An exclusive online publication by Eternal Sun Studios

Fall 2012

Waxy Monkey What?...….……..........………………..…..4

Drops in Ether…….…………………………...………….8

Ghosts of a Lost Frontier………………………………..10

Gallery Spotlight.………………………………………..16

Inside the Studio……...……………………...………….18

Upcoming Events………………………………………..20

Timeless Meditations Exhibition………………………..21

Contact Weston………………………………………….22

Visit Eternal Sun Studios online by clicking one of the

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P A G E 3

Waxy Monkey What?

P A G E 5

While in this issue I don’t have any flashy new pictures to show off, the fall has been a

period of great progress on new work. This time of the year always ends up being

something of a transition for me. I dedicate a lot of energy to pursuing shows and

commissions, and then the rest to developing new sculptures. I’ve even been trying my

hand at stone carving. Right now there are two in particular I’ll be focusing on, and then

mixing things up with a story in a very different line from the sculpting. So without

further ado:

The first piece gives you a sneak peek at a clay in progress. The idea for this sculpture

came to me after the Loveland Show. A lot of people who came through my booth asked

if I had done any additional sculptures with frogs—“Between Worlds,” was the only one

at the time. It spurred me to pursue something I had already been thinking about doing.

The resulting sculpture, still untitled, went through a previous draft in clay before I came

up with the final idea. For a while I had been toying with the notion of creating

something that almost looked like an old sign post, but as it began to emerge from the

clay, I felt like it was too similar in concept to the frame for “Edge of Time.” Going back

to the sketch pad quickly produced ideas that captured the essence of what I was looking

for. The core idea was to continue in the trend of blending abstract geometry with

stained glass and then adding my realistic wildlife. What I enjoyed most about the

“hour-glass” form the frog is sitting on is it being a smooth, “unending” plane. My hope

is that it captures and evokes an aesthetic of the sophistication and yet simplicity of the

architecture and design elements of some of the world’s ancient civilizations. What’s

Credit: http://florafauna.com/images/category/frogs/waxy_monkey_tree_frog.jpg

more there was major influence behind

my choices for the frame: So much of my

work is very heavily textured. It’s

something that distinguishes my style, but

it takes away my ability to do some fancy

patina work. My hope and plan is that

this piece will allow me to do a very

striking and complex patina. Time will

tell…

As to the frog, selecting a species

happened a lot faster than I would have

thought. I happened to be at the local

exotic reptile store, getting some crickets

for my Fire Skinks, when I happened

across a very unusual species called the

Waxy Monkey Tree Frog. Visually a frog

that at times even looks comically odd, I

instantly knew this was the subject for the

sculpture I was working on.

The most interesting fact about this type

of frog is the origin of its name. Unlike

other frogs, waxy monkeys actually

inhabit fairly dry climates in South

America. They retain moisture by

secreting a wax which they spread across

their bodies. The moniker of monkey

comes from that fact that they tend to

walk, instead of hopping—and maybe it’s

just me, but the way the move almost

looks to me like the inspiration behind

Gollum in Lord of the Rings.

All in all, I’ve been very happy with the

results in clay so far. I’m still working on

perfecting the frog’s form, and grappling

with ideas for the glass panel. My wife

and I had quite a laugh joking about

what was beginning to look like me hav-

ing an obsession with circles and spheres

when I showed her my first ideas. At the

moment I think I’ve settled on pursuing a

design which contrasts the organic flow of

the frame, and which will likely incorporate

a kinetic element.

PRECAST SPECIAL!

Looking for a unique gift idea as we come

into the Holiday Season, or considering

P A G E 7

buying art? I will be offering a pre-cast

special on this sculpture. What is a

pre-cast special? Basically it means you

get to reserve an edition number, and own

the finished piece before the rest of the

world has a chance to buy it, and at a

percentage of the retail price! If you are

interested, contact me to see higher

quality pictures of the piece and the glass

pattern as it is finished in the coming

weeks, and to reserve your edition num-

ber.. The precast special will last until the

end of November.

Another idea that’s been germinating for quite a while, when finished this will be my

largest sculpture to date. Continuing in my expansion of pieces showing extinct wildlife,

a prehistoric fish known as Dunkleosteous will be the central element of this sculpture—

at least I think so. It’s funny how ideas can change midstream. While things look like

they’re going to work out well, it’s always possible I’ll change my mind once sculpting on

any given element is finished. In truth, what exactly to feature in this sculpture is some-

thing I’ve played with for quite a while now. I’ve gone through several ideas, but I

think the Dunkleosteous will make for some very interesting aesthetics.. So what is this

piece all about?

