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randall rosenthal
12-25-2008, 4:30 PM
my wife thought it would be fun to have a progress series with this piece. ultimately it will be a cardboard box full of rubber banded baseball cards...bout half way through the carving. ill post some more and the painting later...for now.....and merry christmas!!

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox1.jpg

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox2.jpg

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox3.jpg

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox5.jpg

Kevin Adams
12-25-2008, 5:52 PM
Randall--

Very neat, thanks for sharing this.

Would it be possible to briefly describe how you got from photo #2 to photo #3? It looks like you just roughed out the shapes with a plunge router maybe in #2, but it's a big jump to #3. Was this with both hand and powered tools or more power? Do you usually have a model or photo to work from or is this just from an imaginative mind?

Thanks again--your work is fantastic.

Kevin

Ted Shrader
12-25-2008, 6:14 PM
Randall -

What a unique concept for a piece of art! Thanks for the progress pictures.

I'm with Kevin on the steps between pictures. Would it be possible to include a brief description as you walk us from step to step?

Regards,
Ted

randall rosenthal
12-25-2008, 7:48 PM
yeah...thats a pretty good leap. what i did is carve down another layer by striking lines with a chisel and carving to the line with a variety of tools....mostly fish tail and bent gouges. then i lined the rubber bands with a matt knife and started on the shapes of the bunches of cards in the packs....this is totally unrealistic as i do have a bunch of cards and they dont naturally do this.... its scribe a line and then cut to it. once its all kinda roughed in i start attacking the negative space. since i dont really plan it ....its just how it falls out......it can be quite a challenge....

im at the point now where i am starting to think about individual cards and actually finishing surfaces.....i use power tools also...i like to glue sandpaper to things like saws knives and rotary disks...top and bottom. i have a little aid grinder also.. mostly i use the power tools for those thin line undercuts and face smoothing.

i wont even think about the box till the cards are 95 % done so i can abuse it now....a lesson learned the hard way.

thanks for the replies......oh....just making it up as i go...no model and i havent thought about the cards yet....but probably 50's (sandy kofax, mickey mantle, etc)

Kevin Adams
12-25-2008, 9:06 PM
Thanks again, Randall. Please keep the photos coming...and how about a Say Hey Willie card in one of the stacks?!

Kevin

randall rosenthal
12-26-2008, 8:35 AM
kevin.....heres a finished piece called "sweet memories" willies in there (upside down. its hard to believe but when i was a very little kid one of my best friends dad was dentist for the giants.....we used to go to the polo grounds and sit in the dugout during batting practice.....sat right next to willie a bunch of times and of course....played with the signed balls till they were ruined.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/sweet_memories1.jpg

Vic Castello
12-26-2008, 1:38 PM
I love "work in progress" pictures! Great stuff!

Kevin Adams
12-26-2008, 4:05 PM
Randall--

Thanks, I had forgotten about that piece on your website. And while I didn't have any autographed baseballs from Willie, I did have his card (can't recall what year), but I gave it away somewhere along the way. I played centerfield myself as a kid and always remembered Willie saying that he honestly thought he could catch any ball that stayed in the park--he sure showed that over and over...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dK6zPbkFnE

Can't wait to see this piece progress--Happy New Year!

Kevin

Howie French
12-26-2008, 7:47 PM
Randall -

your work is very impressive, I really enjoy the "in progress" pics as well.

thanks for taking the time to post.

Howie

Zahid Naqvi
01-03-2009, 11:34 PM
Randall, thanks for posting this. I am fascinated by your carvings.

Khalid Khattak
01-03-2009, 11:52 PM
Randall..this is one thing that i never saw in my 29years of life..unbelievable,remarkable,stunning,fabulous,be autiful and great job u did on it..and thanks for posting steps by step pictures of ur work..you are very creative man... :)
How long it took to complete this piece of art?
Thanks
Khalid

Dewey Torres
01-04-2009, 12:31 AM
Randall,
Absolutely stunning. Can you please direct me to where I may find more form you?

Kevin Adams
01-04-2009, 7:50 AM
Dewey, I'm not Randall, but I also admire his work:

http://www.randallrosenthal.com/

Enjoy!

