"Curlicue"

[John Keeton]

This is one of the pieces I have turned for an exhibit at the Carnegie in Covington KY that starts October 17. I think I have enough with this one, and the others I am posting, but probably will do another one or two if I can get them done in time.

At the AAW symposium, I bought several pieces of Big Leaf Maple from Northwoods, most of which was burled, but this one is very tightly curled. The finial is Claro walnut, with a replication of the maple form from the same BLM. 4.5" wide x 5.5" tall to the tip of the finial, it is finished with BLO, shellac, and several coats of satin WOP, and wet sanded with 1200, buffed and Ren wax.

Again, kind of a different form. I think it was Scott Hackler that likes the squatty forms, as do I. Kind of fought to get good pics again. I think I am going to get a new camera and do some serious tinkering with my photo tent. I am using ambient light, and weather/sky conditions can really throw off things. The sun was fading, and I had the shop door open - ended up with too much glare. To make it worse, I discovered I was running on low batteries, and I am sure that didn't help either.

Comments are always welcome!

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[Marty Eargle]

Wonderful piece, John! Your finish really does the curl in that BLM justice. Normally, I'm not a huge fan of this particular form, but the addition of the finial replication makes me like it quite a bit. It gives a good balance to very bottom heavy piece.

Thanks for sharing!

[charlie knighton]

sort of like the three bears,, the form is fine, really like the finial,
the first picture is too shinny, the second is ok, i like the third picture

not sure if it is the picture taking ie light or different stages of your finish

[David DeCristoforo]

I like everything about this except I think the embellishment in the final is a bit too big. But not so much that it prevents this from being an excellent piece!

[Paul Williams]

John I like your practice of replicating the form in the finial. Great piece of maple. Since your draw these before turning I assume you meant for the top third to appear as if it is laying over the bottom as opposed to a bead at that point. I spent a lot of time looking at that detail and decided I liked it, but have to admit that my first thought was that it was unlike you to have a discontinuity in the curve.

[Kathy Marshall]

Great piece John! and that sure is some pretty wood, love all that curl!

[Roger Chandler]

I disagree with DD on the replication of the form in the finial being too big.......I think you captured the form well in that feature............I like the shine, and for what your concept was.........I think you actually nailed it. That being said......when one conceives a form and a finial........the design at that point, can either be more or less esthetically pleasing, than a form another person may conceive as ideal...........I think you nailed what you were going for.

[Bernie Weishapl]

John that is another beauty. I the finial. Form and finish look great.

[Doug W Swanson]

Another beautiful piece, John! While I like the other "Schlumpf" form better this one is no slouch. Excellent job one again!

[David E Keller]

Pretty piece, John! I sort of agree with DD... The duplicate is either a tad large or a bit too high for my untrained eye. Either way, those are tiny nits to pick!

[Baxter Smith]

Very nice John. I found Davids thought about the embellishment being perhaps a bit too big interesting. When I first glanced at the piece, that part didn't seem quite as delicate graceful as most you do. Following the upward curve on the top of your form, the line appears to just kiss the edge of your embellishment. Probably what you had planned when you drew this out. When I have used undyed holly for finials, they usually appear to be larger/heavier than if I had dyed them black. I wonder if this embellishment might appear to "shrink" a bit if it was black as well. Just wondering out loud.

[Curt Fuller]

Another beauty John! If that's a 'bad' photo, I can't imaginge how nice this would look with a good photo.

[Josh Bowman]

Well, I'm confused now. My first take was nice piece, nice finish, didn't like the finial. But then I looked closer and saw it was a replica of the main piece, now my eye finds the finial interesting. John all this sound controversial, and it is, but that was good art is about. All in all I like it, the curl is beautiful.

[John Keeton]

Thanks for taking the time to look at this one, and for the nice comments!
Very nice John. I found Davids thought about the embellishment being perhaps a bit too big interesting. When I first glanced at the piece, that part didn't seem quite as delicate graceful as most you do. Following the upward curve on the top of your form, the line appears to just kiss the edge of your embellishment. Probably what you had planned when you drew this out. When I have used undyed holly for finials, they usually appear to be larger/heavier than if I had dyed them black. I wonder if this embellishment might appear to "shrink" a bit if it was black as well. Just wondering out loud.It is always so interesting to see the varied comments when I do pieces that are outside the norm - or, at least outside my norm! I do sketch my pieces (the chestnut piece "Black and Tan" being a rare exception), and this one was a challenge. The form does follow the 1/3 - 2/3 rule in that the "waist" is at the 1/3 mark, though the detailing of the top seems to defy that.

And, I do try to use a sweeping curve that touches all of the "protrusions" going up through the finial. On this piece, to do that would have really required a much shorter finial, and it was originally drawn that way. I normally leave my sketches by my lazyboy and "ponder" them for a few days during TV time. The shorter finial did not permit some features I wanted to try here, including drawing the eye upward away from the "belly" of this piece - sort of an effort at elongation. The shorter finial emphasized the belly, and made the piece appear much heavier, when in reality, it is a very small form. Even as tall as it appears, the finial here is 2-7/8".

As Baxter noted, and as I have commented before, lighter colored finials, or embellishments, play tricks with the eye. They look fatter and heavier. The neck on this finial is less than .07", and the replication of the form is 5/8" wide. As one tries for smaller scale, a point is reached where details become difficult to achieve. Replicating the detail of the bead on a 5/8" form is challenging - even under magnification. So, sacrifices are made to achieve one's goals. A smaller replication might have done better, or a walnut one, but then the detailing would be lost or simply not possible by one with my limited skills. Those that routinely turn miniatures might be able to pull it off.