Revisiting my love for science, “Drops in Ether” will explore a visual representation of

space and time. In the past I have mentioned my interest in the sphere being the most

stable form in physics, and one observable at the atomic level, all the way up to the

galactic level. In light of that, the sphere is an incredible metaphor for the entirety of

the universe. The central idea behind the title and this composition is that a vast expanse of time is still just a single moment in the face of something far greater than one

can comprehend, and how grand the infinite is, if that's something we can really even

begin to grasp. I was further intrigued by space as a sort of parallel to the ocean: ether

being what space is to a given planet and what water is to our landmasses.

If you thought sharks were

scary, just be glad this thing is-

n’t around anymore.

These prehistoric, deep-sea

predators were over twenty-feet

long and could take prey

through a “vacuum “ like pro-

cess.

Credit:

http://www.dinosaursrocksuperstore.com/v/vspfiles/assets/images/

dunkleosteus%20skull.jpg

Drops in Ether

P A G E 9

Provided no major

changes happen as I

continue to work, the

finished piece will also

feature the “Astrum”

glass panels, (featured

on the cover), which

are a continuation of

the repetition of the

magnifying glass effect

I’m trying to create in

the piece.

If things really play

out as I hope, the

sculpture will be

available either as an

indoor or outdoor

piece, and will be

internally lit—maybe

even by solar power.

While the sculpture

itself is still very much

in the early phases of

production, I’m really

looking forward to

seeing how things pan

out with it.

The biggest challenge

is going to be creating

a unified composition.

It’s still something I’m

playing around with a

lot, which is why I

don’t have any

pictures yet of the

Dunkleosteous.

What better for an October

issue than something a little

ghostly? While

photography is more a

medium I dabble in, my

“ghost” series of work is by

far my favorite.

In the Summer of 2008, I

was awarded a grant from

Colorado College to spend

two weeks in a tiny town in

New Mexico called

Cimarron, staying at one of

the most allegedly haunted

places in the Southwest.

The primary purpose of my

grant was collecting ghost

stories and then

studying them from the

perspective of their being

folklore. It really was a lot

of fun , if not fairly spooky

at times, and afforded me

the chance to explore a re-

ally fun method of trick

photography.

I don’t intend to spell out

my secret here, but

capturing and perfecting

images like the ones in this

issue is a lot easier than you

might think. I only did a

few during my first trip,

but went back to the hotel a

few times afterwards to

shoot more.

The St. James hotel itself

was built in 1873 and

finished in 1880 and was

owned and operated by a

French chef named Henry

Lambert who

distinguished himself

working for none other

than President Lincoln.

Before the hotel was closed

in the 1920’s, about 21

killings resulting from gun

fights occurred at the hotel.

It remained vacant until

the 1980’s when former

physicist, Ed Sitzberger

bought and reopened the

hotel. I was quite surprised

to learn that Ed actually

knew my grandfather due

Ghosts of a Lost Frontier

P A G E 1 1

are kept with the same

décor and furniture you

might have seen there in

the 1870’s. There are not

televisions or phones. If

you happen to spend a little

time in the bar, you’ll

notice the bullet holes that

still fleck the original tile

ceiling.

You can even play poker in

the same room people like

Buffalo Bill and Doc

Holiday used to frequent.

One room in particular,

Number 18, is kept locked

to this day. I had the rare

opportunity to be allowed

inside. It’s been left as it

was:: There’s holes in the

wall, the wall paper is

peeling, and an aging bed

frame takes up most of the

space.

According to legend, in

1883 a man named Thomas

James Wright won the deed

to the hotel in a poker

game, and was then shot in

the back as he went to the

room he was staying in

where he ultimately bled to

death.

While receiving far less

attention stories from

Room 17 sre just as

interesting. Henry’s first

wife, Mary, died when she

was only 35. As Henry’s

second wife was also named

Mary, a lot of the history’s

been mangled over the

years., but in my research I

uncovered a lot of

information about her. The

result is a type of tragic

plot arc worthy of any good

story. It’s odd that

Cimarron has so much

history worthy of a good

movie. So, in that line and

to their similar professions.

The old hotel registry is a

veritable “who’s who” of

famous figures from the

Old West and most of the

rooms are now named after

them.

