The Party is in Full Swing. Come join us!
May 31, 2023 Polymer community news, The Polymer Arts magazine news
What party is this? The latest project from little ol’ me, Sage. The Sage Arts podcast is more than up and running… I have 25 episodes up as of this posting, ready on your favorite podcast player (New to Podcasts? Click here to find out how easy it is to enjoy them!) and a new one coming out every week.
What’s This Podcast All About?
This podcast is all about feeding and exciting your muse. By enlightening or reminding you about important and maybe unconsidered aspects of creating and living as an artist, I hope to help you find more joy and satisfaction in what you do, sharing ways to create with authenticity and fearlessness, while supporting your uniquely defined version of success.
Now what the heck does that all mean? Well, let’s look at what this is and what this is not…
It IS…
… a way to consistently feed your muse
… all about you. Myself, my guests, and my guest co-hosts speak to the issues, curiousity, and hurdles that you as a creative deal with on a regular basis.
… focused on creating a more fulfilling, joyful, and meaningful artistic journey.
… a conversation that goes both ways with lots of opportunities for you to be heard.
It is NOT…
… all about polymer clay or any one medium, as it’s important stuff for all artistic folks.
… focused on “how-to” or the latest tools and materials.
… just interviewing successful artists and talking at you. Rather it is like a coffee house chat or other friendly gather and I include you, the listener, in every way I can.
I created this podcast to supercharge your creativity, motivation, and artistic style through novelty, story, conversation, and community. Everyone has how-tos and ways to increase your sales – valiant and necessary stuff, of course! But what does your muse need? What does your work and your love of your art need to thrive? That’s where I want to help.
I aim to give artists ways to further hone their unique voice, increase their joy and productivity, and create a version of artistic success that is meaningful, satisfying, and anything but ordinary.
Come Join the Conversation
If you have something to share, would like to be a guest (for a chatty interview), or be a guest co-host (you and I banter on a particular subject) drop me an email me via my contact page on the show website: https://thesagearts.com/contact/ or send a voice mail (use the red button on that same site, bottom right corner of any page.)
And join me on social media!
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thesageartspodcast/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TheSageArtsPodcast
And don’t forget to click “FOLLOW” or that little arrow on your favorite Podcast player so you get notices of new episodes. New Episodes come out weekly on Friday evenings, barring natural disasters or other bits of interference, of course. I hope you’ll join me there, on The Sage Arts podcast!
There are new artists and creatives joining every day with tons of great things to say…
“Just what I needed!”
“I just binged-listened … and I can’t wait for more!”
“There is so much validity in your presentation…”
“Looking forward to all the thinking and creating that they prompt.”
Taste test on my RSS website: https://rss.com/podcasts/thesagearts/
Or on the podcast home website: https://thesagearts.com/
Or start with this episode:
Moving Art & My New Direction
January 3, 2021 Design lessons, Polymer community news
After all the talk of repetition and rhythm last week, it is only natural that we should discuss a concept I have casually brought up numerous times already—the concept of movement and its role in design.
Movement can be found in a single element or can refer to the whole of a composition. It can be implied, such as the sense of gravity pulling on objects set on diagonal lines or the flow of a wavy path of dots. It might be symbolically expressed as in arrows directing the eye or curled lines reminding us of wind. It can also be literal, kinetic movement as seen in the swing of a dangling earring or the moving limbs of a ball joint doll.
Although all those examples are recognized types of movement, you should keep in mind that, as a concept, movement is a range of possibilities. From absolute stillness to a maelstrom of energy, some level of movement is going to be present in your work whether you consciously consider it or not. However, its importance cannot be ignored. Movement does two particularly important things—it creates or restrains much of the sense of energy in the work and it is, usually, key to leading the viewer’s eye around the composition.
(Above) Using polymer marquetry J.M. Syron and Bonnie Bishoff create highly directional lines of branches, densely sweeping up towards the single bird flying through the open space of the sky beyond them.
