Marriage of Materials
July 30, 2018
Inspirational Art
I’m still kind of on the theme of looking back this week. How many of you remember Susan Lomuto’s Daily Art Muse blog? What a fantastic blog that was. Susan included craft work of all kinds but spent a large number posts on polymer clay. She truly appreciated the medium and pulled from all corners of the globe for polymer inspiration.
This piece here is from a Daily Art Muse post from June 2009 about the work of Sarah Obrecht. Sarah used polymer for the color in her sculptural work. There is a delicacy to Sarah’s weathered copper sculptures and somehow the polymer adds substance even though it’s a softer, more malleable material. But visually it has more weight and the color pops out from within these metal forms. It’s a lovely combination of the materials used in a sculptural format.
I don’t know what has happened to Sarah as I have been unable to find recent work or a website for her but rereading the blog post and seeing other examples of her work is absolutely worthwhile. You can do so here.
Seeking Sharon
July 27, 2018
Inspirational Art
These beautiful, timeless, cab earrings were created by Sharon Solly back around 2008. That was the year she published a tutorial in Polymer Café about her technique using fantasy fiber and liquid polymer clay to create these fabulous-looking cabochons. My background in fiber arts probably has something to do with why I was so enamored of them back then and still am today.
This also speaks to Sharon’s adaptability to various materials. She worked in everything from polymer to glass to metal and would use whatever suited what she was creating. I think this is one of those cases where the material probably inspired the work, which is a valid artistic type of inspiration. I think the materials were the source of her inspiration much of the time, however, she seemed to choose the best material for what she was doing regardless. And I think that’s really the point of why some artists move from polymer to another material or from another material to polymer. There’s something they want to express and certain materials do it better than others.
I don’t know what Sharon is up to now. Her most recent work was primarily in glass, it looks like, but there is nothing I could readily find online since about 2013. Nonetheless, you can see her progress and exploration through her Flickr photostream.
Committed to Metal
July 25, 2018
Inspirational Art
I remember first seeing Anna Fidecka’s work back when I started the magazine in 2011. She worked in both polymer and precious metal clay and seemed to be searching for something. But I love the sophisticated look of her work which usually was a bit more geometric than the piece you see here. However, this piece is probably very telling in the direction she would eventually go, which was to leave polymer behind and work exclusively in metal but with more organic forms and earth-connected imagery.
I really loved how she worked with canes as they were never applied in a particularly orderly fashion. Her simple canes were often scattered across the surface of the clay so that they looked like little floating organic bodies such as you might see under a microscope. The way she did that in the necklace here, a piece called Mermaid World, really worked with the potential depth of layering with the help of translucents. The spare but off-center placement of the holes adds to that floating, underwater feel, which works so well with the motif and colors.
Now, when she embeds something in her clay it is usually natural semi-precious stones although she did play with enamel for a while. This is another artist whose progression can be seen by flipping through her Flickr photostream pages. You can see her most recent work in her Etsy shop.
Missing Grant
July 23, 2018
Inspirational Art
In going back through my polymer picks I saved over the years to consider for the blog, I came across some older work from people who no longer create in polymer. It might seem sad but it is simply that some artists move on from a material to find other materials that express the type of work they want to do in that time period. Although I am obviously a big promoter of polymer as an art material, there should be an adage that goes, “Just because you can do it with polymer doesn’t mean you should do it with polymer.” Sometimes another material is just a better choice.
The one polymer artist I personally miss the most is Grant Diffendaffer, whose gorgeous vessel you see here. His mica shift and the visual texture he created with it are still, today, some of the most amazing examples of the technique. Well done mica shift will always have a bit of an internal glow, but the colors Grant chose and the way his patterns shift and flow make the work come alive.
There is more than just an internal glow in Grant’s work. The mica reflects so brightly that it appears that there is a light behind that surface. And although I voraciously took in every page of his book back when I started, I was not able to figure out how he created the variation in visual texture. Not back then at least. I am thinking I need to give it another shot now that I know so much more than I did a decade ago.
