TarField: Part 1

My work on the Barbie Dream Horse has me thinking about a worse typo/portmanteau I once brought to life.

TarField

Let me set the scene.

I was in my kitchen in Japan. It was November 27th, 2022. I had made the decision to move back to America.

I was missing a guy. We’d started something when I was back in America. We were sappy texting and losing sleep. He wasn’t the reason I returned to America but, as I said often then, he wasn’t NOT a reason to return

I’d been thinking about the night we reconnected and zombies.

The two were related. We’d met for drinks and to see if we got along in person after so many years (we’d first met 31 years ago). We drank, and ate, and went to a secondary location for more drinks, and a third location, his place, for movies and conversation.

That last part isn’t a euphemism. We legit talked and watched movies.

In his apartment I failed to identify the above zombie in tiki form…and got an education in zombies. The tiki mug wasn’t the only zombie item in his place.

That there is Tarman, the brain seeking, half-melted, Trioxin reanimated zombie from Return of The Living Dead.

Said guy also has the shirt on the left.

We watched Return of The Living Dead that night. It took an extra hour because we kept getting caught in conversation and having to rewind and retwatch pivitol scenes.

Said guy also liked Garfield

He also had a Fat Orange Cat Plush.

So back to my kitchen in Japan I thought….

TarField: The Tarman Garfield mashup NO ONE wanted.

I was giddy! I did a little dance.

I had to make it. It would be, as I texted a friend, “either an awesome or disastrous Xmas gift!”

I started sculpting.

November 27th

I was so used to sharing my work in progress on-line but I couldn’t because it was a gift. A select group of my friends took the brunt of it via text messages.

I spent so much time trying to figure out what parts of Garfield and Tarman needed to be part of the sculpture.

As I often do, I started a Pinterest page.

I needed Garfield’s eyes, ears, coloring, and general shape and Tarman’s teeth, meltyness, slime-shine, and exposed muscle/skull.

Now, I don’t generally do any sketches of what I’m making but…this was my rough idea:

Apoxie Sculpt takes 24 hours to fully set. You have to work in layers. It’s not a thing you can rush.

November 28th - 30th

I wasn’t very experienced with Apoxie Sculpt. I’d only made two sculptures before.

My friends got more texts.

There was a lot of trial an error. I was getting used to thinking about when I needed to create sections of the sculpture ahead of time, like teeth and eyes, so they could harden and remain strong while sculpting around them or inserting them.

Sometimes I created parts that were never used. The middle objects below are cat shoulder scalpula I later rejected.

I was so excited by this project. It animated me.

I was still texting at all hours with the guy. When I mentioned to him I was sculpting I didn’t say what.

KNOW THIS: I love to talk about what I’m working on. If I’m vague on details its either because I don’t know you well enough to know how creepy/myself I can be OR I do and I’m making something for you.

November 30th-Dec 3rd