading everything there about how he does those incredible pieces.

stretch your horizons , let your imagination soar , reach for the seeming unreachable and you will be amazed at what you can do !!!!

please forgive the small lecture :rolleyes:

[Frank Van Atta]

That is one beautiful piece - what else is there to say?

[Gary Chester]

Every time I look at one of your offerings I just smile, chuckle and say WOW...

[Bill Wilcox]

John, you know that I really enjoy the work you do and your talent is really a natural gift. I think that what others have said about this piece is a given because of the pieces you have posted in the past.
I really like the design of your piece and I especially like the stand you made. I recently saw a video on YouTube on a piece that David Marks made and he had a stand in it as well. I think that stands can really make a piece stand out.
However( here is where I duck with what I am going to say.)
I look at your piece and I find that the bottom finial causes some clutter in combination of the stand. I wonder if the finial was removed would the piece as a whole (HF and stand) look less cluttered.
To me the bottom finial and the stand cause some confusion to my eye when I first saw it.
Bill

[John Keeton]

Guys, thanks so much for the additional comments. Many of you have been inspirational for me, and I hate to single out names, but I will!! Curt and Jeff, since the beginning I have been inspired with what you do, and I appreciate your continued willingness to help others. And, David, from the flat side, I was always impressed with your eye for design - you have what it takes! I suspect you will make this turning thing look easy!
However( here is where I duck with what I am going to say.)
I look at your piece and I find that the bottom finial causes some clutter in combination of the stand. I wonder if the finial was removed would the piece as a whole (HF and stand) look less cluttered.
To me the bottom finial and the stand cause some confusion to my eye when I first saw it.
BillBill, no need to duck!!:D I appreciate your comments! In fact, I posted this piece on the WOW site a couple of days prior to this posting (had to wait until June 1!) and Kelly Dunn and another poster made similar comments. So, you find yourself in good company!! The David Marks piece is on the cover of the AAW magazine for June - fantastic piece!!

This is all a learning process for me, and while this piece works for me, I can easily see how it may look better without the lower finial and/or with a different base. Maybe the next one......;)

[David DeCristoforo]

"David...I suspect you will make this turning thing look easy!"

Heck, John.. it already looks easy! The trick is going to be to make it be easy! As to the bottom finial, I like it as is but it might have a whole different look with a more subtile bottom detail or none at all. Only way to be sure is to make one and see how it reads. Maybe this will be the first of a "series"?

[Mike Minto]

John, that is really one beautiful work of art (I like the utility piece, too). You are an artist, without any doubt. One of the nicest piece I've ever seen. :)

[John Hart]

I think it is important that we disqualify John Keeton. He obviously cheated. He has no ethical bearing whatsoever....and I hear that he just accepted a sponsorship from MacDonalds.

There...

The bar is now lowered for the rest of us knuckle-dragging neanderthals.

I think I'll go turn a whatchamacallit now.:)

[John Keeton]

....and I hear that he just accepted a sponsorship from MacDonalds. Just waitin' on the green, John, just waitin' on the green.........!!!!:D:D No Big Mac coupons, I want cold, hard cash!!!

[Matt Ranum]

Every time I look at one of your offerings I just smile, chuckle and say WOW...


Well said! At least I'm not the only one that does that.