Movement Through Elements
You can create movement with any element such as lines, marks, color, and texture in order to convey the degree of movement desired. Lines are the most obvious because they can be so insistently directional and our eyes follow them like paths. Marks can be arranged to create lines or can create a sense of movement by a progressive change in density, from sparse to crowded. Texture can be manipulated in the same progressive way.
Color can be a little trickier but can definitely still convey movement through the use of light versus dark values or saturated versus dull. Light and bright colors feel more dynamic and can accentuate a sense of movement while dull and dark colors tend to feel heavy and more inert.
In the brooch here by Sabine Spiesser, movement is created by line, form, and balance. The form in black is a blunted arrow heading left, the movement in that direction reinforced by the echo in the shape of the red line and the direction of the black lines connecting them. The textured form also creeps over the red line in that same direction. In addition, the balance favors a lean to the left with the heaviness of the black form but the broader gold and red side pulls it back, giving the impression that only the weight of the larger form is holding the black boomerang from taking off.
Movement Through Principles
As you may recall from previous lessons, movement is conveyed with these elements primarily through various concepts of design.
For instance, last week we saw how a sense of movement can be created by employing types of rhythm such as flowing (using wavy or curly lines) or progressive rhythm (such as colors going from bright to dull or marks going from sparse to dense).
Don’t forget that rhythm also creates tempo which is all about a sense of speed and the passing of time, and speed is about nothing if not about movement.
The concept of balance will also establish degrees of movement. A centered composition tends towards stillness while asymmetry can create a pull as our minds mentally try to move objects towards more grounded positions or a logical equilibrium.
Even the concept of proportion can affect the degree of active movement. Elements of equal proportion can convey inactivity while uneven proportions can be used to produce a sense of movement through space or larger objects bearing down on smaller ones.
Aleksandra Micic uses line to create a swirling movement, densely packed at the bottom of her pendant where the tempo seems fast compared to the area of open space above, but the dark, heavy colors weight that energy down in a way that quiets the movement. The light and brighter flowers would increase the energy but for their widely spaced placement which, again, slows the tempo down, giving the pendant a reserved energy that moves languorously underneath the delicate, twinkling appearance of the blossoms.
Movement and Intention
So, when designing your work, consider how much movement you would like to see. It should come up with the same question as to how much energy should the piece have to best convey your intention.
A piece reminiscent of a lazy day at the beach would probably have calm energy and therefore minimal movement. If trying to capture the bustle of the big city, you’d probably be going for high energy and a very active sense of movement.
No matter what degree of energy you want in a piece, the sense of movement it has is going to be a primary visual conductor of that energy. And since so many other elements and concepts feed the sense of movement, you may want to ask yourself while making your design decisions not just how your decisions will fulfill your intention but how they will create the degree of movement that your intention requires.
Geez, that sounds heavy. And, yes, movement is very important but is also extremely fun and fulfilling to create.
So, don’t be afraid to spend a little time planning or manipulating elements to increase or decrease, as needed, the sense of movement in your piece. Just an awareness of the movement in your work can reveal so many exciting opportunities for your design.
New Year, New Directions
Okay gang. Here we are, finally, out of 2020 and into a new year that I think we can be quite hopeful for. For many of us, this past year has been one of the hardest years in our lives. For me, and I expect a lot of you as well, 2020’s hardships got a lot of us doing some soul-searching as the trials and tragedies we watched or endured gave us a different perspective on our lives and on our world.
That got me looking back at the past two years of changes I’ve made to the business. Those changes were not only to relieve the physical toll it took on me but in hopes of giving myself more time for my own artwork and writing projects. That hasn’t worked out as I’d hoped, especially with all the wrenches thrown into things this past year. So, this year, I’ve decided, is going to be the year of prioritizing my own creative work.
Unfortunately, that means I need to reduce what I do under Tenth Muse Arts and to that end, I am making these changes:
- The next 4 Mini-Mags will be the last for the foreseeable future. These will wrap up the Principles of Design lessons, ending on January 20th. The Devotee Club will close after the last mini-mag.
