This is the script for Celebration's unveiling during the GYMC Gala.

"Ben McCarl is a sculptor who carves stones such as soapstone, alabaster and clay for display inside homes.  He decided to try his hand at carving a larger sculpture for public display and chose to donate his first to GYMC."

"Why GYMC?  Many years ago at his daughter’s piano recital he fell in love with the architecture and mission of the GYMC.  Through conversations
with Brenda Gibson, this focal location on the stairway was selected for the
sculpture, a female form jumping up in the air with hands above head in
celebration.  This inspired the name for the new sculpture, Celebration.

"Natural stones this large are very heavy so he opted to try something new called Winterstone for this project.  It consists of a metal frame covered with foam which is carved into shape and covered with wire mesh then coated with tinted Winterstone and sealed. You can see the progress and read about
Ben’s thoughts, successes and difficulties along the way by visiting the blog on his website www.benmccarl.com.  He actually made a smaller version of
Celebration first to test his plans and learn how to work with Winterstone.  She has joined the multitude of other sculptures adorning Ben’s home."

"Ben enjoyed creating this sculpture for public display so much that he intends to make many more.  Now that he has
experience with Winterstone, a host of ideas of varying complexity, size and colour are brewing in his head.  We
at the GYMC are thrilled and honoured that he chose us for the first in this series."

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Celebration moved into the garage for two coats of sealer (that stuff sure smelled bad) then into our living room for assembly and final touches such as painting the rods with soft acrylic, applying a layer of Winterstone along the top edge of the base and installing the plaque.  This photo shows both the full size Celebration along with the smaller scale model.  Their colours are actually identical but lighting in this shot shows them as different.  That's a beauty of artistic pieces... that different lighting gives them an entirely different look.

This picture shows the arched back, providing upward action in the sculpture.

One other event that I forgot to mention earlier... when I picked up Celebration to carry her out to the the garage for sealing, she spun in my arms due to my misjudging her weight distribution.  I heard a snap.  A quick inspection couldn't find any problems so I continued as planned.  While painting the sealer on I noticed a hairline crack around the base of one arm.  The fragility of stone is a curse that I have learned to live with through the years.  Many pieces develop flaws... but I no longer think of them as flaws.  I see them as character, features that make the sculpture real rather than an artificial image of perfection.  Like people, we all have our scars and blemishes that help define who we are and how we got here.

Celebration fits in quite nicely with the other scuptures in our living room.  If the GYMC ever decides to give her back, she's very welcome.

Here I am standing beside Celebration.

Shortly after this I carried her out to the car and put her in the passenger seat (reclined).  She was almost too long to fit and there wasn't enough room for the base too so I had to make two car trips to the GYMC to set her up.  I set Celebration up in the performance room and loosely draped a white tablecloth over her to hide her.  The unveiling will take place at the Gala tomorrow evening then I'll stop by some later date to move her to her final home on the stair landing.  

A proud artist.

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