tango, your link isn't working right. It takes me to my own page. Can you check it? Thanks. I'm very anxious to see the photos!
spiderwoman

I can't see the album, either. Be sure and post when the book comes out. Interesting!

Tango, Fantastic news on the book. I'll be first in line for this kind of book. Who cares about a silly Harry Potter book ;) Jk

This is the type of book thats been needed and will be well recieved, I'm sure. Hope all goes well for you.

Yep, that link don't work lol

Sorry folks...duh...try this link instead.

Here is a link that might be useful: See Album Carlos Cortes

Still a kink in the link. I'll try another from a new message.

What can I say...now this link is up again (as is the one in the other "Carlos" post). Must'a been Yahoo. Hmmmm...Wonder if I overloaded their system with Faux Bois pix and crashed it? Anyhow, enjoy it while it's up.

Hi Tango, I'm elated that you will be publishing your book, and in collaboration with Carlos too! Can't wait to get my hands on it, it's such a fascinating art.
I actually want to use the information to produce pieces of faux work other than 'wood', funnily enough. But it seems to me that the info, like that in various postings you've made in here already, will be applicable to other forms as well.
Will you include chapters on other subjects related to cement work in general, such as statuary mold making, casting, and finishing? It's probably been asked before, but is there a rough time projection for completion of the book?
Anyway, so happy to hear of this latest development in the writing of your book, it will be eagerly awaited by all of us, and that you are willing to open up this art form to the many, by the talented few.
Slate

Tango, I don't think you will have any trouble picking up a publisher for your "book to be". Have you contacted any yet with your idea? A book like this would probably get accepted before you even write it.
Me? I am standing in line waiting to buy it!
Jo

I'll bet Lark/Sterling would be interested. They're the ones who published Sherri Warner Hunter's books. Or book.

Sue

A book on Faux Bois would likely sell 200 copies max.
Mostly to people reading this forum.:)
I would probably be interested myself.

Because of the secretive nature of the art it has never caught on with the public as a hobby.

In 8 months I haven't read a single thing here, or anywhere else for that matter, that directly relates to doing Faux Bois outside the context of it being concrete on an armature.
I doubt any book on Faux Bois would be much more than a picture book with very general info about the art itself.
I very much doubt Carlos Cortes is going to give up any of his family secrets. Even Tango is finding his search for Faux Bois info frustrating. Did you ever find either of those two elusive old books Tango?

Faux Bois is a very odd artform indeed.
Concrete ANYTHING is considered an odd hobby by most people.
As anyone here trying to find exotic ingredients knows. Even concrete 'experts' look at you funny when you mention Hypertufa.:)
Mention Faux Bois and they think you've been out in the sun too long.:)

200 may well be an optimistic estimate. But this is hardly expected to be a money making venture. What I do hope to accomplish is to at last record the history, artists, processes and techniques. Something no one has ever taken the time to do. Which is one of the barriers to entry for a lot of artists and hobbyists. As for the "secrets"...there really are only a few. Some of which Carlos and I have yet to decipher. But we both have agreed to share as much as we can possibly get into a book regarding our formulas & techniqes. What we do know. And in the process encourage future artists to give it a go by demystifying as many of those "secrets" as possible.
While it will be a detailed "How To" book on Faux Bois, I also intend to include information that is of value to anyone with a general interest in sculpting cement, as most of the processes and techniques apply to just about any chosen subject, whether it be a piece of wood, Great Aunt Sarah or the ultimate abstraction. The next group the book will be structured to benefit will be Faux Bois collectors. Of which there are quite a few who have no standards to measure a given piece by. But the largest segment it will address, I believe will be the hobbyists. Those folks interested in creating things for their home & garden and friends, as opposed to professional artists who do it for a living. I can show most people how to create simpler pieces in a few hours...the basics are easy to learn...the book should take them from simple to as complex as they choose to make it.
We are talking to a publisher we would very much like to work with. One who has a subtantial interest in and very high regard for the subject. We should know within a few weeks if there is an opportunity there. Even if there is, it would likely still be a year before anything could hit the street. If not, we are prepared to self publish if necessary. The information needs to be recorded once and for all.
We should have copies of the two other early books shortly. Carlos has seen the oldest (from Spain, CA. 1890), but there is very little information of any real value. It is basic in the extreme. The other is on it's way from The Library of Congress. We'll just have to wait & see, but my guess is that the content is likewise vague & limited.
If I wanted to make money writing a book, it would be something with "Diet" in the title. The main reason I've undertaken this project is simply because no one has recorded this information before...and I believe it should be. If I can, then even if only one young artist a hundred years from now becomes curious about how we (to him "those old guys way back then") made that stuff and had it last so long...at least they will be able to look it up. A big headstart that I certainly wish someone had left behind for me.
Then again, this is America. Maybe it will become all the rage and I'll wind up with my own "Faux Reality" TV show... "What...Paris Hilton is calling again?...for the last time, tell her NO. Not a chance...we have REAL celebritys booked through the end of the year. Besides, the sponser HATES Chihuahuas".

