Paipo's Stone Tikis - 1st Thread - Jun 06 - May 08

Paipo, This guy is about is Sweet as they come, Enuf sai
:) :) :)

Looking good mate :)

Thanks fellas, don't throw away the tools, just practise, practise, practise. It takes a few years to get confidence with the tools and stone and even then you'l find new ways to do things. I was having a chat with Tama, and we actually use very different tools and techniques for our stone carving, so there's no right or wrong way - just the way that suits you.
Even with practise, mistakes are inevitable if you let your concentration slip as I found out today. The piece at bottom centre became two pieces about 15 minutes after this photo was taken.

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[ Edited by: Paipo 2007-01-17 23:12 ]

Thanks Paipo... I won't throw them out just yet. If it takes a few years... I'll keep tryin. I'm impatient for results! (Look at BenZ! That guy raised the bar way past anything most of us guys can do... He jumped right in and picked up the stoner thing instantly! He must have lived thru the 60's :wink:
Anyway... sorry to implicate you Ben!

You guys (You and Tama) blow me (and probably most of us TC'ers) away! The quality is so high.

I'm just a hobbyist idiot and it's really cool to be able to tap you guys as a resource, and rub elbows!

Thanks again for your posts, explanations, and patience. It's really good stuff worth money!

Thanks and regards,

gap

you know, i was just having a very bad day. i started carving a hook and it was going great and then it crumbled. my foot pedal broke. nothing i'm doing is turning out very well. i was getting really discouraged and down about this stuff.

just by happenstance, you posted this. it doesn't cure all, but at least i know that if i keep at it there's no where but up to go. it's a tough thing to tackle on your own. you guys help a lot, and i mean a lot, but you have to know that there's no substitute for one on one personal training that you might get at school. i do appreciate all you do.

sometimes i just want to grind it all down.

it arrived!

thanks so much paipo. i cannot even begin to express how fortunate i am to have such a spectacular piece of art. the timing on its arrival was weirdly appropriate, given the circumstances i was dealt on tuesday. it definitely brightened up my extremely unlucky bummer of a day. the detail on it is quite amazing, and your style alongside bumatays work compliments eachother beautifully. i am a lucky girl after all! :wink:

awww :blush:
Well, that's made me feel better. Breaking that piece really blew my day, but I did what I always do when it happens - I went over to the stone cupboard, grabbed another piece of rough, fired up the saw and cut a new piece. Somehow getting started on a replacement right away helps get over the loss.

And yes, Benz makes it look (too) easy for us all, but that's how it is when you are a master carver - a term that is bandied about a lot here in NZ but one I don't use lightly. I suspect you could drop a block of Carrara marble and a couple of claw chisels on his driveway and a week later he'd be posting a nice statue of David if he felt so inclined!

I wish my stone work was at a level that would allow me to switch to wood with as much confidence. Interestingly, watching the wood carvers here has had an influence on my techniques and style with my stone work. I just got a nice lot of Totara (preferred wood for traditional Maori work), so maybe it's time I tried to stretch out a little more...

Edit: Double happy now the Bumatay has arrived ...thanks for the pic cleen! You guys look so cute together!

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[ Edited by: Paipo 2007-01-18 01:50 ]

Paipo,

Great advice for those cats getting discouraged. Don't! Just keep pushing forward, try to learn something from each piece, and above all HAVE FUN. If it was easy, it wouldn't be any fun cause everyone could do it. And if you break something or tear it up real bad, start another. Stay positive.

And as for Benz, nobody should look at his results in stone as those that can be achieved by a novice. He is no novice and as Paipo said, he could carve anything from nothing in half a day. Enjoy Ben, watch Ben, but please do not compare yourselves to Ben. The artistic journy is inside of you, not what someone else can do.

-Gman

Who IS this Ben guy anyway. Word hazzit that he is some kind of Master carver but I happen to know him and he's just a normal guy who messes up works too. His "Box of 80" is reall the box of screw-ups that he keeps around hoping to fix some day and he Has fixed a few. You'd be surprised at the nice oieces that came outta that box!.
Thanks for all the compliments, I'll be sure to pass them along next time I see him.

Back to reality, PAIPO, your Moai here is Really Top Shelf. It is obvious that you worked on this design for awhile, getting all the kinks out and all the lines down so they worked out so well. NICE Job And THEN, you went and put the lines into the stone like it was another piece of paper and threw Depth into it with the flick of your little finger. Kinda like Gandalf Tweaking a magic spell (I should know, I've Seen him do it!).

Please post more pics of women wearing your carvings.... :wink:

-Gman

Thanks G, if I'm not having fun I don't carve. That's why I start quite a few new projects, some of which then go on the backburner. It's one way of stopping it from getting boring. Case in point, I have wanted to do something along these lines for while just to see how it would work.

Based on a dafe, a type of Solomon Islands pendant - black jade and pearl shell.