- I will still blog, although just every other week starting this month. I will continue building on your design knowledge plus share what I am making and writing.
- There is a hold on art book production for at least for the first half of the year.
- The shop will stay open and I’ll put out a newsletter when there is news or I plan a sale.
- I’ll continue coaching and am looking into offering periodic group coaching and/or critiquing sessions once I have my own work going.
I’ll keep in touch on this blog and in newsletters so I’m not disappearing. Just resetting my priorities. I have some challenging mixed media art I want to try and I aim to finish a novel I have been working on for years. Well, I’m actually going to rewrite the whole thing so I have some serious work ahead!
I do feel this time with my own work will benefit you as well as myself since getting back to a more creative life will give more authenticity and depth to what I share with you. If I can renew the joy in my own work, I should be better able to help you find more joy in your own in all the things I share in the future.
So, let’s see what great things we can bring about in 2021!
–Sage
You can support this blog by buying yourself a little something at Tenth Muse Arts or, if you like, just …
A Lack of Absolutes
October 25, 2020 Design lessons, Polymer community news
Do you feel, or have you felt, that design is a very confusing subject? I wanted to ask because as of next month, we dive into the PRINCIPLES of Design. We’ve been working on Elements thus far. Yes, there are two categories to define the ways we use design. So, before I go further, let’s define those.
Elements of Design – the components used to create designs. They are like the ingredient in a recipe, only they are not the materials or tools you use but rather the individual elements you create with them.
Elements of Design (my list for mixed media arts) include:
-
- Line
- Marks
- Color
- Shape
- Form
- Texture
Principles of Design – the concepts used to arrange and organize the elements of design. These are like the methods and choices used to combine the ingredients in a recipe in order to create the desired outcome.
Principles of Design (as I am going to teach it here) include:
-
- Balance
- Movement
- Contrast<->Variety
- Emphasis<->Hierarchy
- Repetition<->Rhythm
- Scale<->Proportion
- Unity<->Similarity
Don’t they look so manageable in those simple lists? Well, Elements does, I’m sure. Principles … they are concepts, so they’re more complicated. But don’t worry. I’ve been fiendishly sneaking them in all along so you are actually familiar with many of them if you’ve been reading my blog even for just this year. Just in the last couple months, I’ve been drilling in the ideas of contrast, similarity, movement and even a bit about scale.
There may be two separate lists above but they are completely dependent on each other. You can’t use principles with out the elements to create with and you can’t create with elements without the principles pushing you, consciously or unconsciously, towards the beauty and satisfaction that comes from a good design.
The Ultimate List of Design
Now, you may be asking yourself, why are the notations above about these lists my version? Aren’t these things standardized? Well, unfortunately, they are not and that’s the crux of the problem I want to peel open today.
When I talk about elements and principles of art and design, I’m giving you what I believe would be the best set of these for what we do in polymer and mixed media art. If you go online and search for just a list of the Principles of Design, you will find everything from a list of 5 up to a list of 20 principles. That’s pretty crazy!
It is understandable when some people think one or two things don’t belong on a list but when you regularly get this whole range, with some items paired up (like I did above) and others listing those same paired items as separate and distinct concepts, it can really make you wonder how you will ever learn the “right” set of concepts?
To make it simple (but possibly no less frustrating), I’m here to tell you there is no single ultimate list of elements or principles of design. And, no, it’s not because people have different opinions, although they do, but it has to do with the type of creative work each source assumes the reader will be considering.
These lists of elements and principles change to best serve the medium the writer or instructor assumes you, the reader, are dealing with. For instance, in painting and illustration, value is its own element discussed outside of color because value is what allows painters to define dimensionality, space, and perspective in the work. Our work in craft is primarily dimensional to begin with which is why I simplified my list to included value as part of the color element discussion.
