I never thought I would be jealous of one of my own sculptures...

Here's the Link >>> http://youtu.be/s4k-jkPtdmY

This is a great video produced by Zach Foote, ( Experience Guide Supervisor, Children's Museum of New Hampshire ) about the wonderful adventures of the Giant Blue Crab! Its a really amazing video! I'm so glad that everyone has enjoyed the Crab, both at home and abroad! Thanks everyone!

Installation Day!!!

The Giant Blue Crab is finally in his new home, all nestled in for the long winter
...and just in time!

Well, this would not have been possible without a lot of help along the way...first, I'd like to thank my dad for letting me take over his shop for the past few months. I've had scrap metal all over the yard, blue paint all over the floor, and grinding bits in every nook and cranny! (Sorry about the mess.) Next, I'd like to thank everyone who helped me gather all the parts and pieces it took to make this sculpture: the Wentworth Scrap yard (Portsmouth, NH), Seacoast Harley Davidson (N. Hampton, NH), Car World (Candia, NH), and Cycles 128 (Beverly, MA). I would also like to thank the City of Dover, the Dover Community Services Department, and the Dover Arts Commission for making this installation not only possible, but for making it such an incredibly smooth (and speedy) process! And finally, I'd like to thank the Children's Museum of NH and all of it's wonderful staff for taking such a warm interest in my project, embracing it as their own, and helping to see it through to the end! Without you guys the Crab would not have such a wonderful new home!

Best wishes,
Nate

Final touch!

So, after trying just about every shade of blue under the sun (or in the sky), I ended up doing just a little bit of color "gradient" action. I wanted to keep it as close to a flat color as possible, but the illustrator in my came out in the end -so the ends are a bit darker than the middle. But I think it really worked out for the best :)

The last little bit was to tape off the eyes, so I could paint the eye stalks...

...and that was all for the painting!

Claws, claws, claws.

And here is Mr Crabby all ready for his grand debut!

COLOR!

So these pictures are in reverse order to show you the thought process I was trying (with varying degrees of success) to use here.This is the color "sketch" I did in photoshop.

Here's a very plastic looking crab claw, painted a very brilliant blue!

So, I finally decided that the crab should be about the structure, not so much the paint job - I mean it's a sculpture, not a painting. Therefore, I decided to just make it a flat color. I really loved the crab when it was just gray, so I figured I could capture some of that same feeling, if it was a solid color...however, I'm still not completely convinced this is the right color ( I think I want something a little less brilliant).

This is what you call trying to create a 'gradient' of light to dark. Unfortunately, it looks more like the sky than a crab :)

Here, I was trying to force my idea of a blue crab onto a the reddish-black under-painting.

I ran out of my first red, so I ended up using three different hues to complete the paint job...not with a large degree of success, however.

I actually kind of like this look - it's like a fiery rust style.

After completing the primer coat, I painted the entire crab black. I did this because I like having a deep rich color to build my lighter hues upon - it gives the paint a stronger sense of depth.

Here's me trying to fight the crab...

...I think I can take him!

6 more feet to go...

So, with the help of Andrew over at Wentworth Scrap Metal, I put together these beefy footings for the back legs of the crab. They're made of 1/4" diamond plate, cut into 9"x9" squares, with angled steel brackets welded on top. The idea here, is to create pads that the crab can rest on and not sink into the grass or dirt of wherever it ends up.

I painted the bottoms of them with about 5 coats of black rust-oleum paint - which I'm guessing should last awhile.

TWO CLAWS - for twice the action!!!

Mr. Crab is just about ready for a night out on the town...

...first I just had to finish his manicure...

...add some studs for that trendy goth look...

...and finally get him all shined up!

He's still lookin' a bit pasty, but once we move him outside his color should really improve.

A little more claw work...and me!

Well, things are starting to come together now - just a few more pieces and we'll be ready for color!!!

So, it dawned on me today that there are not a lot of "people" pictures in this blog series. And so I decided to remedy this situation post haste - with a few lovely shots of yours truly!

(me again...being consumed by the giant crab!)