You can sign me up for a copy Tango.
Good books on concrete art are few and far between.
As far as advice from the experts...well...I've been doing this for only a few months and I'm astounded what the so call concrete experts in my area DON'T know.
And the ones I suspect DO know, aren't talking.:)
Everyone in this business has secrets.

As an example of expert advice...copper slag...it makes very hard concrete and sets up very fast.
One 'expert' tells me it's great stuff for concrete...another tells me to expect the Portland to turn to jelly around the copper slag in about a year.
Now I love copper slag. It allows me to make pitch black shiny very strong concrete.
But I really won't know if there is a chemical reaction until I see it or don't with my own eyes.

Tufaenough --- The problem is really pretty simple. Most concrete "experts" really are...but only as regards their personal use of it. Highway engineers say one thing and bridge builders another. Each may be correct within their own frame of reference, but unfortunately neither ever tried to sculpt or cast anything out of the stuff they use. There are a few works by sculptors, for sculptors and each of them has their own way of doing things. But the good news is there's a lesson in that. The real trick, as with any art, is to learn as much about your medium as possible, then apply that knowledge to making it do what YOU want it to do. It's no different than painting with oils. There is no "right" way, but you do have to have a solid understanding of it's properties and quirks to get what you want from it. And the more you know, the more you can get it to do.
The copper slag is a great example. I've had numerous experienced professionals tell me with absolute authority that any copper that's in concrete will corrode at an accelerated rate and cause major problems. Then, just yesterday I printed off an online doc titled "Corrosion of Nonferrous Metals in Contact With Concrete or Mortar" by a consulting engineer...guess what he says regarding copper in concrete..."Imbedded Copper is practically immune to reaction with corrosive alkalis, even if exposed to constant moisture". A little green discoloration is the only negative result. For years I've followed the fisrt groups rule of no copper. But this new information, coupled with my friend Carlos telling me about a piece of bright, shiny, brand-new looking copper pipe he'd just removed from a sixty year-old statue he was restoring, really has me asking more questions and digging a lot deeper anytime I hear an "expert" state anything absolutely.

By the way, we'd all love to see some pix of the results. Sounds very cool. Damn the experts...full speed ahead.

tango, I expect you will sell quite a few books. Who would have expected my little town bookstore to carry "TWO" books on concrete by Fu-Tung Cheng. I was happily surprised, and bought both. So, with all the bookstores and libraries and colleges in the US and world-wide, a collaboration on faux bois by you and Cortez may be a happy success!!! Just because computers are not used by everyone and not everyone enjoys joining forums, doesn't mean that only 200 people or less do or are interested in hypertufa or concrete work.

BB --- As long as I don't lose TOO much money doing this...I'll be happy. Just want the info recorded and on a shelf somewhere. Preferably The Library of Congress. At least then they will have ONE piece of actual documentation on the subject for someone, somewhere, sometime to reference.

I am debating on making my own concrete countertops. I think I will have to try to make one small one, maybe a vanity top, and maybe I will make the legs faux bois!! Like a pedestal sink with a tree trunk pedestal!! This would be great! My only worry is how the concrete will look after years of use. They say the concrete countertops stain too much, and acid pits them. I have a bad spot on the garage floor where a cat's litter box stood, and the urine got under it and it really etched it badly! Oh well, I have to decide if I like the rustic look. Only way to know is to try, right?? Good luck with your book ideas. Sign me up for a copy!! BB

Posted by: tufaenough (My Page) on Sun, Jul 24, 05 at 15:06

A book on Faux Bois would likely sell 200 copies max.
Mostly to people reading this forum.:)
I would probably be interested myself.
Because of the secretive nature of the art it has never caught on with the public as a hobby.

******************

I have some suggestions that may or may not work to get the book out to a wider audience. When the book is available, go to your local library and request a copy. Maybe they'll buy one, especially if you can get a dozen or so friends to request it as well.

Also, my local Master Gardener chapter has a pretty extensive collection of books on concrete garden art within their lending library collection and that would be another source to make a request through.

Lots of garden clubs have lending libraries for members and you could either purchase a book to donate to them or request the book through them, again the greater the number of requests the more likely that the book would be purchased.

For those of you who teach classes, having a copy of the book on hand for your students to see would cause some of them to purchase a copy for their own library.

So, maybe 200 books sold isn't such a pipe dream after all.

Anyone got any other ideas?