His book, Polymer Clay Beads, is still a treasure of information, however, he no longer works in polymer. He did work with it for a while after his jewelry and decor era, creating props of sorts. He is back working in jewelry now but in 3-D printing resin. His portfolio on his website shows all of his work from polymer to 3-D printing. If you’re interested in the progression of his artwork or just want to see what is up to, take a look at his website and his Facebook page, Steadcraft.
Inside a Glass Tower
July 20, 2018
Inspirational Art
Since we got on a glass kick this week, I rummaged through my outside inspiration board on Pinterest and came up with this fantastic artist who I have long wanted to share with you.
Jean Fernandes was born in India but was raised both there and in California. After graduating with a Masters in Glass from the University of Texas at Arlington, she became an award-winning emerging artist and winner of a 2015 Niche award.
And it’s no wonder. Just look at this simple but mesmerizing cast glass tower she created in 2015—its interiors look almost alive with movement. The basic shape and grayscale color palette allows the interior lines and undulating forms to captivate us without distraction. The vertical shape relies on a sense of strength, as vertical forms and lines do, adding to the monumental feel of this piece even though it’s only 16 inches high.
Jean considers herself a multimedia artist although glass has been her primary medium. To quote her from an interview in 2015, “Often, I work with glass because of its conceptual flexibility and duality. It has the ability to be fragile or strong, transparent or opaque, stiff or flexible, etc. and acts as an excellent metaphor in my work. The properties of the media are often integral to my work; I’ve used yarn for its softness and strength, ice for its temporality, wax for its ability to melt when introduced to heat, etc. and all of these qualities often play a large role in the concept of the piece I am working on.”
This brings up an interesting thought that I’ve discussed with several artists recently and that is whether our art is defined by our medium or do we work with the mediums that help us to define our art? I think those who put the artwork first may often find themselves working in various mediums simply because they’re looking for the materials that help them realize what they want to express. It’s wonderful that polymer’s versatility can fulfill many artistic needs so readily, but I thought I’d take this moment to remind us that we can, and should, use other mediums when it helps us express what it is we want to put out there in the world.
Take a look at more of Jean’s work on her website here.
Looking Back at Faux Glass
July 18, 2018
Inspirational Art
Although I did not plan on the theme this week, apparently we are focused on glass. I remember seeing this pendant years ago and I thought it was made of little glass mosaic tiles. But no, it’s polymer with a resin top but it’s beautifully done, with a great color palette that jazzes up the repetition of basic geometric shapes.
The work, created some eight years ago, is by Christi Uliczny. You can find Christi under the moniker of either Cabin Fever Clay or River Valley Design. Her recent work has moved quite a ways from this orderly geometric type of design. She’s gone quite organic in both form and color application. If you find the progression and change of an artist as fascinating as I do, you can find a timeline of Christi’s progress as an artist on her Flickr photostream as well as find her recent work in her Etsy shop or on Instagram.
Through a Glass Prettily
July 16, 2018
Inspirational Art
Apparently, I’m a bit of a wreck. I’m only telling you this because you are probably going to see a bit of a slowdown in our publications coming out and maybe a little less research here on the blog. As many of you know, I’m the only full-time person who works on The Polymer Arts projects and I’m dealing with two injuries that occurred earlier this year and arthritis in my neck, none of which are happy with how much I work. So, doctor’s orders, I have to cut my computer time down the next few months while I focus on healing. It’s going to be hard to slow down, workaholic that I am, but I’m counting on you all to hold me to it!
So to minimize my research time, I’m going to be pulling things to share from my stash on my Pinterest boards and favorites on Instagram and Flickr and such for a while. We will, therefore, be seeing a fair amount of older work, but there’s so much really inspirational and timeless work to share.
This week’s first piece is from Adrianne Jeswiet whose work I discovered not too long ago. Her shop on Etsy is called “Kissing Glass” and it is filled with various glass vessels covered in detailed imagery. This piece includes tiny dragonflies, water lilies, irises and cattails applied to a recycled glass vase colored with glass paint. Take a close look to see the myriad of tiny details that are sure to make this a conversation piece wherever it finds its new home.