Benz, I don't know if it's quite as easy as a flick of the finger, but I'm glad I took the time to do some drawing on this one. The depth illusion is starting to work nicely now - you can even tilt it almost 45 degrees before the trick is revealed. A little bit of detailing and sanding to go and he'll be finished.

Hey Paipo,
What is the size on the jade and shell pendant? That is a very elegant piece! And the moai is looking fantastic!
Carve on, my friend!

hi paipo all the moais look awesome keep up the good work

Howdy Jen...the breastplate is about 65mm x 37 mm (2 5/8 x 1 1/2 inches). The shell part is extremely thin, little more than 1mm in places. Pearl shell is like nothing else in terms of how fine it can be ground without compromising the strength and is just about my favourite material. Now I need to work out how to attach the frigate bird to the background.

Cheers for stopping in Marcus, we don't see enough of you around here these days. How's that big tekoteko going?

On 2007-01-17 23:13, Paipo wrote:

I wish my stone work was at a level that would allow me to switch to wood with as much confidence. Interestingly, watching the wood carvers here has had an influence on my techniques and style with my stone work. I just got a nice lot of Totara (preferred wood for traditional Maori work), so maybe it's time I tried to stretch out a little more...

You have encouraged a lot of us to try stone , you should give wood a try, I'm sure you would do it justice. If you can see a tiki in a rock and get it out, I'm sure you can release them out of wood.

Your work does rock though!

JP

Pa1p0, that is one sweet frigate bird/Solomon islands breast plate. I love how the S. islanders were interested in the predatory skills of the frigate bird and emulated it in their little head hunting raids and fishing trips. Nice piece!

-5n3aky

Hey paipo, the Frigate bird pendant loks fantastic as usual, here you come with another 2 Masterpieces. I Still get lost in this Moai every time I see it, there always seems to be more to see in him. Very nice stuff!

Thanks Johnny, sneaky and Benz. No more work on the frigate bird breastplate yet, but the moai is almost finished. There are just a couple of tiny corrective tweaks and a little more sanding to go.
Sneaky, I dug out my "Art of the Pacific" book, as I remembered there were some legends in it from the Solomons, but they are to do with sharks. Still good though, as I have been wanting to do a shark themed project for a while....

Great looking moai, that stone really suits it :)

Paipo, He gets Sweeter and sweeter everytime you touch him! All this Teasing will make him a Perfect Moai when you are done.
HappyHappyHappy

Fantastic! What style! Maia ka'i(sp?)!

Top notch ! (T3's copyright :wink:)

Benjamin

Thankyou hewey, Ben/s and finky....well, almost 2 weeks and nothing much new has been happening. The moai is almost done, but I will wait until it is totally finished before posting any more pics.

Non-tiki jewellery continues to demand all my time, along with visits to various exotic locales around the
South Island. Last week we were camping in Golden Bay, dredging for scallops and lazing on the beach (on the good days). This weekend saw a friend's wedding (another stoner from rock school) just north of the world-famous Punakaiki pancake rocks up the Coast. Tama and I were both in attendance and had a blast. I (along with my girls) stayed on overnight to attend a follow-up BBQ today and catch a few waves with the groom afterwards. Nothing short of perfection, even though I did manage to throw up all over my board after the first few duckdives....

Anyway, I took the opportunity to put my new camera through its paces. Still getting to grips with it so bear with me!

The setting:

Tamapoutini with bush backdrop

After the sun went down things really started cooking - Tama and his Benzart moai enjoying a little watercooled action:

Paipo gettin' in on the action...

After such a great weekend we arrived home to yet another perfect West Coast sunset. This one's for you, Buzzy!

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[ Edited by: Paipo 2007-02-04 01:30 ]

Looks like fun was had by all. Whats in that water pipe?Hmmm?
an't wait to see tha Moai finished and see the "Trick" you mentioned.

Smokin' watah buggahs Paipo? AaaaahhhH paradise!

Flip-flOp-fLipPp... :D

Man....super cool place to post up!.....Amsterdam of the South Seas....whoa....

The work is really looking tight....look forward to your posts.

Babalu

We were smoking 100% legal apple scented tobacco (sorry to disappoint fellas!). The party was catered by a local Middle Eastern restaurant and they offered the use of their hookahs for the evening.
The place is a little slice of South Seas paradise, and is one of the busiest tourist hotspots in NZ...the forest on the hills is mostly nikau palms (the world's southernmost palm species) and has a real jungle feel. It's easy to take it for granted having this only 1/2 an hour away but staying there for a couple of days made me really appreciate what we've got here.
Here's a closeup of the hill behind the tent:

On 2007-02-04 00:57, Paipo wrote:
Nothing short of perfection, even though I did manage to throw up all over my board after the first few duckdives....

Tama sez: :lol: I could see that one coming! :lol: Hubble, bubble, toil & trouble... I must admit yesterday was a little slow for me too.
Great daze. (do Franks allow BYO? might have to bring the Pisco to 'Island Night'...)

Back to it slacker! The word is you carve for a living? And make the odd tiki or two? C'mon...

