>> MY NAME IS EBEN MARK OWSKI AND I'VE BEEN PRACTICING SCULPTURE OVER THE PAST TWO DECADES.

I'VE RECEIVED A COMMISSION TO MAKE LIFE SIZED ELEPHANTS WHICH IS MY CURRENT SCULPTURE.

I SELECTED A MEDIUM THAT WAS STEEL FOR VARIOUS REASONS.

STRUCTURALLY SEEMED MORE APPROPRIATE AND ALLOWED ME TO INCORPORATE CHANGE WHICH CAME TO ME IN AN EPIPHANY.

CHAIN WOULD DO A NICE JOB OF ARTICULATING THE IMPRISONMENT THEY FACE BEING BOUND BY CHAINS.

I WANTED TO MAKE A SCULPTURE THAT CAPTURED THE HIGHLIGHTS AND HIGH POINTS OF WHAT WE THINK OF AS AN ELEPHANT AND THERE WERE THESE REOCCURRING THEMES IN THE PHOTOGRAPHS I WAS LOOKING AT.

AND THESE SIMILAR HIGH SPOTS WHERE THE LIGHT WOULD SORT OF BE REFLECTED OFF OF THEIR SKIN WHERE IT WAS DRAWN TIGHT OR UP HIGH ON THE BODY.

AND ALMOST A LINE THROUGH THEM WHERE IT STARTED TO GET DARKER.

AND THAT'S WHERE MORE OF THE WRINKLES STARTED TO HAPPEN.

ONE OF MY OTHER SELF-IMPOSED CHALLENGES WAS I WANTED TO MAKE A SCULPTURE THAT WAS MASSIVE IN BOTH ITS PHYSICAL SPACE AND WEIGHT.

AT THIS POINT I CAN ONLY ESTIMATE.

PROBABLY GOING TO BE IN A 5,000 POUND RANGE.

AND DID NOT WANT TO HAVE SOMETHING REQUIRED A CRANE AND HEAVY EQUIPMENT.

SO I'VE MADE SOMETHING THAT IS MODULAR.

THE SKELETON ASSEMBLES AND ONCE YOU HAVE THE SKELETON FREE STANDING, YOU BEGIN TO APPLY THE DIFFERENT LAYERS OF THE PLATES AND FROM THAT, THE CHAIN GOES O THE HEAD PIECE GOES ON.

SO THAT IT GOES TOGETHER AND COMES APART LIKE A PUZZLE.

WITH THE IDEA THAT AT SOME POINT ALONG THE LINE, THIS COULD BE AN ASPECT OF THE PERFORMANCE ART THAT THE VIEWER GETS TO SEE IT COME TOGETHER AND BE DISASSEMBLED.

>>> PART OF A CREATIVE PROCESS IS LEARNING A LOT ABOUT ONESELF.

AND IN THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT, THERE ARE MANY ASPECTS OF IT THAT I THOUGHT WOULD BE MORE DIFFICULT AND TURN OUT TO BE EASIER.

SHAPING OF THE THICK STEEL WAS FAR EXCEEDED MY EXPECTATIONS FOR HOW DIFFICULT IT WOULD BE.

AND WAS QUITE FRUSTRATING AT MANY TIMES.

I WAS ABLE TO GET THROUGH IT AND GET THE PIECES I WAS LOOKING FOR.

WHICH REALLY TRANSLATED INTO, I FEEL LIKE AN EXPONENTIAL DEVELOPMENT OF MY METAL SHAPING >> BEING CONSISTENT WITH THE THEME OF CHAIN AS A LINKING DEVICE AND NOT INTRODUCING NUTS AND BOLTS AND HARDWARE, THIS CAME ABOUT WHEN I CALLED UP A FLESH PLATE.

THIS IS MORE REPRESENTATION AL OF THE SKIN AND THE HYDE.

BUILT IN LAYERS UNDERNEATH IT.

THIS RIGHT HERE HAS, TO ME, THE EXACT FEEL OF THE RELATIVE PART OF SKIN THAT'S ON A COW THAT LIVES ON OUR FARM.

SHE HAS THE SAME FEEL RIGHT THERE AS CHAIN.

SO IF YOU HAVE THAT COMPARATIVENESS OF STEEL AND >> ONE OF THE THINGS I STRIVED FOR VISUALLY IN THIS PIECE IS I DIDN'T WANT TO MAKE A SCULPTURE THAT WAS ANATOMICALLY CORRECT.

AND THAT'S OBVIOUS WHEN YOU ARE MAKING SOMETHING ABSTRACT.

BUT I REALLY FOCUSED ON GETTING BONE STRUCTURE AND PROPORTIONS AND POSE AS LIFELIKE AS I POSSIBLY COULD SO IT WOULD FREE ME UP TO EXPLORE MORE WITHIN >> IT'S AN INTERESTING PROCESS IN THAT WHEN I DECIDE TO MAKE THE DEPARTURE FROM MY ORIGINAL PLAN.

I HAD SEEN IN MY HEAD SAW THE IMAGES OF THIS.

IT WAS BLURRY.

AND THERE WAS ENOUGH DETAIL TO GO WITH IT AND TO START DESIGNING AND FLUSHING IT OUT.

BUT AS I SAID, THOSE INITIAL IMAGES ARE BLURRY AND THERE'S NOT ALL THE DETAIL.

AS THE TIME GOES BY AND YOU BEGIN TO CONNECT THE DOTS, MORE THINGS FILL IN.

AND THOSE INITIAL THOUGHTS AND IDEAS ARE BECOMING A REALITY BEFORE ME.

AND IT'S KIND OF TRIPPY TO HAVE SEEN SOMETHING IN MY HEAD NOW A YEAR AND-A-HALF AGO AND SEEING