Pop over to Adrianne’s Etsy shop to see the full range of what she does.
Darling Passion
July 13, 2018
Inspirational Art
One of the last places we visited on my whirlwind trip through Europe was Sweden. It was actually very brief, only half a day as part of a train tour around the coast between Denmark and Sweden, but what a lovely country and what lovely people. This did not surprise me, as my idea of these people primarily comes from getting to know Sweden’s Eva Marie Tornstrom over these last few years. She is a darling and impassioned woman as most anyone could surmise from just seeing the emotional and openly honest work in her sculptures.
I have been watching Eva Marie’s work just bloom for the last several years. Her newest pieces have included some surprise elements, in particular, these zipper-back horses. The surface of the horses are richly textured and with matte colors and cane flowers, and then within the zipper framework, there is this contrast of crackled and shimmering gold. I can come up with several metaphors for what she’s done here but this work is created with so much room for your own personal connection, so I will leave it for you to fill in those blanks.
My favorite place to check in on Eva Marie is on her Instagram page where you can see the transformation of her work from one project to the next. But you can also get a closer look and more details about why she creates horses on her website.
Noelia in the Spotlight
July 11, 2018
Inspirational Art
Hello, all you fabulous people! It’s really good to be back. After over two weeks of being detached from this community, I’m really happy to plug back in. I’ve not had a lot of time to do research for this week’s additional two posts, so no theme this week. Just some quick peeks at what people have been up to.
I had hoped to meet up with one or two polymer people in Spain but it was hard to carve out time as I was only in Barcelona and was with 22 other family members. But I did stop to see what our Spanish folks have been up to and saw that Noelia Contreras Martín has been quite the busy girl lately. She hails from Ripollet, a town just outside Barcelona proper. Her work has enjoyed the spotlight in print this year.
This image is from her tutorial in Polymer Week, the new-ish magazine out of the Czech Republic which just released its spring issue in PDF. Noelia was also featured in Polymere & Co. earlier this year in an artistic interview article. It’s no surprise the attention she’s getting, with her clean lines and bright colors. If you’re unfamiliar with her work you can pick up one of these magazines or visit her Instagram or her Facebook page. And if you are, by chance, in Spain next month you might consider joining her at Polimeralia, a three-day workshop event in Valencia, Spain, August 3-7, 2018.
Also, these two magazines mentioned may be just the thing you’re looking for to fill in the gaps left by Polymer Café and From Polymer to Art. Polymer Week, available in English and Czech, offers project tutorials and interviews geared to inspire and inform hobbyists and newer clayers in our community. Polymere & Co. also features project tutorials and interviews but often includes articles discussing technique and some more advanced concepts. However, it is only in French at this time. I get my copies and then copy the text into Google translate for the articles I want to read so it takes a little more work, unless you speak French. It is, however, an inexpensively priced magazine at approximately $6 US/5€ for the digital back issues and $12 shipped to the US/10€ to Europe. Polymer Week is $10 for the digital PDF edition or you can purchase print copies for $18.50 in the US and, it looks like, about an 11.50€ in the EU.
Guest Blog post by Christi Friesen
Have you noticed what Georg Dinkel has been up to lately? He’s been creating an array of surreal pieces that are some of the most interesting little characters I’ve ever seen.
But wait there’s more! Georg is a master photographer, so he has observed these Glotzer creatures in the wild, preserving their spirit of adventure and exploration through his captivating images.
When you hear someone talk about an artist having a “voice” it means that their work is distinctly their own. You know who the artist is without having to search for the credit because it’s instantly recognizable. Georg has a voice and it’s been loud and clear lately!
Oh! And he’s just launched his new website, including the store where you can get one of his amazing creations before they are all gobbled up. Of course, you won’t be able to get Glotzer #10, because it’s already on the way to me!
I think that one of the most wonderful things about following the work of an artist who has a distinct style is watching it evolve, grow and become more “itself”… something for us all to think about as we explore our own creative paths.