T :)

Sheesh, you guys are jokers.

At least the apple tobacco won't demotivate you.

Nice work on the Moai, I like that style.

Looks like a great location :)

So, now that you have all this partying out of the way, ( looks like lots of fun) when do we get to see some new art? ( I know --I'm one to talk since I haven't posted anyting recently)

JP

I'll have to get back to you on the BYO Tama, we might be able to swing it...
Thanks Alien, hewey, JP...
The moai is all done, possibly the last tiki I'll post for little while as I've got a pile of orders to get out by the end of the month...but you never know!

Wow, that looks so clean and classy. Nice work!

Man. you guys got it made down there.

I step out for a few days, and look what i missed! That "dafe" pendant is really somethin.
A very fresh and new (to me anyway) idea.

Also, that's gotta be the biggest hooka I've ever seen... and I've seen a couple.

I'll say it again. You guys got it made down there.

Fabulous work paip!

Very nice work and curves. Do you get my P.M ?

Benjamin.

That Moai is smooth like buttaH!

Very nice Paipo! I would have expected no less than near perfect. Sweet. No what's this about water pipes and BYO?......! So no more tiki art for a while aye? SssOK, just shoot us some pics when you can.

-Gman

Holy crap!! That's an awesome Moai Paipo. GROG like!!!

Great moai. Actually, you do everything great. Bravo

Coool

Regards
Flynny

Paipo I Really love that Moai, Why?

Thanks finky, this guy was kind of inspired by the moai I got from you - the side profile works really well for a pendant.

Gap, the dafe is going to be on the backburner as I'm pilfering the shell part for an order I have to meet. I put some "Maitai Stone" through the saw yesterday, but the quality is not the best....all of the stones I got were pretty much specimens and not too flash for slabbing purposes.....

Benjamin, let me know how you go with the books...there are plenty more I can recommend if you want!

Sneaky, thanks- I was pretty happy with the finish as it's pretty much the same as a natural stone. I might weather the next one with some heavy grade sandblasting....

G, no more water pipes for me...I was so sick the next day! Problem for me is I don't know when to stop!

GROG, Paipo glad to see GROG in Paipo thread. GROG might recognise slight Tonga Hut Flyer influence in Paipo moai- thanks to all you fellas (and lady) who signed one for me!

Merci virani - that's about all the French I remember from my 3 years of it at school, even though I was a top student...maybe it has something to do with all those water pipes?!? One thing I've often wondered is how you have managed to amass such a great mug collection in France?

flynny, thanks for dropping by too, I see you also got the moai bug that has been infecting these forums. I'm stoked to see you've been getting some use out of that micromotor!

and finally, Benz - I'm not sure why you like this one so much? Do you need him to keep "Goldie" company ? :wink: I did put in a bit more effort on the design this time, looking at quite a few photos and my boys from Rapa Nui before refining my ideas on paper. I put in a little bit of the "kiwi influence" too with the sweeping curves so he didn't look to square and blocky, something I've noticed you (and squid too) have done with yours. Somehow these guys get under your skin and after finishing the first I didn't think I'd be back for more so soon....

Which leads me on to this:

... possibly the last tiki I'll post for little while as I've got a pile of orders to get out by the end of the month...but you never know!

Well, so much for that plan....

I've had this one drawn up for a while now and thought I'd get cracking while the whole "moai profile" thing was fresh in my mind.

In other news, it's bloody hot here again today, we have had a cracking week since the festivities last weekend with one of these every night:

Gidday mate.

Is that Moai wearing a bird head-dress? Wow! Just flicked this one out eh? Reminds me of those Meso-American Jaguar/Men thingies. (dont show Thor; it'll set him off again :lol: ) Love the first one too.

Very crisp & very stylish, very Paipo, as we have come to expect from you. World class!

Tama :)

Wow, What a Big set of earz and heavy duty "comb-over" hairdoo this guy haz. Absolutely amazing, Very different.
Yes I may just need the last Moai to keep Tama's Hei-Tiki company, they will have to fight each other for neck space. sherry will kill me, but I guess we hafta work something out. PM Me when you wake up?

Hey Paipo! That Moai looks SLICK! But your new one is SUPERBITCHEN! is that a Tangata Manu I spy upon this Moai's head? Incredible! Reminds me of that wooden sculpture pic you sent a while back! Go Go Orongo! It' like everyone's got bird flu, um fever around here on TC! I feel for ya about the "work vs true unhindered inspiration" drag! That's probably the only advantage of a day job-it pays the bills and the rest is pure GRAVY! You are truly an inspired genius Sir! You make rock carving look effortless! Beautiful! Beautiful!

Very cool Moai/birdman chimera, flowing graceful, original, SlicK! SiCk!

Very neat idea, and perfectly executed. The concept is wonderful.

JP

Oho! A Grand Member now, eh?

C'mon mate; what goes on in that Forum of Mystery? I know you raced straight there. You can tell me, no-one will know.

Oh s#!t, I thought this was a PM... :lol:

Tama