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The Sculptors Secret Toolbox

Sculptor Gary Lee Price is known for his detailed workmanship on every piece he creates. He makes sure that there are plenty of interesting textures in every inch of his work. Most of the magic happens using his bare hands but there are the inspired moments when he needs just the right tool to create the perfect impression.

While lending a hand packing up Gary’s studio, when he was moving from Utah to Arizona, I got a sneak peak into the artist’s toolbox. I was fascinated by the utensils, gadgets, and gizmos I found as I collected these tools from all corners of his huge studio. As I compiled a box of similar typed items, my mind began to wander as I thought about the ways in which he used each one. Which ones did he select to engrave, etch, and carve with? Which tools did he choose to mold, shape, and construct with? Did he use this pointy tool to shape the corner of an eye or this sponge to smooth out a cheek? There were saw-tooth edges, smooth flat spatulas, wire end modeling tools, curved scraper blades; in an assortment of metal, wood, and plastic. There were leaves, sticks, rocks, feathers and other treasures he had gathered from mother nature which I thought might be a source of inspiration for him. I saw tiny toys, mirrors, armatures, skeletal frames, rulers, plastic buckets, a crock-pot, and tin cans. There was a scale for measuring powders and jugs of solutions for mold making. There was foam board, plywood, and long and short wooden dowels.

As I was taking some pictures with my phone, Gary looked at me inquisitively to which I replied, “they are for a blog article I’m writing about you and the tools you use to sculpt with.” As promised, I’m sharing them here with you. The paraphernalia I saw and collected were all items that Gary used his imagination to find a purpose for. The tools he chooses to use to sculpt his masterpieces with tells me that the creative process is alive and well in the head, heart, and hands of Gary Lee Price.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Mother & Daughter Tea Invests in Gary Lee

Mother & Daughter Tea Invests in Gary Lee

By Meredith Perry and Kathleen Rogers

With the addition of New Seasons, the last of three bronze statues installed at the Carleen Bright Arboretum with funds raised through the Mother & Daughter Spring Teas, we want to convey the long history associated with the tea, and to honor Lenora Parrish as her season as chairwoman comes to a close.

Every year on the Sunday before Mother’s Day, the Carleen Bright Arboretum hosts the beloved Mother & Daughter Spring Tea.  At its core the tea is a celebration of women coming together across generations.  Imparting sophistication, elegance, and poise in a social setting, mothers became friends with other women in the community while daughters build friendships and memories to last a lifetime.

The first Mother & Daughter Spring Tea was held in 2000 and the original concept was to be a one-time event.  Lenora Parrish championed the idea of having the tea be an annual event and spearheaded the initiative.  Lenora has a strong group of friends and through their generosity with both time and finances their dream for the tea became a reality.  On May 7th, 2000 mothers and daughters, all dressed to impress, arrived at the Whitehall Center for the first ever Mother & Daughter Spring Tea.   Many women wore lovely, fancy hats, which inspired a hat contest the following years.  The first tea was a coming together of many friends and future-friends in the community to have sandwiches and tea.  It also included a silent auction and a raffle for gifts and items donated generously by the volunteers of the tea.

While the tickets to attend are always inexpensive, the volunteers running the Tea found that they had an excess of funds due to the silent auction and raffles.  After deliberation, the group decided they wanted to invest the funds into the Arboretum grounds with a series of bronze statues by artist Gary Lee Price.  When you visit the Arboretum you will find the statues Alina and Green Thumb Too located near the Gazebo, in the two triangle flower beds known as Lenora’s Garden

“Lenora Parrish had the vision for the Mother Daughter Tea.  With her inspiration, the tea has become a sold out event yearly attended by mothers, daughters, granddaughters and dear friends.  All the proceeds from the tea have gone towards the 3 bronze statues that represent Lenora’s flair for enhancing the experience at the Arboretum. We thank you, Lenora, for your inspiration, dedication, and contributions to the Carleen Bright Arboretum.” -Chairwoman Barbara Grandy

 

 

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Sculptor Gary Lee Price Uses 3-D Laser Scanning for Larger-Than-Life Replica

Sculptor Gary Lee Price Uses 3-D Laser Scanning for Larger-Than-Life Replica

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who knew that 3D Imaging would be a tech tool for a sculptor? With the assistance of Adonis Bronze located in Alpine, Utah, Sculptor Gary Lee Price saw a way to utilize 3D Digital Laser scanning as part of the artistic process. Gary brought his original 50” “Wings” sculpture to Adonis Bronze to be 3D laser scanned as a way to significantly enlarge his work of art. Once every nook and cranny of the sculpture was scanned, the details were programmed into the CNC milling machine along with the enlargement percentage specifications. In order to create an enlarged replica of the original sculpture, the machine cut out huge sections of foam that were then pieced together like a puzzle. Gary then took this 10 ft. foam form back to his studio where he applied clay over it. Now a new mother mold can be made and the lost wax process can begin at Alchemy Arts. It is a real time saver for Gary because now he doesn’t have to sculpt from scratch to create an massively enlarged version of his original work.