Kevin

Kristi Sprinkle
01-04-2009, 8:23 AM
Wow! At first, I thought these were bound up bundles of letters. Interesting to see the progression.

randall rosenthal
01-04-2009, 9:32 AM
thanks....im about a month into the carving with about a week to go....then ill post pictures of the finished carving and the painting as it goes along. the last few steps are the most important and time consuming.....this is quite a challenge because of all the straight edges and 90 degree corners. its all eyeballed on the theory that if it looks right to me.....its right enough.

randall rosenthal
01-06-2009, 2:05 PM
ready to coat with a layer of UV protection matte poly and define individual cards....poly has to go on first or the lines disappear.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox6.jpg

Kevin Adams
01-06-2009, 8:06 PM
That's incredible, Randall. The rubberbands look so real and maybe one day you can tell us how you do the edge of the box (the corrugation)--the level of detailing is just amazing. Thanks for sharing and please keep the photos coming.

Kevin

Howie French
01-06-2009, 8:23 PM
Wow !!!!!!!

randall rosenthal
01-08-2009, 9:12 AM
kevin....how about this?

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox8.jpg

John Schreiber
01-08-2009, 9:36 AM
Totally amazing work. It is only possible with both of your gifts as a carver and an illustrator.

My favorites are the ones which show the wood grain, like the one on your web page with a day planner (BKaddressw). Without some evidence that I am looking at carved wood, my eye is totally fooled and it's not as magical for me.

On pieces where I can see the wood grain, is that natural wood or is a grain painted on?

randall rosenthal
01-08-2009, 9:53 AM
john..thanks......in real life you can see the wood grain somewhere on every piece and often there is bare wood or knots showing. one time at a show i heard a woman say to a friend "look how clever ....the artist painted this yellow pad to look like its made out of wood". i never have to paint the grain on....its already there.

Joel Ficke
01-08-2009, 11:44 AM
Randall as has been said before, thanks for posting. It's really cool watching this come together!

Kevin Adams
01-09-2009, 4:28 AM
Say hey! Looks fantastic, Randall...can't wait to see who else shows up. This could be better than "Field of Dreams."

You have a tremendous talent. Just curious (if you have time), what made you decide to work in this form? Did you start as an artist/illustrator or the other way around? I know there are others out there who carve "still life" type pieces, but is there anyone else who does what you do? Thanks again.

Take care,
Kevin

randall rosenthal
01-09-2009, 9:03 AM
kevin.....i started painting when i was 5. my dad got me a great hook and ladder toy fire truck.....so i turned the refrigerator into a burning skyscraper with crayons.......my mom went out and got canvas and paint. i majored in painting in college and had some successful gallery shows. in my early 40s i started working with a well known architect, norman jaffe, as a designer. HE got me a commission doing a large architectural sculpture (the wave on the web site). that was my first sculpture. for ten years after that i did large architectural installation sculptures until..........i did a lectern for a church in seattle with a carved bookrest. then i started carving books and other paper objects. a friend of mine, saul steinberg ,(new yorker cover) once told me "figure out what you do best and do that.....every thing else is banging your head against the wall"

there is really nothing easier than getting an artist to talk about himself

randall rosenthal
01-09-2009, 9:51 AM
check out this guy

http://www.public.asu.edu/~eckert33/default0.htm

randall rosenthal
01-14-2009, 9:23 AM
moving right along





http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox10.jpg

randall rosenthal
01-17-2009, 1:42 PM
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox11.jpg

Thomas Bank
01-17-2009, 2:05 PM
Simply amazing! If I only saw the last picture, I'd be impressed only by the subject matter of the cards themselves! :D

Kevin Adams
01-17-2009, 7:59 PM
Randall--

It looks great! I just called my wife to the computer, showed her the completed photo and asked "what's that?" She looked for a moment and said "a box full of baseball cards, so what?" I then scrolled up and showed her the first photo and she said "oh my, that guy's crazy!" (She meant it as a compliment btw.)

Your work is amazing, both the carving and painting. What kind of paints do you use? Did you have actual cards to go by or just your imagination? How in the world do you do the edges of the box to make it look like it's corrugated.

Thanks so much for sharing. What's next?

