©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • In this relaxed position, the man's mouth is closed, his arms rest on his knees, his feet dangle freely just above the ground, and the shark's tail and mouth are up. Interactive mixed-media sculpture measures 28'' h x 24'' w x 20'' d.

OK – I’ve finished my automaton! The obvious answer to my earlier question ‘One Shark + Headless Man = ?’ is MAN EATING SHARK. And, if you look closely at the photo above, you’ll notice that the man’s head does float above his neck! So, in a way, this dude is headless.

I shot the photos below from various angles and have included a few closeups. Have fun viewing these images. If you want to see additional photos and some of the construction steps for MAN EATING SHARK check out my posts of February 3rd and March 7th. This automaton is for sale – click here for details.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • When you turn the crank at the lower right, the man uses his hands and arms to raise the shark, his mouth opens hungrily, his legs move up and down and back and forth, and the shark's tail and mouth wriggle up and down furiously.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • I sculpted the head from papier mache and molding paste with eyes from a thrift shop doll. I made the cap and eyebrows from recycled tin and formed the teeth from steel wire inserted into 'jaws' made from foam board covered and texturized with Golden Molding Paste. I coated the recycled wood body with Golden Light Molding Paste, and painted the head, body, chair and base with custom mixtures of Golden Acrylic paints.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • Close-up of man's face with mouth open. Wires visible at rear are screwed to head and back of chair, so head 'floats' slightly above neck.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • Close-up of tin cap with killer shark on crown. I pop-riveted the band to ten textured tin pieces that form upper part of cap, and I added texture to the bill with a ball pein hammer.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • Close-up view of right side of crank mechanism. Main shaft consists of three 16-gauge galvanized steel wires bent to identical shapes and wrapped with 18 gauge copper wire.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • I modeled these copper hands after my own hands. The thumbs and fingers on each hand are movable, held together at the center with a copper pop-rivet. The hands themselves are slightly movable, too, and are joined to the wooden arms with looped wire pins, which I also used to attach the shark to the arms.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • Close-up angled view shows delicate balance of shark's body on arms.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • Detail view of shark's head showing hinge join to main body.

©2009 MAN EATING SHARK • Recycled tin plaque at rear of base. I used a ball pein hammer to create texture over entire surface, punched holes to create title with a nail, then painted the interior of each hole black, and hammered my name and date into the tin with steel punches. Four aluminum risers, from Boeing Surplus, raise the plaque about 3/8" from the surface of the base. I formed a 16 gauge wire frame to fit the curved edges of the plaque, and steel screws hold everything securely to the base..

I’m not quite finished with the interactive sculpture I blogged about in my post on February 3rd, but I’m close. In that post, you saw a great white shark, meticulously crafted to scale in 16 gauge wire with tin fins, a jointed wooden man and his partially completed head, as pictured above.

In the photo below, I’ve remounted the chair to a temporary base the same width as the final base (shown above), to work out the placement of the crank and guide supports. The articulated shark is attached to the headless man’s arms, and I’ve removed his left leg so I can work on the cranking mechanism. The man’s head and partially completed jaws are visible at top right.

In the photo above, I’ve painted the man’s head, tongue and upper and lower jaws, and added coat-hanger mounting wires down the back of the head and out through the neck opening. I’ve since adhered the hinged jaws to the head over the exposed wire area with Golden Heavy Molding Paste and am waiting for it to dry. This rather thick application of the paste will add strength to the head and mounting wires and hold them securely in place when the head eventually bobs back and forth on the completed sculpture.

I fabricated this tin baseball cap yesterday, and now have all my components, though I have more sculpting to do where the head meets the jaws. Once I complete that, I will finish assembling my automata sculpture and post images. Stay tuned.

In the photo above, I’m holding an articulated great white shark made from 16 gauge galvanized wire with painted tin fins. The head and tail sections are hinged, and move freely back and forth to suggest a swimming motion.

In the photo below, I’m holding a jointed wooden man, sitting in a chair, with copper hands and painted tin feet, with his partially completed head in my right hand.

What do a big shark and a headless man have in common? Come back to my blog in a few weeks to view the whimsical interactive sculpture I will create from these odd components.

©2009 HANG TIME - interactive wire sculpture, 8.25'' h x 11.75'' w x 5'' d • wire, wood, acrylic paints and mediums, beads.

HANG TIME is the title of my newest interactive sculpture. Trapeze Man swings from side to side when you turn the crank at bottom right, and you control the action by how fast you turn the crank. Trapeze Man can swing in a gentle, relaxed motion and achieve an almost meditative state, or he can swing quite vigorously and get a good physical workout (and in the process you can exercise your hands and wrists and keep them limber, too!).

HANG TIME is for sale in our online store – click here for details.

©2009 HANG TIME - Here I am operating Hang Time for the first time and having quite a time

©2009 HANG TIME - Cranking mechanism is attached to back side and hidden from view

I started with a shiny film tin about 12″ in diameter to create this unusual display unit. First, I sanded the outer edges of the tin to create texture. Then I cut an opening into the top surface and inserted a matboard box divided into two sections, and added color and texture around the box with a circular piece of hand-decorated paper.

Next, using matboard covered with hand-decorated paper, I framed the opening and added a door at the bottom. The door operates with a special wire hinge, tied in place with waxed linen threads and beads. A button tie at the top keeps the door closed. I pop-rivited eight small rectangles, made with the same hand-decorated paper, to the top surface for additional texture.

To complete the project, I glued decorated paper to the back surface of the tin and around the circumference at the edge.