In any event, this is why I am enjoying "doing my own thing!" It seems to get more intuitive observation vs. the stuff that is more within the accepted norm. Those pieces tend to be instantly accepted, but rarely get folks to really look deep into them.

Again, please bear with me on this journey. I just really need to try a bunch of different stuff!:)

[Primvs Aebvtivs]

Am I right in thinking tha photo's show a cross grain pattern running at approx 90 degrees to each other? The first pic shows this better. Not turned anything like this, just starting out really. Love the look of this one and the Chinese (maple?) Not sure what BLO or WOP are, but looking at making some wet application surface treatment.

[Roger Chandler]

BLO is boiled linseed oil......WOP is wipe on poly..........both are finishes.

[Michael E. Thompson]

John, I really like the finial, initially the form didn't jump out at me, but after a second look, it really is quite nice. Everything flows together very nicely. I wouldn't change a thing.

Mike

[Donny Lawson]

John, I cannot see anything wrong with it at all. I just wish I could turn out projects like that. GREAT. Thanks for sharing.

[Scott Hackler]

John, I came back to this several times before commenting. At first glance I thought something was off, with a leaning towards the replication of the form in the finial. But after studying it more, I think the size of the bead works with this form. The fat bottomed form, does appeal to me and because the main form has that fat bottom, I think the larger bead is more in balance with the piece. Well done.

[David Reed]

I see what you mean with your comment about my form and the similarity. Definitely cousins if not brothers.
This piece is, like mine, a deviation from what is more typical for you (as well as me) and I like what you did. Most of my work is squat and what you did with the detail above the waist is a very nice detail. I was surprised that the whole piece is so small - it appears so much larger. At first look I also thought the replicated form in the finial was a bit fat but for whatever reason, second and third looks bring out the connection which it's larger brethren and it seems to fit. Must be the color contrast drawing my eye there first. Even though the form meets all the criteria for 'correct' balance, I wonder what it would do to that balance if the largest 'bulge' were lower with the bottom curve flatter. More of that 'money sack' appearance that I enjoy (perhaps that's my subliminal materialistic side showing). Hard not to like what you did as it is, and lovely piece of BLM.

[Prashun Patel]

Another beauty. I don't find anything displeasing about the finial; but my eye is not yet trained.

I would like to compliment the thread posters here. I learn a lot from the constructive criticism of you folks. The posters in this forum are extremely supportive; even the 'criticisms' are done in an obvious good spirit of helping each other become better. A couple of the other forums 'round here could learn a lesson or 2 from you.

At the risk of devolution to the unconstructive, I'd like to see more informed critique of both good and bad forms.

[Tim Rinehart]

Great piece, great finish. The look is stately, or something I can't put my head around...but it's quite nice all around.
Can't beat a beautiful piece of wood with a superb finish.

[John Keeton]

Thanks for all the additional comments!
Am I right in thinking tha photo's show a cross grain pattern running at approx 90 degrees to each other? The first pic shows this better. Not turned anything like this, just starting out really. Love the look of this one and the Chinese (maple?) Not sure what BLO or WOP are, but looking at making some wet application surface treatment.Primvs, thanks for the comments! This piece is turned side grain from one piece of maple - no cross grain. And, the other piece was Chinese Chestnut. The US lost most all of its native chestnut to a blight in the early part of the 20th century, and the Chinese chestnut has been used to produce a cross with the American Chestnut that will be used for forest restoration with a blight resistant strain.

[Michelle Rich]

like the repetitive squat form in the finial..but funny, I like the HF, just open & no finial.

[Primvs Aebvtivs]

@ Roger - thanks for that!

[Primvs Aebvtivs]

Hi John, sorry, perhaps I didn't make it clear (my mistake I think!). The photo shows what looks to be a checkered pattern, grain running from top todown and to the left, but also looks like growth rings from front right hand side AND from the left side of the pot. Is this just an optical illusion from the way the wood is positioned (or possible reflection from something - that thing sure is shiny!)? Or am I being thick - no non-criticism, but I AM a quality control inspector at work and wondered "How did he get it to look like THAT?" LOL.

[John Keeton]

Am I right in thinking that photo's show a cross grain pattern running at approx 90 degrees to each other? The first pic shows this better. Not turned anything like this, just starting out really. Love the look of this one and the Chinese (maple?) Not sure what BLO or WOP are, but looking at making some wet application surface treatment.


Hi John, sorry, perhaps I didn't make it clear (my mistake I think!). The photo shows what looks to be a checkered pattern, grain running from top todown and to the left, but also looks like growth rings from front right hand side AND from the left side of the pot. Is this just an optical illusion from the way the wood is positioned (or possible reflection from something - that thing sure is shiny!)? Or am I being thick - no non-criticism, but I AM a quality control inspector at work and wondered "How did he get it to look like THAT?" LOL.Primvs, I think the confusion here is the "curly" figure of the maple. Perhaps you are perceiving the curl or stripe in the wood to be growth rings. The stripe occurs in maple and other woods, commonly thought to be a result of stress in the growth pattern of the tree. It is usually on the outside portion of the tree and rarely goes to the center of the tree.

[Primvs Aebvtivs]

Thankyou, again. Sorry, newbie here. I've heard of "curly" wood, but haven't seen it! Now I know, and now I know what to look for too!