TBAI Gallery - so far!

Here's a sneak peek at the Hobbit House I'm making for my little Bilbo bear for the Gallery of TBAI next month. I brought the piece home from the art center where I've been working on it and waiting for it to dry so it could be fired in the kiln. I decided to paint it with oils and acrylics rather than use the glaze which is used routinely on ceramics. It's made from the same clay used for teapots and other stoneware objects.

Cleo immediately had to taste it to make sure it wasn't some new kitty treat! The house is sitting on a plywood board with a layer of foam rubber on top to prevent damage on the way home.

So this is how the painting is going so far. I began sculpting the house a couple of months ago when I picked "The Hobbit" for my gallery piece. I hope to make a little booklet with all the steps involved in making the piece. You can see a little bunny on the right of the photo that I've sculpted from polymer clay. He's not painted yet and there's an owl, too, that may just sit in one of the trees. I'll be sure to show you little Bilbo bear before I leave for the show!

Oh, by the way, with lots of things going on here, I'll probably not list Beezer and Lady Buggly on Ebay until I return from TBAI. I hope to have some photos of the bears (and an elephant and a turtle) that are going to the show.