Lisa Svircic – 1 X 1 X 1 (2019)

1: How did the idea come to you?
The idea for this piece came to me from the shape of the original stone. It had a natural twist and arc to it that wanted to become a female torso. I brought this stone to carve at the symposium at Pilgrim Firs this July.

2: Process: Maquette? Drawing? Direct Carve? Other?
I always start direct carving the stone and together we find the form. I used a point chisel to rough out the shape and then used a flat tooth chisel to develop the shape. I like to keep part of the natural stone in the final piece so I worked around the cleft in the waist, which was in the original stone. I used a flat chisel to finish the back of the piece and sanded/polished it to a high shine. I left the raw chisel marks in front and created a curvilinear division so it’s not a stark front versus back.

3: Hardest part?
The hardest part was finding the mood of the sculpture as well as keeping the anatomy in mind as I worked. I had been away for sculpting for a while, so I had to find my way again. Many artists at the symposium helped me with their thoughts and critiques, thank you all!

4: Easiest part?
The easiest part was choosing to incorporate both the flat tooth chisel marks and the smooth polished finish. I was getting feedback at the symposium about my mark making and how nice it looked… but chlorite polishes to such a beautiful black shine! So, I did both and am pleased with the results.

5: What did you learn from the making of this piece?
I learned a lot from this piece about myself and about the generosity of artists. Even after not carving for a while, I can still carve. This is a valuable lesson not to give up and not to give in to temporary insecurities. Also, the wonderful support and helpful critiques from fellow artists are truly a gift. Thank you!