While there certainly are

guests who walk away from

the hotel with no stories, I

was very impressed with

how many do have stories.

Again, my interest in it was

not from the vantage point

of, “Are these real or not?”

I was most interested in the

ghost stories meaning

something because they

illustrate a profundity

about our relationship to

the past and our history.

While I may sound

pretentious saying it, I’ve

always been fascinated by

those relationships and the

tension which exists

between them. The Old

West is a era of the past

I’m particular fascinated

by. Those ideas and this

region of the US really

shines through in most of

my artwork—at least I

think it does...

Going to the St. James

really fuels my imagination

in tremendous ways. It’s

literally like taking a step

back into time. If you stay

in the old hotel, the rooms

“Specter of the Past”

Edition of 50

2010

story with Mary Lambert’s

room that I think is cool as

heck. Right after, I guess

we were on unsolved

mysteries in 1990, but right

after that in January or

February I got a call from a

guy in California who said

he was a doctor and he

wanted to talk about

ghosts. So I said okay, and

asked him what he wanted.

He said, “If I wrote a letter

to Mary Lambert, would

you put it in her room for

me?” Well, I didn’t see any

problem with that, so I said

sure. After a while, I got

the letter and he’d sent a

picture of himself along

with it. Well, the letter

went something like:

Dear Mary,

I know that you died young.

You died when you were 32

and I’m very sorry that you

were unable to experience a

full life. I’m a doctor and I

might have been able to help

you had I been there during

that time, but unfortunately

I couldn’t be there. I know

that you can travel, and I

really need your help now,

can you come and visit me?

So I took it down and put it

on the dresser, on Saturday

at about 10:20 in the morn-

P A G E 1 3

she had lost her perfume,

and that she would really

appreciate it if we’d look

for it because she said it

was really expensive

perfume and there was only

one place she could buy it,

so of course she wanted to

get it back.

Well, nobody found

anything, but later on, oh

maybe a few weeks later,

the maids were cleaning

one of the rooms and they

found a bottle of fancy

looking perfume. Well, I

figured this was her

perfume, and we were glad

that we had been able to

find it for her. So I said,

“Give this perfume back to

her.” And we got it back to

her. I was talking to her on

the phone, and asked “So

did you get your perfume

back?” And she said, “Oh,

well I really thank you for

doing this, but this is not

my perfume.” Well, that

was something, here we

had thought we’d found

her perfume, and it turned

out we’d given her someone

else’s which had just ap-

peared in the hotel. Who

knows whose it really was?

An account from

Ed Sitzberger:

I have a really favorite

to do something fun and

seasonal, here are a few

good stories, here’s a few

about Room 17 I collected

while I was there:

An account from

Ed Sitzberger

Of course another common

report is Mary’s perfume.

There’s been lots of people

I’ve talked to who say

they’ve smelled it. People

accuse us of salting the

room, and of course we

don’t. But I’ve had a

couple in the room with me

once and I’ve smelled it.

The odd thing about it was

that both us men smelled it,

but she didn’t. It’s kind of

musky, an old fashioned

flowery smell, almost like

roses.

We had another friend

come up from Albuquerque

with her ten year old

daughter, but they both

were staying in the Mary

Lambert room. Well, she

gave her daughter a bath,

just in the room there, and

had put her perfume on the

mantle when she had gone

in. When she came back

out of the bathroom, she

looked at the mantle and

her perfume was gone. She

told us when she left that

and went inside to look

around, and see that every-

thing was in order. One

server wanted to go to TJs.

I told her it’s not a good

feeling when you go in, but

she did and she started rat-

tling and knocking on the

door. Afterwards, while I

was in Mary's room was

when everything started

happening. I heard foot-

steps then the door

slammed shut. At first I

thought it was guests or the

server teasing. But I

opened the door and looked

and couldn’t find nobody.

It was strange because they

were so real and so loud.

Then I thought, “Okay,

maybe there's more to it.”

I was in the room again

when the door smacked

closed on me. Then when I

was leaving something loud

fell in room 17.

My “ghost” photographs

have been featured in

shows, and won awards. All

are available as limited

edition prints. If you are

interested , contact me for

sizing and framing infor-

mation.

check things out.” So she

went to go look around the

cemetery. When she came

back one hour later, she

came in and her husband

seemed really out of place,

like something was bother-

ing him. Well he said, “I’m

a psychiatrist; I know I’m

not crazy; I am a skeptical

person, but I know I heard

voices when you were gone.

