Sculpture of Two Women

Dear Art Lover,

     It is not often that I get to work with two models at the same time.  Many years ago, I ran a special “Open Studio” at the AVAA (Austin Visual Arts Association) studios in Austin, Texas.  I touted it as a session for sculptors in which painters and those drawing were welcome, as long as they do not complain about sculptors moving our stands of clay around the room as we deemed necessary.  It was a hit and I hope that the artists had more of the sessions after I hosted those I did.

     My two female models were of very different ages and physiques.  They did not know each other before the session, so I tried to come up with poses of them being together, and yet not. I am sure you have heard of the intimate connection two people make if they would stare into each other’s eyes for ten minutes.  So imagine how great or how uncomfortable to have your naked skin touching someone for 3 hours, breaks or no breaks!

     I just had a tangent of a thought.  Ostracism is considered to be the most horrible punishment we can dish out.  As social creatures, to have society or just a group or even one person cut off your contact with anyone else would indeed be painful and lonely.  We also know from wars and abuse situations that if you want to humiliate someone, you make them remove their clothes before you hurt them.  So, I wonder if we took two warring leaders and made them simply pose together nude, or stare into each other’s eyes, could we make a more peaceful world?

     This first sculpture is titled “After the Bath,” casual poses for the lounging ladies in all probability thinking different thoughts of their different lives.  This sculpture is currently located at the Franklin Barry Gallery in Indianapolis.  If you tell owner Don Elliott or his helper Chuck that you would like to add this one to your art collection or mediation room or pool area, etc, tell them that I said the prices is a much lower $800.  Mention this blog in case they cannot reach me to verify.  Or contact me.. the same deal.

 

After the Bath 

10" h x 18" x 18"           

terra-cotta sculpture by Kelly Borsheim

http://BorsheimArts.com

      This second sculpture reminds me a little of my first trip to Italy in 2004.  The pose as sculpted was setup just to get as many of my beloved triangles into the figures.  But the base.. hahah.. too subtle?  My first time in Italy, I was thirty nine years old and wanted to put my hands on a Michelangelo sculpture before I turned 40.  I backpacked around for six weeks.  More often than not, every time I met a man on the bus, in the quarries, in a hostel or ferry or train, or just walking around admiring what is essentially Italia, I heard two questions.  “How old are you?” and “Have you ever had sex with another woman?” 

     Really?  I never had a problem telling my age, especially after my 78-year-old teacher Mrs. Steiner (or was she 72?) told us the first day in her English class that she wanted to stop the whispers and hushed jokes and just told us her age and how proud she was to have reached it.  However, I was raised in American culture in which it is considered rude to ask a woman her age.

     The other one stumped me.  Do most men think this immediately and it was just here that they actually say the question outside of their heads?  Boh!  When I moved to Italy the first time in 2006, I did not hear this so often, in fact, it was rare.  It made me wonder if this is the tourist market more than anything.

      “Waiting and wondering” is the title of this terra-cotta sculpture of two women sitting on a cloud based that has a decidedly phallic shape.  Make of it what you will.  I am just playing with shapes and being a Nature girl.  Also $800, but not in the gallery. Contact me in the studio via http://BorsheimArts.com/contact.htm

Waiting & Wondering 

8.5" h x 15.5" w x 9" d  

terra-cotta sculpture by Kelly Borsheim

http://BorsheimArts.com

Peace and happy new year.  Make the most of 2017!

Kelly

P.S.  Please check out the “Raccolta e Regalo” sale I am having on selected artworks.. Ends tonight at midnight, central Texas time.  http://www.borsheimarts.com/SaleArt2016-LaRaccoltaeIlRegalo.htm

Subscribe to the art newsletter here (it is FREE):  http://www.borsheimarts.com/contact.htm

Reading an MRI Knee Surgery

Dear Art Lover,

     Painting is taking up most of my time these days as I try to prepare for an operation on my knee that will require a six-MONTH rehabilitation!  I finally found a specialist who told me more than “Do whatever you want to do.”  This one told me before he even saw the MRI (resonata magnetic it is called in Italian), but after his physical examination of my knees, that I have a torn ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament), the ligament in the center of the knee that holds the lower leg onto the upper leg.  The doctor told me that he will not know when he may operate until January, but recommended that I not travel so much, but try to keep the quad muscles from atrophy, as they will be needed a lot during rehab (and naturally later).  He said that the pain I feel is from all of the other muscles trying to do the work they are not designed for, which is the work of the ACL.

MRI - right knee profile, heart (femur bone) and triangle (tibia) shapes!

     Like most people, the doctor’s visit and explanation made sense while I was there, but now I have my doubts. So, I am posting the images of the right knee MRI that my doc told me were “the telling ones.”  I took pictures of his laptop screen for each image in which he stopped to explain something.  Then when I got home I went through the images on my CD of the MRI and found the images that matched the ones I snapped. 

     I do not know if this helps you if you ever find yourself with this injury, but I know that I have a problem, but oddly am convinced that two falls created TWO problem sections in the knee. Anyway, the head on shot, I show you last.  The doctor explained that the dark areas at the top of the tibia (lower leg) bone indicate that there is starting to be some bad news happening there.  I cannot remember what word (in Italian) that he used, so I do not want to be dramatic and say “deterioration” or “decay” or something.  But I have pain on the inter side mostly, which is where the impact was during my second fall last March.  Pain there has never gone away.

     The rest of the images are the knee in profile.  The doc explained that the ACL is the diagonal uphill (when reading left to right) mid-grey colored area that I point out with the red arrows.  The white edging line underneath the ligament is broken, which tells him that the ACL is broken.  Oh, I copied the photos side by side just in case my added red arrows were to cover up something important.

     Anyway, this may not be of interest to you, but I find that while I studied and taught anatomy for sculptors, I do not know much about the internal body.  All I know is that what I did this entire year after my two falls is not working.  I hope that I really do need this surgery since it seems the way that I am headed.  And I do not know what else TO DO.  If you see something in this MRI that you question or know something about, by all means write to me.  I am making a list of questions for my doctor here whenever I get to see him next.  I believe in sharing information if it makes another person’s life easier or better.  Thanks!  Tomorrow, some art posting – I hope!

Peace,

Kelly

P.S.  Please check out the “Raccolta e Regalo” sale I am having on selected artworks.. good through Dec 31, 2016.  http://www.borsheimarts.com/SaleArt2016-LaRaccoltaeIlRegalo.htm

Subscribe to the art newsletter here (it is FREE):  http://www.borsheimarts.com/contact.htm

MRI right knee in profile - torn ACL

Apparently they do different lighting to find as much as possible.

Front view shows dark damaged areas at top of tibia