A Paper Mache Dark Butterfly- breast reduction
Hi everyone. It's been a while. I mentioned earlier that I've taken a couple of commissions. I felt the need to get those underway before proceeding with my butterfly. I have finished the sculpting on this project and so it was a good place to take a break. Below are the final steps in the sculpting. Like I do with many of my paper mache projects, I wanted some horizontal breast plates. I started at the end of the bifurcated tail. I folded little pieces of cloth and laid them one over the other. I worked my way up the tail...
... up the stomach and over the entire torso. I ended under her chin.
So this is where I had a revelation. She is supposed to be somewhat older, and craggy. Yet when I looked at her I realized that while her skin was older and wrinkled, her breasts looked like those of a 20 year old. I inadvertently constructed her like a high school boy would. So she needed a breast reduction. I wrestled with whether I should show this or not. In the end I decided that I wanted to show the entire process. I want people to see my equivocation. I must say, cutting off her breasts was hard for me. I worked really hard on them. I think I spent two days making them.
So here is my breastless butterfly.
No paper mache here. I just used wadded paper and masking tape to reconstruct the breasts. These are much more in line with what I wanted. They are smaller and it looks like she has some muscle.
I added new plates. I know it doesn't look that different in this photo. But in person this change made a big difference.
Next time...Painting. Thank you for stopping by!
Posted by Dan the Monster-man at 2/9/2012 3:28 PM 
Categories: Paper Mache Dark Butterfly
Tags: paper mache papier mache sculpture butterfly insects how to arts and crafts dragons
Categories: Paper Mache Dark Butterfly
Tags: paper mache papier mache sculpture butterfly insects how to arts and crafts dragons
Next generation for the elderly will have twenty year old's breasts. Today I celebrate my big 80! I have been gifted today with an invite to have a retrospective show in March! Yeah I do have enough 'stuff' ...I am looking forward to your next posting....dEE
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Hi Dee,
So nice to hear from you! That was fast. I just posted this minutes ago. Congratulations on your show! That's great news. Yes, at 62 I'm waiting for the time when we have extra parts growing in our bedrooms ready to transplant when needed.
Glad to hear of your success. Good luck.
Dan
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Hi Dan, your dark butterfly is looking great. Scarey, but great.I think, as a fellow artist that she now has the breasts of a 14 yr old. The big boobs needed to go. Well done...but I think she needs boobs that are less pert and are more saggy. and maybe a bit lower. It's amazing how the boobs seem to change or alter the character of her isn't it? To me the face does not go with a young looking body. That is only my opinion and you may hate me by now! I greatly admire what you do with papier mache. As I said before you push the boundaries! good on you. Kiss the 2 cats for me. Cheers, Cherry
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Dan, the other reason why you needed to get rid of the big boobs is that it took the attention off the rest of her. When you looked at her, the first thing you noticed was her big breasts and not her face etc! hhhhhaahaha funny but true...Cherry
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Hi Cherry,
I always appreciate honest critiques, whether I like them or not. She really does look different in person. She is long and thin. She had to be that way with butterfly wings. But the skin is quite wrinkly. The camera angle isn't very good either. The new breasts are actually quite small and they sag. Unfortunately the breast plates kind of smoothed them out and made them look a bit perkier than I wanted. But I don't have it in me to mess around with it any more. It will never be perfect. I have to paint. I think the painting will take care of that stuff. She will look very different when she is dark and her eyes stand out.
Anyway, thanks for popping by.
Dan
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Hey Doctor Dan, Too bad we can't just tear off a little of the extra body some of us have, that easy!! (and build up where needed)... hahaha...Getting close to the reveal now!! Can't wait!
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Hi Suz,
I can hardly wait to paint her. I think it will change her radically. The white makes her look very different than she's supposed to be. I just need to work on these two dragons too.
Take care
Dan
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Hi Dan,
Your reduction technique was interesting and informative. As a woman of a certain age, I found it ironic that it took you two days of hard work to create the youthful breasts but the mature figure consists of "wads of paper and masking tape". Sigh. Some things aren't fair no matter WHAT you're made of. Your butterfly is becoming cooler by the minute and your post was fun as usual.
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Hi Denise,
Thank you for being nice about this. Actually, the first breasts were wads of paper and masking tape too. It's funny because the original breasts started much smaller. But as I tried to find symmetry between the two I kept adding bits of paper to one, then the other, then back to the first. That's why they grew so big. They absolutely will not be a focus when she is done. It will be her eyes and wings. Trust me.
Thanks again. Always nice to hear from you.
Dan
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Hi again Dan,
I hope it didn't seem that I was making a big deal about her breasts (pun intended). My comments regarding her figure were my attempt at aging humor. ~:O} I think she is jaw droppingly awesome! I am always amazed at your talents and generosity in sharing your techniques. I can't wait to see her with paint. Denise
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Hi Denise,
No, I understood your comments. I didn't take offense in any way. I appreciated your comment. And I really appreciate these kind remarks. You are very sweet. I can hardly wait to show her to you once she is painted.
Take care
Dan
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I'm glad you decided to include the info about your revelation.
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Hi Mike,
Glad you stopped by. Your support is always appreciated.
Take care
Dan
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I agree that this was a necessary change. Big boobed butterflies would have a terrible time navigating their way around flower beds.
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You are too funny Carol! I agree. Thank you for the nice thought.
Dan
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You're right, the big boobs definitely distracted from her face, and seemed like they didn't quite fit. I think the new set definitely fit the frame more.
I had to do the same thing with my doll (which is sitting while I work on other things...). It was SO SCARY to take my knife and cut into what I'd spent so long working on, and ended up redoing them twice! But the final set fit the feel of the doll more closely, so we'll see how it works out!
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Hi again Laynie,
Yes, so you know how hard that operation was. But I do think that's the difference between a good project and a great project. You need to be willing to undo something no matter how invested you are.
It's nice to talk to someone who went through the same ordeal.
Dan
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I understand, especially when people will say you're crazy, that it was good enough as it was. I'm the type of person where that would drive me crazy if I didn't fix it!
Heck, I made an title image for a blog post a few days back, had finished it and uploaded it when I realized the spacing was off. I had to go back, redo the image, and tweak the spacing until I was happy with it. Otherwise, I'd have been miserable every time I saw it.
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I did the same thing with my latest post of the little dragon. Somebody pointed out that foot of the little dragon on the side image looked phallic. When I looked at it I freaked out. I had to immediately Photoshop another image and replace that one before anyone else noticed. I was almost late for work. The bottom line is you have to live with your own artistic compulsions and idiosyncrasies. You have to fix what drives you crazy no matter what anyone else thinks.
See you.
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I understand! Do you ever get hit with an idea in the middle of the night and get so focused on it you can't sleep, and you have to get up and work on it? I find that so frustrating, but so satisfying at the same time.
Sometimes art is a compulsion, but it's such a satisfying one, isn't it?
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Hi again,
That happens to me all the time. There is a fine line between compulsion and persistence. Just one of many fine lines. But overall doing art certainly feeds me the right way. Like you say, it's very satisfying when things go well.
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