carving question

["Andrei Stefanescu" <andrei_stefanescu@zzzzzz>]

Dear Clive,
I can only second Susan in admiring your sensitivity and dedication.
Incidentally I did just what you suggested, namely looking at Michelangelo's
marks at this web site, which I found quite astonishing:

http://graphics.stanford.edu/projects/mich/, e.g. Matthew.

You will find there photographs of M's unfinished pieces which you cannot
see elsewhere, taken in a unique fashion.

Now you have made me SEE these pictures - your poetic analogy with drawing
is so suggestive.

I have done instinctively some other of the things you suggest. I did draw
my piece first, and it is drawable. I made a clay sketch of it and decided
about volumes and their relationships. I do not attempt to finish one area
before the other, and the problem I encountered is indeed that of joining
curved surfaces.

I suppose I kept making two mistakes: I didn't follow the curvature
insistently enough, and I DID NOT HAVE YOUR ANALOGY WITH DRAWING IN MIND.
I'd dare take your analogy a step further and aside: I'll try to think of
modelling with the chisel, rather than taking stuff away, going with the
shape as well, rather than just removing what's around it. This is a
question of inner attitude. The lack of it causes what seems a technical
problem - you are so right!

Thank you, Clive.

Andrei
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