Repositioning has begun. I used the cutting and heating method to move parts. Some parts required being completely detached and pinned into their new position. Still need to tweak the angles of the legs so that they are in proper alignment. Right now the hocks are a little too close together, which was proper for the way the original sculpture was moving, but not for the levade. The forelegs were actually easier than I planned and I should have only minor shoulder work for their new position. The head had to be completely chopped off as the resin was solid and too hard to bend. This will create more work in rebuilding that area, with all the fine veining and wrinkling that were obliterated in the process. And the ears were removed so that they will both be back. They are refined enough, I may use the original ears with minor modifications rather than sculpting new ones from scratch. I guess we'll have to wait and see. He looks pretty frightening right now, so be sure to come back and see his progress!
Getting the alignment of all the parts was very time consuming, with much trial and correction. I had to remove the hock, pastern, elbow and knee joints on two legs either because the armature wire was in a place that did not allow me to work with the original structure or I did some drastic bending of those particular joints from the original position. I lopped off a good portion of the tail to raise the body angle, and this also helped to back-weight the piece so that it appears that I will be able to finish him free-standing. The pastern angles and hooves will have to be tweaked by sanding down and building up with epoxy as the armature wire was too stiff to bend any more in those short areas. I also cut off more of his neck at the poll to give me freedom to place the head where I needed it.
I used soda glue to secure the pins in their new position, which has great strength to hold while I assessed the new positioning. I found it fairly easy to work with when I needed to undo a section since I didn't build it up too thick during the trial stage. In one area I did overdo the soda glue and had to dremel it down to change the joint. I don't recommend dremeling soda glue or heating it up, it has terrible fumes. Lesson learned!
I have discovered that sculpture is really problem solving in three-dimensional form. As soon as you correct one part, another part begs looking after. And then there is the balance issue that calls for constant problem solving when working with that moving equine! One thing I tried this time was to use soda glue to adhere a series of washers to the base of the tail to create an armature of sorts. I was hoping it would add weight as well, but the epoxy was heavier than the washers I could find. I've been finishing his tail seemingly prematurely because I need the weight of the epoxy there so he doesn't tip over when I start working on the forehand. He's going to be one very heavy boy! I did put aluminum foil in the neck cavity before laying epoxy over the top to make some effort at keeping his forehand light. Here's hoping that the delicate balancing act of sculpting will end up with a steady horse in the end. Here's a couple more pictures with some sculpting work done.
Okay, some more work done. The alignment of the right hind leg was still bothering me, so I chopped it off at the stifle and slid the whole thing forward. Lots of rebuilding was done in that area. He is getting heavier and heavier with all the epoxy. Good news is that by moving that leg forward, he is completely stable on his tripod support now, the extra weight will just be padding I guess! Changes aren't very visible in the photos other than the creeping amount of epoxy covering his body.
Showing off his newly finished mane and pert, little ears. Sculpting is done!
And finally, the completed Manchado de Tinta. Although he came with a custom, landscaped base with tiny blue wildflowers, note that he does not require the use of the base, as he is perfectly balanced free-standing.
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