Tolley Marney - Chess Set

Forged in fire, my chess set is my interpretation of chess pieces as wild animals of North America. My design is inspired by my life spent outdoors, working and playing in the American mountains and deserts. I brought those days under the sun and stars into the feeling of my series of thirty-two sculptures which together create the chess set. My time camping and working in National and State Parks inspired the name, ‘Yellowstone”. My set is oversized and all-together, heavy.

Artist:

Year:

2023

Title of Piece: Chess Set

Medium: Thirty-two bronze chess pieces. Carry case is wood and steel. Board is handmade wood chess board. Table is steel, copper, stainless steel and oak.

Dimensions: Rustic wood storage box with steel carry handles and legs. Four dividers in the box. The box holds 32 bronzes, each in a cotton muslin pouch. Height is 25.5", length 29" x 18" wide.
Pawns White (Hares): 5" tall x 3.5" long x 1.5" wide. Each piece stands or sits.
Pawns Black (Turtles): 6" long x 3.25" wide x 2" tall.
Rooks (Bighorn Sheep): 12.25" tall x 4.25" long x 3" wide.
Bishops (Wolves): 12.25" x 7" x 3" wide.
Knights (Horses): 10.5" tall x 8" long x 3" wide.
Queen Black (Mother Bear with Cubs): 13.25" x 4" wide x 4".
Queen White (Mother Mountain Lion with Cubs): 10.5" tall x 6.5" long x 4".
King Black (Bison): 12.5" tall x 6.5" wide x 4"
King White (Elk): 16" tall x 6.5" long x 4"

Describing a sculpture/object/figure: Forged in fire, my chess set is my interpretation of chess pieces as wild animals of North America. My design is inspired by my life spent outdoors, working and playing in the American mountains and deserts. I brought those days under the sun and stars into the feeling of my series of thirty-two sculptures which together create the chess set. My time camping and working in National and State Parks inspired the name, ‘Yellowstone”. My set is oversized and all-together, heavy. I made a hand built wood carry chess box and commissioned an artisanal wood chess board, so it can be carried safely and played without a special table. Nonetheless, I built a special chess table just for my set. It’s oversized and I made it with three different metals.

Describe the style and technique you used to create your art: Initially, I made my chess sculptures in steel, then worked with a foundry to cut them up, make molds, and create the sculptures. My style is stylized realism. I developed my style because I do not make models or sketches of my sculptures. I begin working directly in the steel with an idea in my head. I heat pieces of old horseshoes, bars and other steel scraps in my forge until they are red hot. I remove the red hot piece with blacksmithing tongs, then hold it over my anvil and hammer it into shape with my free hand. I have to be quick and get as much shape out of my steel as I can before it cools and becomes less malleable. I usually start with the head of the being I’m sculpting. Then I work to the next part of the body. And so on, and so on. It was a very long process that was extra involved because I needed to carefully rebuild my models and participate in the molding process.