In the meantime, the Glotzer have landed. Brace yourselves.
Don’t forget to check out Christi’s new book coming out soon. It’s going to be a great summer for reading! And creating! Link to new book site:
https://www.christifriesen-workshops.com/ebooks
Guest Blog Post by Kathleen Nowak Tucci
Inspiration: a feeling of enthusiasm you get from someone or something that gives you new and creative ideas.
When I saw the photo of a fiery-throated hummingbird by Jess Findlay, inspiration struck. On my worktable, there were corrugated recycled aluminum Nespresso coffee capsules in the shape of fans and I finally knew what I would do with them. The idea percolated for months and it wasn’t until I was participating in a residency in Mexico that I had time to work on the idea. In Mexico, I had a full month to experiment and refine a necklace that was inspired by the photo of the hummingbird and a year later I made an entire dress and headpiece using the same inspiration.
Interestingly, another person taken by the same photo recreated it in colored pencils. A different medium was used but it was virtually identical. This was not inspired but rather, everything about it, the color, composition, and position of the image, had been copied. It is not enough to change mediums for it to not be a copy!
So how can you be inspired by another artist’s creations but not copy them? Be inspired by the combination of color, by their balance of color, their arrangement of objects, their use of textures, etc. Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook have made it very easy to collect images of art but resist the urge to collect images made in the same category that you work. Don’t have a photo of another artist’s work in front of you or study another artist’s work so thoroughly that you reproduce their style or aesthetic. Take your own photos and use them for inspiration. Use a word or feeling and not an image for your next creation. Be inspired!
Copy: to make a similar or identical version of; reproduce.
Kathleen Nowak Tucci’s multimedium jewelry using polymer and recycled materials will be featured on Season 5 of Netflix’s Grace and Frankie. Follow Kathleen on Instagram and Facebook.
Hummingbird dress photo by East Hill Photo.
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Guest Blog Post by Alison Lee
How much fun to be a guest blogger and share with even more readers about art, craft, and inspiration. Thank you, Sage.
I’m not a polymer clay artist but a polymer clay enthusiast to be sure. Of course, it is always to my delight to have a polymer artist join us at CRAFTCAST.com to teach and share their techniques and passions. It’s a privilege to have watched hours of artists’ demonstrations while preparing for our online classes!
The artist I wanted to share today is Tanya Mayorova. I think she started following me first on Instagram and I followed back.
I don’t know a lot about her except that she is Russian and I love what she creates. As soon as I saw this necklace of Tanya’s, though, I was hooked. She uses polymer clay, beads, cord, hardware, agate, wood, and wire. The color palette makes me long for a jaunt to the beach and the textures and shapes simply make me smile.
These “boho beads” spoke to me as well. The colors and patterns are just scrumptious. I love getting a glimpse into other people’s color palette choices. It’s a peek into someone’s visual viewpoint. Always inspiring to me. There is depth and contrast in her choices of color and design, plus an overall golden glow that adds a royal elegance. Her findings compliment the beads as well.
Enjoy her Instagram page and her website.
Alison Lee runs www.CRAFTCAST.com, an online resource for polymer clay and other craft tutorials with master artists and teachers from around the world.
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Guest Blog Post by Stéphanie Kilgast
Justyna Wołodkiewicz mixes embroidery with polymer clay in an always poetic way.
She seamlessly binds traditional arts to very contemporary ones, resulting in often abstract and always mesmerizing works of art.
Her work vacillates between organic shapes and precise geometry with a dash of oddity. Eyes and sad or sleepy faces often inhabit her embroidery hoops.
Her world is one of colors, and she effortlessly mixes hues and shades, giving each sculptural work a different set of emotions.
Her artist’s name, “Nibyniebo,” translates into “just like the sky,” and just like the sky, her work is an evidence of poetry that will resonate within you.
You can follow her artistic journey on Instagram and also buy certain of her pieces on her website.
Stéphanie Kilgast shares and teaches her craft through video and online tutorials. Find them at www.petitplat.fr and follow her on Instagram @petitplat.
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