Jo

BB --- I just got a look at some pix of a wonderful custom table that Carlos made for Martha Stewart. About four feet wide and twelve feet long. While the legs are very traditional Faux Bois, he pretty much solved the issues relating to maintaining the top by making it Terrazzo! Marble chips bonded into cement and polished. Great looking, incredibly durable and very forgiving of even aggressive stains due to the pattern. It can also be refinished & repolished over & over & over again for many generations of service. Great looking combo and a really great solution.

As much as I love my concrete...it really is a poor choice for countertops. Fine for outdoor tables & such where discoloration and a few stains add "character", but a lot of folks who are being sold onto concrete for their kitchens and baths by less than knowledgeable designers & installers are going to be less than thrilled with it's performance over time, not to mention it's maintenence intensive nature in those environments. Some of the new gen, super-densified formulations fair much better than conventional concrete and are capable of delivering reasonable service, but unfortunately most of the installations I've seen/read about were pretty much plain, old concrete. A really poor material choice for something that needs to meet food preparation sterility standards on a daily basis. I have a feeling that a lot of folks have been sold a bill of goods by uninformed installers and there will likely be many hundreds of tons of counter tops being torn out over the next few years. Probably at a cost nearly equal to the very expensive installation.

I agree with Tango, concrete makes great counter tops for people who don't plan to use them.:)
Concrete countertops are costly even if you do them yourself because of finishing requirements.
I've never seen any older ones just brand new and they do look good. If I get bored this winter I may give one a try one as a side board.

BB just don't let the cat pee on the counter and you should be good to go.;-)

Jo --- Thanks for the input. I am in complete agreement with both you and Tufaenough. This might well constitute one of the most esoteric and narrow interests this side of some Fedaerally funded study on the sex life of some rare moth. And it will likely stay that way unless someone takes the time to demystify it and make the relatively simple processes involved more broadly known. It really is a fun, easy and very inexpensive medium as crafts go. And also very artistically rewarding. Very few mediums offer the creative potential and functional durability of concrete. My mission is to make it better understood and thereby take it out of the "Rare Moth" category. While it may never acheive mainstream status, with a little effort, it's potential will be more widely embraced by hobbyists and hard core artists alike.

I would also encourage one of you to do likewise with Hypertufa. A compilation of even the basics would benefit and further craft tremendously. It too is a terrific medium and one that I wish I knew more about. If anything, it probably has a much wider appeal than concrete...so go for it. Think in terms of the pleasure and satisfaction you derive from it, and then remember what a struggle you had accumulating the skills necessary to get to where you are today. Share your experience with others. Help them overcome the learning curve that discourages so many people, and get to the point that they too can produce some of the absolutely wonderful and magical things I've seen you folks create here. You and your craft will be all the better for it.

A book on Hypertufa would be great but there is so much misinformation out there that it would probably have to be written from personal experience which could take a few years.
Many tufa 'experts' appear to be lost in the 1980s.:)
You have to pick through all the advice very carefully.
It was also pointed out that some crete/tufa practitioners rather than refuse to answer a direct question by saying they would prefer keep their recipes or formulas to themselves will give false or misleading advice.
Remember the flack our rock making friend from Vancouver recieved when he posted a 'secret' recipe.
This is a very strange hobby, sometimes practiced by even stranger people.:)

IMO there are really TWO basic types of Hypertufa. Hypertufa for those in zones above 5 or 6, and Tufa for those of us who freeze/thaw our balls, tufa balls that is, all winter.

Then you have to choose a line between tufa and concrete and that could be just a wee bit contentious.:)

Well I didnt think this would happen, but I have to dissagree with tango and tufaenough about concrete counter tops.

I have manufactured and/or installed just about every type of counter top than can be put on. This includes wood, solid-surface (Corian),solid-surface veneers,ceramic tile, plastic laminates (Formica), Stone (any and every type),stainless steel,glass and concrete.

Each and everyone of the tops mentioned have their own set of issues on cost, durability, maintainence and repairing. They all have a set of cons as well as pros. There is not a one that is perfect. There is not a one that is perfect. I had to repeat that because I think thats really the issue. Concrete tops are a very viable product and will last as long as anything I mentioned, IF they are maintained properly AND the consumer is aware of this vital step. Concrete can attain a density of 155 lbs a cubic foot and above. This is comparable to stone and in the case of some, much better. It all depends on your recipe. With the the addition of pozzalans and high-range water reducers the cement will be an extremely durable product.

Cement tops should be sealed with silicone impregnators that are/should be used on stone too. This will make them highly resistant to staining. Not stain proof, just resistant. Even stone and solid surface materials can be stained. The only thing that doesn't is glass and ceramics tiles but then the grout will stain.

So my point is that, I believe that cement counter tops are just as viable a top as anything that is currently being used. Nothing is perfect. No counter top will remain new looking if it's used in any manner over time. The only way to do that is not use them at all and that defeats the purpose. People just have to be aware that EVERYTHING requires some care and maintainence. People who want high end products are going the concrete route because of the looks and durability than can be achieved.

