Who doesn’t like Ginkgo leaves? Inspiration for this Ginkgo Leaves Wood Bowl is from Mother Nature. This bowl features turning, carving and bleaching of Bradford Pear. The size is 7 inches in diameter by 4 inches deep.
This Ginkgo Bowl is turned on the Lathe. When the form is complete with the proper thickness for carving I draw the leaves. Next I remove the negative space between the leaves with a dental drill. My goal is to create a delicate bowl held together by the edges of the leaves touching each other. The next step is smoothing rough spots and detailing each leaf. Finally, I bleach the bowl white to look like porcelain.
How Long Did It Take To Make This Bowl?
I am often asked this question. “How long did this Ginkgo Leaves Wood Bowl take?” This is not an easy question to answer. If I kept a timer running during the entire process I would know how many hours I work on the piece, but this would not be the complete story. I enjoy the process so the amount of hours is not important. If I was doing production work then it would be important to log hours. So, I didn’t answer your question. I probably have over 40 hours in this project, but there is more.
There is another way for the Maker to answer this question, “How long did it take?” An artist spends a number of years developing their craft. This includes the cost of maintaining a studio, lessons, materials, mistakes, tools, etc.
Pricing
A restaurant patron saw Picasso and asked for his signature. Picasso scribbled a small image and signed it. The patron reached for it and Picasso pulled back saying, It will cost $500. The patron said it only took you 2 minutes. Picasso replied, “It took me 30 years”.
So the question is; How long does it really take to create a piece of art? How should an artist establish pricing? If artists would charge for the actual hours it takes to make a piece, most art would be too expensive to purchase. Therefore, many artists do not earn the value for their time. One afternoon, I was with a well known artist and his artist wife. The wife designs incredible glass bead sculptures. I know the price range and asked; “How many hours do you have in this piece.” She responded, over two weeks. Doing the math I said that she was not making minimum wage. Her artist husband responded that most artists do not earn minimum wage for their art. At that moment it became clear to me that most of us do not create for money. We create because we have to.
If you like this piece, take a look at my favorite piece from my studio in Montvale, NJ USA
Gift Ideas
Looking for a unique gift check out my Etsy store.
Studio
I design and produce all my items in Montvale, NJ, USA.
Comments