It was a woman and she

said when. “He was wrong

you know. I didn’t die

when I was thirty-two; I

died when I was your

daughter’s age.” And the

woman told me that her

daughter was thirty-five.

And sure enough Mary was

actually thirty-five when

she died. Well, we all

thought that was

something!

An account from Night

Manager, Mickey Wolfe

At first I did not believe in

the haunting, when I came

here. I knew people said it

was haunted, but I didn’t

believe it; even growing up

with things like that from

Europe. The first two

weeks, it was pretty quiet,

On Sunday mornings I go

through each room to make

sure it’s correct. So, I went

to Mary Lambert’s room,

ing. I was planning to go

pick it up because we had

some people checking in

later in that day. Well, I

got distracted by something

else and never got to

picking it up. So, the next

morning I was having

breakfast in the coffee shop

and a guy came over and

said, “Are you Ed?” Well

it turns out he was from

Omni magazine and was in

Cimarron and wanting to

do a story, so he asked me if

I could take him on a tour

of the hotel.

So I forgot breakfast, got

up, and took him on a tour.

When we got to Mary’s

room the couple happened

to be getting ready to leave,

and they came out into the

hall. Well the woman said,

“When you’re not busy I

want to tell you what hap-

pened to us.” And I said,

well, this man here is from

Omni, and he’s doing a sto-

ry on the hotel, so maybe

he’d like to hear the story

too.

So she told us they had

checked in about two in the

afternoon the previous day.

And her husband had been

pretty tired and he wanted

to nap. Well, she didn’t

want to, she said, “I’m

pumped; I’m going to go

P A G E 1 5

“The Witching Hour”

Edition of 50

Located in charming Louisville Colorado, Creations fine art gallery is truly a

wonderful place and the first gallery to represent my non-collaborative

portfolio. Creations is owned and operated by Tom Parsons and

Vickey Swenson, who restored the historic coal miner’s cottage after plans

had been made to demolish it. The result of their efforts is a truly beautiful

and unique gallery, which houses five showrooms, and an eclectic variety of

work by regional artists in a wide array of mediums. With more than sixty

artists represented by Creations, there really is something for every taste and

budget.

Gallery Spotlight

I met Vickey this past August at the Loveland Sculpture Invitational where I

received the invitation for gallery representation. I was certainly excited at

the time, but was even more so after spending the afternoon in Louisville. In

addition to the arts district, downtown Louisville has an array of one-of-a-

kind shops, and restaurants. My wife and I stopped at an Italian place called

Zucca’s, which was literally the very best Italian food I have ever had in the

United States.

I’m looking forward to growing my presence and inventory in the gallery in

the coming months as I restock my current inventory and expand it with new

pieces. One of my favorite aspects about this gallery is the casual and inviting

atmosphere it has, while still maintaining the utmost standard of quality and a

degree of elegance one would expect to find in such a place. I’ve been very

pleased to learn that my work has received very positive responses so far. It’s

great to know I’ve found a place where I really fit in well.

If you have the chance, a trip to Louisville is well worth it. I highly recom-

mend taking a day or even a weekend to visit. It’s a very pleasantly

surprising place—close to Boulder and the mountains with a charm and

atmosphere that leaves one ready for the next visit as soon as you’re on your

way home. Of course, if you really get a hankering for something in the city,

Denver is just a very short drive away.

Most of current inventory is or will be featured at Creations. You can find out

more about them by visiting them by clicking here. Check my Facebook page

or website for information about upcoming “artist’s walks” in Louisville to

find out when I’ll be at the gallery.

P A G E 1 7

Inside the Studio

Mold Making

By far one of the most involved and challenging aspects of the lost wax production

process., mold making is practically an art itself. Even after a few years experience I still

am learning new tricks ans secrets to perfecting my molds. An array of types and

materials exist. In this issue I’ll be discussion some of the types , and hopefully doing

more on the actual process next issue . In my experience to date, there are generally two

types of material used by mold makers. Poly-vinyl is the first, and the one I have the

most experience with. It’s most traditionally used in casting concrete, but is also a fa-

vorite for lost wax due to its flexibility and durability.

Block Molds:

Among the easiest to produce, block molds look just like

they sound. They are produced by building a “wall” or

“dam” around the object being cast and then pouring the

liquid rubber until it fills all of the negative space. Once it

hardens the mold is cut part way down it’s length in order

to remove the clay and then the wax. It’s a good type for

small pieces which are easy molded separately and

reattached in wax or metal. The mold pictured here is used

to cast the head of the western diamond back for my

“Handle With Care,” tea kettle.

