Dragonflies are my favorite insects: I watch them, read about them, and attempt to photograph them when opportunities present themselves (you can see some of my Michigan dragonfly photos here; some from South Carolina are here). I started my dragonfly sculpture in Ann Arbor right after I finished the triceratops. I actually made this one with the goal of selling it. I thought I had sold it when we moved, but the money didn't materialize until after I had already taken it apart, moved it, and put it back together. The price went up after that, and I ended up keeping it. And now I'm glad I did.
I inherited some motorcycle parts from a friend who was relocating to Kazakhstan (June 2011). I'm not really a fan of creating things from large,ready-shaped "building blocks," but I liked the idea of making an insect out of the gas tank because I liked the sleekness and the muscular shape. The chrome on the exhaust was nice, also. This photo shows the gas tank lying upside down. I used a piece of auto exhaust pipe to join the motorcyle exhaust to a heavy piece of auto something-or-other that I would use to attach the head.
I started building the head by trying to get the profile shape I wanted. The green piece is another motorcycle part (tail light assembly?). The gray is a piece of a satellite dish (parts of which I also used in Eileen). The angle at the bottom is formed by a piece of garage door hardware.
There were several unsuccessful attempts at making the eyes. I tried pieces of hubcap, then builing them up from pieces of wire and bicycle chain. Those both looked terrible. Eventually I ended up forming them from odd pieces, focusing on the overall shape instead of being clever. I like the way they turned out.
There were several unsuccessful attempts at making the eyes. I tried pieces of hubcap, then builing them up from pieces of wire and bicycle chain. Those both looked terrible. Eventually I ended up forming them from odd pieces, focusing on the overall shape instead of being clever. I like the way they turned out.
Head attached to body (July 2011). I have also added the centers of three bicycle wheels to serve as attachment points for the legs.
Frames for wings attached to body (July 2011). I didn't want to attach the wings directly to the gas tank because I didn't know if the steel would be strong enough to support them rigidly in place. So I used a piece of steel bar that I scavenged from a bulletin board discarded outside my daughter's elementary school to build a foundation for attaching them. I arched it over the back and welded it to the head and the base of the "tail." All four wings are welded to a plate that bolts on. I had to buy the steel rod for making the frames for the wings.
This photo shows the dragonfly after it tipped over the crane and fell on me (August 2011). I had to have the boom fully extended to position the dragonfly over the stand, and I neglected to put the pins in the legs of the crane, thinking it wouldn't matter because "it's not that heavy." The alert observer will notice a motorcycle parked in the foreground and a brachiosaurus being built in the background. This is a fertile, cluttered environment that makes it difficult to find space to extend the legs of one's shop crane.
I made a stand from a bunch of old pipe (found on the curb), pieces of steel signpost, and some kind of wheel hub from a truck. It had to be heavy and stable to support all the weight and not tip over in a wind. This photo shows the dragonfly being safely hoisted into place above the stand so that I could start to figure out the legs and feet. I've added a few of the internal pieces to the wings - made from pieces of a steel rack/shelf (also a curb find) and parts of a wire patio planter (a gift from my brother-in-law) (August 2011).
The results of a stroller walk of several miles to the hardware store: U-bolts for the dragonfly's feet and Twizzlers for my feet (August 2011).
I used pieces of wood from an old drying rack to figure out the length and position of the leg segments (August 2011).
Main pieces of legs attached (September 2011). The legs are pieces of steel from various things: curtain rods, outboard motor drive shaft, etc.
The first time I moved the stand, it broke. So I had to heave it back into the garage to add more supports. This photo shows the whole thing assembled in the garden, finally (October 2011).
Underside of the dragonfly (October 2011).
The artist poses with the dragonfly (October 2011).
Detail of the head (October 2011).
A few months outside have added some patina (January 2012).
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