superposed

[Lee]

A weekend project that may be best designed after eating bad food resulting in bad dreams. Just have a pencil next to the bed before the images fade..............:big grin:

 

[Kevin P.]

That's great Lee. Very different and very cool.
Kevin P.

 

[Scratchmo]

I love it - very Art Nouveauish. My bad dreams don't ever come up with such nice designs. What DID you eat?

 

[joe seeley]

looks like a long weekend to me, but I like it a lot

Joe

 

[FANCYGUN]

The flowers look much better now with the shaded scroll behind it. Nice job.

Pasta anyone?????????

 

[Marcus Hunt]

Lee, what a superb job! Tell me though, just where do you start and how do you go about designing those 'spaghetti' guns???? I'm really interested in this style but have just never been able to figure the logic. What's the secret?

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Hi Lee

Beautiful engraving........el dente!!

Hi Marcus

Drugs...........and lots of them!!! Anything with a hallucinogenic quality will do the trick

Cheers
Andrew

 

[Martin Strolz]

This is a very good looking and fine engraving, Lee!
Martin

 

[Ray Cover]

looks great Lee!

 

[monk]

very, very cool ! were those portobello's in the salad ? yeah, i thought not !

 

[Tim Wells]

I'd sure like to see the gravers you picked all that background out with.

Like Marcus, I have always had the same question about where to start. It's quite a lot to conceptualize as a whole so I assume you start with some forethought and build it from whatever origination point? Can't imagine how you choose where to start.

It's beautiful Lee and if I didn't know better (and I do) why I'd swear up and down you was I talliun.

 

[D.Ellis]

Very nice.
Darcy

 

[Tira]

Beautiful Lee. I'm with Marcus - where do you even start to design something so complex? It looks great. I could look at it for hours.

 

[Ron Foster]

my sakes . . .

that's "flat-out" awesome !

Ron Foster

 

[Roger Bleile]

Lee, what a superb job! Tell me though, just where do you start and how do you go about designing those 'spaghetti' guns???? I'm really interested in this style but have just never been able to figure the logic. What's the secret?

Now I don't feel so bad. I have always had the same question about those highly complex Italianate designs.

CRB

 

[Lee]

I think what happened is some bad skim milk on my oatmeal. It's something you just don't want to do.

When I started this project I had never done an engraving in this style and had many of the same questions.:beat up: I studied some of the books and found some in this style were esquisite and breathtaking and some were confusing and made no sense. Partly from training and partly I suppose because of my nature I approached this like I do all engraving whether scroll or figures/scenes. The form or foundation always takes precedence over the details. With this style it is easy to be overwhelmed with the volume of details (small squigglies and loops,etc.) I was having trouble keeping track of everything and the negative space or background is a vital part of this design so to easier see it I tried blackening the metal with a magic marker and drawing in pencil. The pencil left a silver line and I could more easily see the impact of the black background. The photos I've added show the work in progress. Begin with the main scroll backbones. Develop the flow and size and forget for the moment about how to fill it in. That is the easy part. By making some of the scrolls more elliptical and shading accordingly one can create the illusion that some of the scrolls are tipped. Also look for a few places to plant some flowers if desired. Pay attention to the size and spacing. Have some variety in both size and spacing to create interest. Once the main backbones are in place slowly add secondary scrolls to fill in the larger gaps and keep adding until it's filled in.

I really think the key is some bad milk. It will do it every time.:thumbs up:

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Lee, nice to see something totally different. I like the design

arnaud

 

[Marcus Hunt]

Thanks for that Lee. Your description plus your work-in-progress photos really have helped me start to understand this style a bit more.

In my mind's eye I can picture some of these scrolls becoming snakes and knowing your artistic bent for reptilians (i.e. dragons) I can see a Medusa gun in the offing. An idea for the future maybe?

 

[fegarex]

Fantastic Lee!
What amazes me is that this type of design would drive one to drink...
I bet there was a lot of apple juice for you!!
Rex

 

[Peter E]

Incredible design and it definitely caused me to also ponder about how it is created.

It reminds me of some of Gianfranco Pedersoli's engravings.

Well done Lee.