Cob Caterpillar Bench at Brentwood Elementary

For the last couple of weeks, we have been preparing this lovely foundation to support a COB CATERPILLAR BENCH at Brentwood Elementary, where I am the ART teacher, and instigator of this project. Thanks mainly to CAJUN LANDSCAPING for all the mortaring expertise and long hours of donated time, and to Gayle Borst of DESIGN- BUILD- LIVE: an organization dedicated to natural building. Gayle is an architect who specializes in natural building...so wonderful to have an expert on the project! Her many hours working on the planning and coordinating of volunteers has been indispensable! The foundation floats on a rubble trench. This HUGE art/building project, couldn't be completed without the many hours of volunteer help. Besides Cajun Landscaping and Gayle, Jean Graham, neighborhood sculptor, designed the maquette and will sculpt the face of Mr. Caterpillar; Steve Ashley, sculptor and rock hound, donated the many fossils imbedded in the foundation, and the many cobbing volunteers from DBL.

Here is a volunteer from DBL, helping some young students mix the cob with their feet. Cob is a natural building material made of clay, sand and straw. The next picture shows Gayle showing the kids how to apply the cob to the foundation. Friday, April 30th, was Brentwood's EARTH DAY celebration and the COB CATERPILLAR was one part of a host of environmentally educational "centers". See more photo's http://galleries.statesman.com/gallery/earth-day-fair-043010/#81617

Look for more updates as this project proceeds! Future sessions include a sculpted layer of cob, plastering and 10 layers of linseed oil! We hope to have him finished by August.

Story of the "KELPIE and the PRINCESS"

I have just finished two sessions of CHILDREN'S BOOK ILLUSTRATION, with Mark Mitchell Mark@howtobeachildrensbookillustrator.com. Fantastic workshops!!! I completed a dummy book (almost) and four color illustrations. This is the princess lamenting the loss of her brother, stolen away by the KELPIE, a Scottish sea monster, part horse and part fish, but also able to shape-shift.
Here is the princess being consoled by a stranger to whom she tells the story...
...of her dear brother and his six friends being seduced to ride a beautiful horse...really the KELPIE in disguise!
She falls in love with the stranger, but discovers that he is also the KELPIE in disguise!! He is revealed when inadvertently falling asleep and shifts back into his true self. Luckily she gets away! The KELPIE is so distraught to lose his love, and for her sake, returns the boys safe and sound.