Tango, what you said about "a feeling that a lot of folks have been sold a bill of goods by uninformed installers" has merit though. This is true of many things. It's the people behind the product not the product that can be a problem. There are always a group of folks that will jump on a bandwagon and sell or perform in a substandard manner to make a fast buck. That hurts the professional who is doing their very best every day to give their customers the best product. So to say concrete counter tops are inferior is wrong. It depends on the producer/installer to inform people of all they can about the product. Sorry if this seeme to turn into a rant but I thought what you both said was a bit unfair to the professionals who are making and installing a high quality product.

Also I think that your book will sell very well in different markets Tango. I have many books in my library that though I may never use all the information in them they are a great wealth of inspiration. Your book would be that to people. But to me it would be a great text book as I sure want to learn your craft.

Rock --- I absolutely agree with you on it all coming down to the installer which is why I phrased it the way I did. Most any day-laborer can install formica...getting a concrete counter top right is very tough to do. And unfortunately, it appears that the majority of them are being installed by unqualified contractors who are just jumping on the design-craze bandwagon and are either not informing their customers of the limitations & maintenance issues...or they are just plain BS'ing their way through it. Concrete can be formulated to resist hydrochloic acid and achieve densities near that of fired ceramics and glass...but unfortunately, that's not what most people are getting. I'm glad to hear there are people like you out there who do understand what it takes to "do it right". If more of the installers would do their homework, it would indeed make concrete a much more viable choice.

Tango, I didnt mean to sound as if I went off on you personally, just your comment. The only top that does not need too much care is formica, just wipe it off as necessary and replace as needed lol. Even stone and corian type tops need regular maintainence to keep them performing like new. Many installers for these products also fail to inform the customer of these steps. Many customers want nothing to do with it either. They do not inform themselves about the product of their choice and act surprised when told what needs to be done.

We all need to be informed and inform our customers of all the benifits and limitations of our products. This keeps everyone happier.

Since I couldn't get to the noted sites, I looked for them myself. Here's the website:

Here is a link that might be useful: Carlos Cortez Faux Bois Studio

BELGIANPUP --- The 1st link never has worked, but I just checked the one down in the 5th post (by me) and it is up and running at this time. There are a lot of pix there you won't find on his website. Some 80+ year old pieces by the Great Uncle, some by Maximo (his father) and more by Carlos. Sorry that Yahoo & I have been giving everyone fits.

Hey Tango.I am very excited that your book is coming along.I look forward to it even with out Carlos Cortes' input,but he will certainly round things out. I have always appreciated your graciousness and generosity. Your expertise, talent and passion for this artform will make a very exciting and informative book.Carlos Cortes and yourself are under no obligations to share with those of us who are stumbling beginners or arrogant self righteous know it alls. As always, your class and graciousness shines through.That's right,your from Texas.......

Hi Sarah
Whatever happened to Billie?

I don't know anyone by the name of Billie.
And to qualify my last post on this thread the stumbling beginner was in reference to my self and no one else.

Wow,
Great news to me Tango! Don't sell yourself short on the number of copies that might sell. I think this book will be of interest to those who appreciate sculpture in general as an art form and many books in this clasification have sold. While us "artists" will go ga ga over the info provided, others will appreciate the beauty and the knowledge that they discovered yet another medium that brings alive art! Thanks for the link!
Leigh

Hi Everyone,
My name is Mary and I am a concrete/tufa addict. I am new to this site. Since finding it I stay up till the sun wakes up just to read and work the craft. Everyone is so helpful. Some of the posters are budding comedians. I just wanted to tell you that I would love a copy of your book, Tango.

Tango,
Would you mind sharing how you use baking soda with your creations. I like the effect and would like to try it if it is an idiot-proof process. They make your items look like they survived the passage of time and endure yet today. I think this would be neat for stepping stones.

Anyone know if this book has been published yet?

Mylamyyy

Ok, after reading most of the previous posts which are now almost two years old, I want to know, what happened to the book? I want a copy.

If you'll google " thegardenartforum " , it will take you where you need to go. Their actual link cannot be posted here.

AWESOME! thanks

Though a very old thread, it is likely there will be some, like myself, reading and needing accurate information. In pursuit of truth, I comment on the part of the thread dealing with copper and concrete. The waterline from the water main to my house and a multitude of other houses is made from 3/4 inch copper, traverses the 8-inch concrete foundations and exits into the basement by penetrating through 4-inch concrete floors. My house has been here since 1970, as have been all on my block. Neither I, nor any of my neighbors, have had a problem with deteriorated copper lines. Were a copper/concrete interaction a problem, it would surely have emerged in at least one of our homes. 'Nuf said.