Likewise, mark making in crafts is extremely important while mark making in graphic design is nearly nonexistent or is replaced with the concept of motif or pattern. And motif is an extremely important element in interior design but it is usually a side note, if even that, in fine arts.
So, all those lists out there are customized and created for the particular creatives the creator of the list believes will be using it. Right? Right!
I just wanted to clarify that before we jump in the principles of design so if any of you have learned or been taught something different than the list I’m going to give you, you understand why. I do believe my lists will best serve you as a mixed-media artist but you are welcome to build your own as needed.
The bottom line here… Don’t worry about whether you’ve got design terminology down precisely. Worry about understanding the concepts, identifying them, and working with them.
Ack! What’s a Creative to Focus On?
If all these lists and their imprecise ways make you feel like you’re going to hyperventilate, take heart. When it comes down to it, there are really just a few things you need to focus on as I can distill what I am trying to teach you into just three things. If you concentrate on these, you can just read my posts and the club’s mini-mag content and all this design knowledge will work its way into your brain by osmosis:
Your Artistic Keys:
- Create with intention, whatever that means to you.
- Draw your intention from that authentic and unique core that is you.
- Aim to make conscious, intentional design choices on every aspect of your work.
If you can do these three things, you can and will be an incredible and fulfilled artist. The rest – the terminology, concepts, elements and such – you can gather like you do art supplies. You pick them up as you can and then use them at every opportunity that makes sense. It would be great if you actually thought of them as new shiny tools and materials on your studio table. They can be, and usually are, the most valuable tools you have at hand.
The End of Free Lessons is Nigh!
In the coming months, the Principles of Design lessons, although they will continue to appear here in some fashion, will be largely moving to the weekly Devotee Club mini-mags. I need to start transitioning the bulk of my content to the Club content as the full free lessons were intended just to help get us all through this tumultuous year, but I do have to get back to bringing in the funds so I can keep at it!
So … if you have been enjoying the lessons you’ve had here in recent months, come join the club! Not only will you be getting the full lessons, but I also have a lot of other content from tips on living a creative life to community news to subscriber only specials and first dibs on new products.
And for the rest of this month, get a 14 day free trial! Offer ends October 31st.
(By the way, the Success Club, which combines coaching with the weekly content, is full, in case you are wondering when you get to the page and don’t see it to add to the cart. I am taking names for the waiting list only at this time.)
Come support your design knowledge, creative growth, and these Tenth Muse Arts projects with a subscription to the Devotee Club. Just click here.
Line Dependent
April 19, 2020 Inspirational Art, Polymer community news
Have you been able to spend any productive time in the studio this week? I’m finding that, for the most part, either people are busier than ever (myself included) or are having a hard time drumming up the motivation to create. It’s really no wonder, being this is such a strange time, with our routines thrown not to mention being unable to make plans or feel certain about the future.
Being a home-based business owner, I’m always busy and I’m always home so the transition to the stay-at-home orders is not difficult but since everyone else’s life has been thrown, mine has as well. I’ve been hearing the same story from many of you as most artists work from home and, even if sales are waning, we have a lot to figure out to keep our businesses afloat or at least on a sustainable hiatus. Then there’s all these additional things we do now such as trying to keep in touch with friends and family and all the inventorying and planning of our situation at home to secure our necessities and well-being that really eats away at the day.
If that’s your situation, I’m with you! This drastic change in our lives really gets you thinking about what is necessary and what is not because we all are time strained, financially strained, or both. No wonder it’s hard to get the mojo going to create.
I think feeding our creative selves is still very important though. You create out of some internal necessity and although you may be distracted now, you are going to want to access that creative well of yours in the not too distant future, maybe to be distracted in a different way or as a means for processing what is happening or to add beauty and joy to your world when it is feeling in short supply. Just don’t feel bad or guilty if you aren’t creating finished work in the studio, even if you have the time. You can keep that creative well full in other ways such as reading blogs (you know, like this one maybe) or magazines or books, watch inspiring videos, shows, or movies on creativity, art ,or artists, visit museums virtually, or do more mindless but expressive creative work like doodling, dancing, or stream of consciousness writing.