Take care,
Kevin

randall rosenthal
01-18-2009, 9:19 AM
kevin..the picture is a little deceiving...not quite done yet. i spent all yesterday afternoon carving behind the rubber bands on the sides of the packs. plus there is a bit of edge work to do. you dont really catch all the screw ups till you paint a bit. the box has to be finished in the right color also. this is a major challenge...so far i have failed to really get it right to my satisfaction on previous pieces. the corrugated is pretty easy. first i draw an S line down the edge . then i drill holed and using a tapered diamond bit i sand out to the line. then i use a very small jewelers bit to cut the line free from the edges.

most of the lower cards are made up but a few of the full cards are real . i get the images using one of my most important tools.....the computer. i take artistic license however and change colors and borders to suit.

i use acrylics and archival ink pens. learned the hard way that sharpies fade away in a few years.


when it is done ill take some low angle shots . in the overhead you cant really see the depth and hidden places.....thanks for your interest

randall rosenthal
01-20-2009, 4:08 PM
all right then....this is the point i put it aside for a month and go on to something else


http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox12.jpg

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/cardbox13.jpg

Kevin Adams
01-20-2009, 5:02 PM
Randall--

Are you happy with it? I think the colors look great, including the box. Is the artist satisfied...?

What's next on the agenda? This has been fun. BTW, was this one a commission for a specific client or just something you made for sale later?

Kevin

randall rosenthal
01-20-2009, 6:38 PM
first of all kevin...thanks a lot for following along i appreciate it.

its a funny thing...if i dont really love it , think it works and has that "wow" factor i keep working on it till it does or throw it in the wood stove (it happens). on the other hand i am never close to being satisfied as a craftsman . i could work on it for another year and still not really get there.

i am in two shows in april...one at a museum in NY and one at a show sponsored by the smithsonian in DC. for the DC show i am going to carve a nov 5 washington post....a NY Times for new york. maybe put them on tomorrows paper to add a little depth. this (cardbox)will be in the DC show. i have a gallery show over the summer and thats when they get sold....i hope.



thanks again for your interest.

Brett Baldwin
01-21-2009, 12:56 PM
That's just amazing work Randall. I've loved following the progress of this piece. You combine two very different skills so well. Good luck in the shows.

Myron Redding
01-24-2009, 10:36 AM
excellent work! I've seen all kinds of wood carvings,but nothing like yours,thanks for sharing.

randall rosenthal
01-24-2009, 12:38 PM
thanks myron....i looked at your site...great work!!.

im into fish myself....but not to carve.....





http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/randallsaildrum.jpg

andrew zukewycz
02-22-2009, 1:07 AM
wow.

that is really amazing...

so realistic.

speachless...

zuke

randall rosenthal
02-22-2009, 9:03 AM
thanks...heres the New York version of the "obama" paper.....working on the DC version.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/obamatimes1.jpg


http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/obamatimes2.jpg

Dave McGeehan
02-24-2009, 9:22 AM
OK, Randall, I have to ask: is that a photo of you with the guys and the fish or is it another one of your incredible carvings? :D

Your ability to combine realism with artistic design is truly amazing. One of the many details of your box of cards that really grabs me is that vertical slight offset fold running up the side of the box that is near the corner of the Willie Mays card. It's that type of attention to detail that really, consciously or subconsciously, draws the viewer in. What an eye! Again, beautiful work!

Dave

David Keller NC
02-24-2009, 3:41 PM
So Randall - A question you've no doubt had to deal with in some way in the past. Do you have restrictions on whether you could sell the "Obama Paper" carving because the NYT logo and print are copyrighted? I always wondered if that was an issue with the Warhol "Campbel Soup Can" paintings.

randall rosenthal
02-24-2009, 6:51 PM
dave...thats me in panama on a surf ,fish trip that was obscene . lotta waves and fish down there.

the "fold" is controlled accident. i cut out the rough block pictured in the beginning of this thread with a hand jig saw (bosch) with a 4" blade. i kinda tilt the blade to mimic the side of the box....bowing it out in the middle and more verticle at the corners. when the block was free of the board it was cut from the fold was there. i must have stopped to realign the blade. just ran with it.
thanks....i think you woud be surprised by just howmuch is eyeballed as opposed to measured.

david.... the times knows about my work. i did this piece 3 years ago and lots and lots of people asked me that question. "are you afraid of being sued?" my answer then and now is ..........."i can only hope" the free publicity would be astounding.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/randallro/NYTimes1.jpg

i think the truth is its a wood carving.....no way it could be mistaken for the real thing....at least from less than 3 feet away