Spring 2013 TEMPO - Tampa Preparatory School

changemakersspring 2013 tempo23Megalosaurus, a disgustingly huge carnivore….[that] swaggered the grounds ofthe newly constructed Crystal PalaceMuseum in London.On New Year’s Eve, 1853, Hawkinsinvited the founding fathers of the scienceof paleontology to an unforgettable dinnerparty, which he hosted inside of one of hispieces, …the open back of his fabulousiguanodon. Some of the most respected scientistsof the era, including Curvier,Mantel, Owen, and many others, rejoicedin the event, their eternal legacy now representedby something more than illattempteddrawings and scientific notes. Itwas the melding of the left and rightbrain. Art assisted science in a mission thatdethroned man from his throne as the principalproduct of creation, giving us amuch grander title….Things have changed…in…understandingdinosaurs… Specifically, iguanodonis now more accurately delineated asa partial bipedal, swift-moving plant eaterthat sports a spike on each thumb, not onits nose. Megalosaurus is currently depictedas a warm blooded predator related tothe dinosaurs that would become birds.The original data of those early explorersof the past has been cast aside but theirspirit could not be any more inspiring…q: So that explains the reason the modeldoesn’t look like any dinosaur we knowabout?a: Yes. Scientists of that time didn’t havemuch to go on.q: You’ve always been interested indinosaurs?a: Yes, like a lot of kids. I just neveroutgrew them.q: Have you always worked in clay?a: All my life I was always drawing. Ifelt like I didn’t need to take a basic artclass in ninth grade. Then when I wasgoing into tenth grade, I took my book ofdrawings to Mrs. King and asked herwhich art class I should take. Right awayshe said I would learn to go from adrawing or an idea—2D—to 3D art. Shesaid I would work toward an AP Portfolioin sculpture. After that I basically alwayshad something in my hand…. in mathclass it was an eraser, something withresistance, bending it. At the end of theclass I would have some kind of animalmade from it.q: How do you go from a piece of clay toa fully fleshed out animal like the Chimera(Xan’s sculpture of a mythological 2-headed beast that was the Tampa Museumof Art Choice Award in 2012) You can seeits bones and muscles through its ‘skin.’a: You start by making the feet of theanimal and the rest of it follows. Youmake a long snake from the clay andmake a ring. And you go from there. Byconstantly working with clay, I had asense of the Chimera’s body and what itwould feel like in my hand.About Xan’s ability with clay, Mrs. Kingcommented, “Xan has an eidetic mindlike Michaelangelo did. He can see thexan peters creates a fantastic monster in the art studio.object in his mind and feel what he seeswith his hands.”Although Xan is known for his sculpturetalents he has other interests, too. Ona recent Saturday at Tampa Prep, Xan’spapier maché piece was judged in theRegional Latin Forum art exhibition.Wearing his Latin team shirt (which heco-designed) he took third in AdvancedGreek Derivatives and was a member ofthe Advanced Certamen team. That nighthe played guitar in the band for NightsOn Broadway.What comes next for Xan? He plans tocomplete a set of four more Terrapinawards for the 2013 Golf Outing in thefall (see p. 26) and then heads toMontana State University where he’llmajor in Geology, Paleontology andStudio Arts. As a career he might like tocreate dioramas for natural history museumsand finds inspiration in the fact thatthe fantastical large creatures made byBenjamin Hawkins in the 19th centurystill inhabit the grounds of London’sNatural History Museum. T