Old Doors for 22

Time and years in the weather have done
what I could never do......the stunning finish
on the doors took more than 130 years to produce.
Removed from a Berks County home built in
1877 a pair of the window shutters were rescued
by Shemp....a long time friend of "Big Dutch" and
then passed on to me for No.22. I'm an old guy
and these shutters had seen more than 60 years of
service when I was born. The antique radio tubes in
the machine had yet to be invented when the doors
were new..........the Mojo built into Machine No.22
spans a half dozen generations......I have no doubt
the power of the machine will be enhanced by the century
of use already built into it.

The pictures show the doors with the first two coats of
blue applied. I expect it will get another six to eight coats
pf color till the project is finished.

Construction begins

Here is the center structure of No 22......as it sits it is
76" tall and 38" wide. It is already tough to move around
so wheels will be installed.

a trip to the Art Supply

Most of what I call "art supplies" won't be found at Michaels or A.C.Moore but along the side of the road on trash day or at actual junk/scrap dealers. When I arrived in Penna recently I noticed a huge pile of lovely "remnants and remainders" at Brother Dave's place on what he called the "burn" pile. Lucky for me the nearly endless snow this winter delayed the burning of the pile........as I looked over the pile I saw machine No 22. It's a little hard to make out but if you look closely you can see the main parts of the frame.

With a little help from my friends.

Actually, a lot of help….. from a lot of people. My sincere thanks to the kind folks that have made it possible for me to continue to create my “art” in my new location. The list is by no means complete and will be added to as this project goes forward.

The two Davids……..David Irwin and David “Big Dutch” Nally,
Jenny…….the Mother Theresa of our clan, Mollie Morningstar.
Miss Tallulah…..for pushing and inspiring me as no one else could,
Meg and Liz…..my other two baby sisters, and Monsignor Timmy,
Pat Weaver, Mike Gent, Richard, Shemp and Donna.

Number 22 is in process

It took a while but now situated in my expansive new work space the construction of Love Machine No 22 began on Valentine's day. Record snows and the coldest temps I have seen since my days in Alaska have slowed progress but I still manage at least an hour every day. Above is a view of my work shop......on the left you can see the frame of No.22. With the promise of warmer days on the way I expect to finish this piece early in June.

Check back for regular updates as the piece progresses. More pictures and some thoughts about what this piece is all about will be posted this evening.