[SP04]
(Size: 4"D x 10 1/2"H)Cocobolo, African blackwood, olivewood, snakewood, boxwood, 7/8" clock movements, carnelian cabochons, gold-plated beads. The second in a series--a large custom piece based on the motif of classical clock towers as evidenced in many of the striking century-old Texas county courthouses. This piece was the winner of the 1996 Friendship Cup and was also a strong influence in our work being judged Best in Show at the 1997 Fort Worth, Texas Main Street Art Festival. Highly figured cocobolo is used for the main body and dome of the base. Dentil moldings inlaid with boxwood are used in the base. At the cornice level below the main dome a sgraffito* effect is achieved with vertical slotting through the cocobolo into boxwood to create a vertical formality as in the Grecian temple architecture. The lower body is decorated with a deep 60 degree V-cut in a stacked design. The lower dome serves as the lid for a box accessed by lifting off the dome to expose a pull-out tray establishing 2 levels within. The lower dome is surmounted by a platform supporting the square clock tower which has 3/4-round tapered, fluted blackwood classical balusters at the four corners to provide the sense of support. Within the blackwood moldings above and below the clock tower are 4mm cabochons set in gold-filled bezels which serve to aesthetically lighten the mass of black colored wood. Four clock faces with battery-powered movements are installed in the olivewood tower. The marbling of the olivewood gives an effect of stone faces. The upper dome, of snakewood, is also removable to expose a storage space within. The finial is of gold-plated beads, supported by a fluted skirt. See details-4 (71 KB).
*Sgraffito-- defined as decoration produced by scratching or cutting through a surface layer of one material revealing a different colored background material beneath.