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Sculptor Gary Lee Price Wins 2018 Best of The West Award

 

 

Sculptor Gary Lee Price Wins 2018 Best of The West Award

 

The readers of Grand Junction Colorado’s- The Daily Sentinel, chose Gary Lee Price’s sculpture Puffed Up Prince as one of the top three Best Downtown Sculptures. This contest was aimed at rallying the community to recognize and celebrate artists and businesses. With over 66,000 individual votes cast, Gary’s whimsical bronze frog that boasts a regal crown, has enchanted the masses with his Puffed Up presence. It is a great honor to be chosen as one of the Best of the West of 2018!

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On The Wings of Love

On The Wings of Love

One of our valued clients shared with us the following story, illustrating how wonderful it is when art can stand as a lasting tribute to love.

My husband and I built and flew an airplane from 2000 to 2004!  At one of the small airports that we stopped at I saw this statue and loved it.  I saw it again later at a local garden tour.  When my husband passed away suddenly in 2005, I remembered this statue.  I had no idea how to find it.  I finally contacted the Dubuque, Iowa airport where I had first seen it.  The manager there was so nice.  He said they were remodeling and the statue was in storage, but he would find out the sculptor and get back in touch with me.  He did and I went straight to the Gary Price website and there it was, WINGS! I ordered one for me and a smaller one for a friend that had been such a big help at the time of my husband’s passing.  I will never forget that the first one I ordered didn’t seem large enough for the area that I had.  That was not a problem!  I returned it to Gary Price and immediately received a larger one that fits the space perfectly!  It is right outside my sewing room window (where I spend a lot of time!) and I love looking out and seeing it (summer or winter!)  WINGS is the epitome of flight and reminds me of my husband and how much he loved flying.

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Questions That Matter

Questions That Matter

Yesterday a call came into the office. The conversation started with the usual surface level conversation about the particulars of timelines, payment, and shipping details. I heard a loving mother speak to me about the sculpture she was purchasing to honor her son. Then something beautiful happened. The conversation took a turn when I asked the question “Can you tell me about your son?” As she did my heart connected with hers. She said he was a pilot for a major airline and that he got cancer and passed away at a fairly young age. She told me a bit more about his life and I listened. We cried together and our souls connected with compassion for the loss of someone who held meaning in the world. I expressed my admiration for her choice to pay tribute to her son by erecting a statue in his memory. Then she said something that I will never forget… “I am doing this with the hope that when a little boy walks past and looks up at the sculpture, that he can dream of one day becoming a pilot like my son.” She asked me to thank Gary for creating the sculpture that captured the essence of her son’s life.

Art has a way of touching souls. It comforts, remembers, honors, inspires, and holds individual meaning for the creator, the giver, and the receiver. Sculpture stands as a lasting tribute and as a memorial for remembering. Sculpture is a reminder that taps on the shoulder of the soul to wake it up for but a moment. It calls to us, it stops us in our tracks, it makes time stand still. It announces, it whispers, it insinuates. Sculpture agitates, prompts, provokes, and nudges our senses. It begs to be seen, touched, and heard. What meaning does sculpture hold for you?

After I hung up the phone, I relayed the details of my call to Gary. He asked me to tell him more about her son. I learned about the heart of the sculptor yesterday. Strangers all are we until we ask questions that matter.

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10 Ways to Strengthen Relationships

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Hug your person for a count of at least 10 seconds.

2. For 10 minutes, listen to understand, not to reply. Be present.

3. Put down your electronic devices. Look into the other person’s
    eyes for a 10 second gaze.

4. Read out loud to someone for 10 minutes.

5. Take 10 seconds to verbally express appreciation and gratitude.

6. Go for a 10 minute walk together.

7. Take 10 seconds to write a sticky note to leave in a pocket or on a dashboard.

8. Chat for 10 minutes before going to bed.

9. Do something artistically creative for 10 minutes.

10. Rub an achy back or feet for 10 minutes.

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Where Will Your “Journeys of the Imagination” Take You in 2018?

Our imagination is a powerful thing. We think up ideas and create a vision of the person we want to become. With the onset of the new year, our imaginations are in overdrive coming up with new ways to redefine who we are and what we want out of life. Over time, some of these inspired ideas can get forgotten. So in an effort to help you remember them, we are sharing an idea called a vision board.