Plate molds:

They look exactly like they sound and are used for

sculptures which are really only one –sided., or for sculp-

tures which have been broken down into one-sided panels.

The few masks I’ve made employ the plate mold style,

anlong with “Dust Walker,” pictured at the left. Plate

molds are among the easiest to cast wax with because they

are often filled ot the brim, like block molds, or require

only a few layers . Theis type of mold is even easier to

create than a block mold, as you do not have to build any

dams or walls to hold the material in place as it cures.

P A G E 1 9

Two-Piece Shim Molds:

Probably the most common mold in the lost wax process

a shim is a mold that divides a sculpture along its

greatest lateral axis, essentially splitting it in two. This

mold type is most useful because it allows you to cast

complex shapes and gives you the ability to remove the

wax from the rubber without damaging it.

A shim is essentially a large fin, which is attached to the

clay after being coated in two layers of liquid rubber.

More rubber is then built up on each side of the shim,

until the whole thing has been encased by several thick

layers.

The indentations you see in the photo to the right, are

“keys.” These are created using vacu-formed plastic, and

are a part of the shim as it is built up. Their presence

helps the separate pieces of the mold adhere when they are fit together for wax pouring.

Shown in the picture below, a finished shim mold consists of two separate halves of the

rubber, and then a mother mold with fits against each of those. The mother mold is

created using a special high strength plaster which is built up on the rubber before the

clay is removed. Its purpose is to hold the mold’s shape. Mine are reinforced with

fiberglass cloth. While the plaster is strong enough to resist cracking and breaking

without fiberglass, such mother molds tend to be very heavy. The use of fiberglass cloth

strengthens the mother mold and allows for a more minimal use of plaster, making the

entire piece lightweight. In order to cast wax, the four pieces are carefully fit together

and then held either with

industrial or some sort of tie.

While it all may sound quite

technical and specialized, some

my molds have been created

using cereal boxes to form shims

and furnace filters for fiberglass

in the mother molds. Moving

into the winter I’ll be doing a lot

of mold making as new pieces

are finished. Check back in

futures issues to see more.

Upcoming Events

Lots of great events to look forward to through the fall and winter! More details to

follow in coming issues.

Friday Night Art Walk: TBA 2012

Creations Art Gallery. Louisville, CO

Check back for the dates! Friday Night Art Walks go all through the winter. Stop by Louisville

Colorado to visit me at the Creations gallery, and for a chance to catch lots of other great

happenings in the down-town area.

Western Art Collector December 2012

Make sure to grab a copy of the December Issue to see “All But Lost” in the

Western Gift Guide.

Moore and Brownlee, Dual Exhibition: January 14th– February 15th.

Mari Michener Gallery. Greeley CO

Opening Reception Friday February 8th, 4pm to 6pm.

Dual show, featuring the work of Weston and his mentor, J.G. Moore.

Is Something Missing?

Was there a piece you remember from another issue, or were hoping to see this time? While

Heliosphere is not a catalogue of Weston’s complete bronze portfolio, we are happy to direct

you to one or send an electronic copy.

Please note hard copies are only available by special request and may associate a small

surcharge for printing expenses.

If you have any questions about a sculpture you’ve in another issue, don’t hesitate to contact

Weston.

P A G E 2 1

Tubac Arizona: October 12-November 11th at the Tubac Center for the Arts

A national juried exhibition which explores sacred geometry and patterns

which exist in the natural world, including Mandalas.

I’ m very excited to be a part of this show. From what I hear about the

quality of the work at it, it’s really too bad I wasn’t able to attend in person.

My sculpture, “All But Lost,” is featured in the show.

Next Issue:

-See progress unfold on my first stone carv-

ing. This untitled piece is made from Italian

Ice Alabaster!

-Updates on sculptures shown in this issue.

-2012 Holiday Catalogue!

Eternal Sun Studios is a fine art production and representation company. Our services include:

Commissioned Sculpture

Mold Making and Metal Chasing

Patina for Bronze

Artist Agent, and Social Media/Marketing Consultant

All uncredit materials in Heliosphere are the exclusive property of Weston Brownlee and Eternal Sun Studios and are therey

Contact Weston at weston.brownlee@gmail.com