Steve Armstrong’s Process
From imaginary thought to a sculpture-in-motion, Steve Armstrong’s process combines a thorough know-how of drawing, mechanical planning, wood-carving, and painting with his own unique artistic vision. Follow along in this image-to-image sequence as one of Armstrong’s automata sculptures moves from imagination to visual motion. See images of Armstrong’s works at the Heike Pickett Gallery web site.
1. Armstrong sketches out basic forms for later carving.
2. Armstrong uses carving and sawing techniques to shape each piece of the sculpture.
3. The process involves everything from the smallest carving tools to large machine saws.
4. After the pieces have been carved, Armstrong paints and stains them various colors and hues so different elements of the sculpture stand out. In this case, observe the blue horse and the red ball on the crank. The final work reveals a harmony of intricate, internal machinery and rich, external wooden textures.