A vision board is a space to gather your goals and intentions. It is a visual representation of the things you want to manifest in your life; or in other words your goals symbolized with pictures and words. It should be displayed in a place that you can see it daily to help you stay goal-focused and mindful about what you really want to accomplish in the coming year. The Law of Attraction is the belief that when you focus on positive thoughts then you are attracting positive experiences into your life. A vision board is a tool to help you visualize success in different areas of your life and serves as a motivator that nudges you to take action.

A vision board can be centered around things like positive affirmations, priorities for the year ahead, your personal or professional mission statement, or even as a reminder of your empowerment goals. If this sounds like something you are interested in, here are some tips for getting started.

What You Need to Make a Vision Board

A list of Goals and Intentions

A blank board- (poster board, foam board, bulletin board, etc)

Printed images and word strips, photos (computer generated or from magazines)

Glue sticks or double-sided tape

One suggestion before you start gluing is to divide up your vision board into quadrants representing the many categories your goals may fall into. Make a grid with 9 squares and label with the following:

Vision Board Quadrants

Wealth and Abundance

Character and Connection to the Divine

Love and Relationships

Family

Mental and Physical Health

Creativity

Knowledge and Learning

Career and Life Path

Travel and Adventure

Have fun making your vision board and may all your goals be conquered and all your journeys of the imagination be realized!

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6 Tips For Meaningful Gift Giving

In this season of gifting, it’s a wonderful time to foster the love of giving. Sincerity is the quality of being free from pretense, deceit, or hypocrisy and is always a good place to start from. We give gifts for lots of reasons such as, to strengthen relationships, connect with others on an emotional level, and sacrifice in order to show we care. We give gifts to celebrate, to stay in touch, to say we’re sorry, as rewards for accomplishments, and sometimes just because. In each case, something stirs within us. We, the givers of the gift, are often the receivers of self-gratification, happiness, and appreciation.

Like the Grinch whose “small heart grew 3 sizes” knew that “Christmas doesn’t come from a store.” Christmas “came without ribbons, it came without tags, it came without packages, boxes or bags.” He realized this when the Whos down in Whoville sang glad songs, gathered together in peace and unity, and celebrated knowing each other. Giving doesn’t always mean we have to spend more than we can afford, go into debt, or prove our love by how much we spend. What is most important is giving a gift that matters to the other person.

 6 Tips For Meaningful Gift Giving

 

Give away a talent you have- free guitar lessons, bread baking lessons, art instruction, car repairs, haircuts, babysitting, etc.

Give to a charity- that means something to the receiver. If they want to improve the world they live in, donate to the Responsibility Foundation. If breast cancer has affected their family, consider giving to the Susan G. Komen organization.

Add to their collection- If the receiver enjoys the work of a particular sculptor, consider adding a new piece of art to their collection. Wink, wink.

Give experiences rather than things- tickets to a concert, musical or theater, season passes to a water park or ski resort, zoo passes, movie passes, museum memberships, zip-lining, or a hot air balloon ride. Consider lessons for something you know that interests them such as: flying, skydiving, surfing, race car driving, scuba diving, sewing, playing an instrument, ice skating, horseback riding, learning a language, or art lessons. Be sure you give something they are interested in. There’s nothing worse than gifting scuba lessons to someone who is afraid of sharks!

Give the gift of yourself- surprise a loved one by showing up unexpectedly. To lessen the burden of an unexpected visitor, be sure to book a hotel room in advance or arrange to stay at a friend or relatives house.

Give away a meaningful family heirloom- gift something meaningful that has a personal story attached to it.

“For it is in giving that we receive.” St. Francis of Assisi

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Sculptor Gary Lee Price Contributes to the Springer Experience

Sculptor Gary Lee Price Contributes to the Springer Experience

 

The sculpture “Flight Time” by Sculptor Gary Lee Price continues to delight the children who attend Springer School and Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. The school is dedicated to educating children with learning disabilities. Shelly Weisbacher, Executive Director at Springer said that the sculpture “has truly become a focal point at the school.” She shared the experience of a young boy telling his father on the first day of school that he knew Springer was going to be a good place because of the happy statue. Shelly is not only the Executive Director of the Springer School but she is also philanthropist. She said “Springer serves students with diagnosed learning disabilities and ADHD.  It can be a scary proposition for a child to leave the school they know and enroll at Springer.  When my husband and I decided to gift this sculpture to the school, it was to honor the children with something truly beautiful and to be a welcoming beacon for families who are first visiting the school.  It’s definitely working!” Gary’s work continues to lift the human spirit through sculpture.