‘Anvils, why did it have to be anvils?’, posits Indiana Jones in an alternate Looney Tunes universe.
Make no doubt about it, we are going to discuss anvils, because why? Why not? Enough dancing and prancing around the subject matter, I am discussing anvils because the future is anvil-shaped, and I have always had a fascination with the future. Furthermore, I have recently taken to making ceramics anvils, which is the fulfillment of a longtime desire of mine.
I think I first began drawing anvils in my late teens/early 20’s, admittedly late for anvil discovery. The first anvil I drew was a beautiful red number that my Dad owned. I’m guessing it was around 7 pounds, and it had a bright glossy red painted body and unpainted bright metal face(top). To be sure, it was very handsome, yet rugged, and not unlike the Indiana Jones of metal bench tools.
From these early drawing studies anvils made their way into my ‘serious’ paintings and drawings (as everyone knows, your 20’s are a time for serious art), where they often took on monumental proportions and meaning.
I’ve always been attracted to the shape and look of anvils, as they have such a beautiful and weighty appearance. I’ve always liked things that look like what they are, kinda like the visual version of onomatopoeia(?). ‘Onomatopoeia?’, what’s that mean? Look it up. Better yet, don’t look it up. I could see where an anvil might not fit this designation, but whatever. Surely a spoon looks like what it does? Who knows? At any rate, they look heavy and they are heavy, they look useful and they are useful, they look old timey and they are old timey, all that good stuff and no pretension. They also look like their ultimate form, like an umbrella; you just can’t imagine them being refined to any more significant degree than they already are.
All this speechifying leads to the fine point that I’m back on anvils, this time ceramics anvils, and boy are they sweet. My latest displays a great increase in size, and this is the one that I will showcase with photographs in my next serial installment.
Peace out.