Of course, I want to help you wherever I can while also attending to my creativity and my family’s needs. So, again this week, and possibly for the rest of our shut-in time, I am going to be sharing a pared down version of the Virtual Art Box’s Weekly Nudge content so I can still bring you creative food for thought while keeping my work load in check. I am also going to start working on the Artist’s Salon discussion idea (more on that at the end of this post) and I’ve added a section to the newsletter just called Grins and Giggles with fun and interesting tidbits I find during my weekly research sessions in the world of art. (You can sign up for the newsletter here if you don’t get it already.)
So, hang out with me when you have the time and we’ll keep our creative wells filled and take care of what we need to take care of. Now, onto ideas about this month’s theme – Line!
All in on Line
Have you been noticing line as a design element more readily this past week or two? It’s such a strong and expressive element of design that it’s bound to be a part of any thing that uses design at all. You can even make entire pieces were line is the overriding if not only prominent design element. Let’s me show you what I mean.
Take canes for instance. Lines, either in boundary form where clay is wrapped around components to better define them, or the edge where two colors meet, are immensely important in cane designs. Without dimensionality of any sort, line is the one thing that allows a cane to present pattern and imagery. An entire cane design, including the level of energy, can be solely dependent on the lines created.
Meg Newberg is a master at using line to create energetic patterns. Take a look at this cane she calls a flower doodle (doodles are becoming quite the thing this month!). It has tremendous energy as well as dimensionality. The optical illusion is accomplished through a combination of variation in color value and the use of lines to define and energize the layers that seem to be popping out of the design. But she only uses one color plus white and black, so line really carries this design.
A more dimensional example of a line dependent design would be quilling. Although more commonly done in paper, the formation of pattern and imagery with strips set on their sides after being curled and folded has also been mastered by a number of people working in polymer. Beth Petricon was the first person I was aware of that worked out a technique to do quilling with polymer. She even wrote a very detailed tutorial article on how to create your own quilling masterpiece in the Spring 2015 issue of The Polymer Arts. You can see how she uses the technique for both a necklace, below, and the book cover that opens this post, showing it’s (literal) flexibility in different applications.
There is no reason why, with all the ways that you can create line, that you shouldn’t mix up the many variations of line as well. In this brooch by Kathleen Dustin she has at least a half-dozen types of line creating the texture, movement, and focus of the brooch. The shapes and judicial use of color are integral to the design as well, but the lines dominate and create the energy and atmosphere.
Now that you have a few more ideas about how you might use line in your work, how about exploring some line only designs? In fact, if you have kids at home and you’re looking for ways to entertain them, why not teach them about line? I can tell you from my many years of experience teaching and training that the instructor can learn just as much as the student through the process of teaching.
Using the article from the Virtual Art Box, you can demonstrate to your kids – be they preschoolers or teenagers or just big kids at heart –the different types of lines and then ask them what they think each type of line feels like. Then ask them to draw lines (in clay or on paper) based on specific words and/or have them create patterns or drawings with just lines. I actually did this in an introduction to art class in the high school where did my student teaching eons ago and was surprised at how intensely they got into it. This type of project is really just a kind of advanced doodle in that it has concepts and parameters to jumpstart it but is otherwise free form. It can just be a lot more fun to do it in a group.
And if you don’t have kids at home to do this with, dial up your friends and just do this, or other projects, online together. The camaraderie might just be what you need to get your creative juices flowing if motivation has been in short supply, along with everything else.
The Results Are in
Thanks to all of you who took part in the survey for the Artist’s Virtual Salon idea. The overwhelming response was that people were up for listening to such a discussion but participating in a live event is not necessarily on the top of everyone’s list. Perhaps we are all a little worn out from our packed Zoom schedules—there has been an initial zealousness to stay connected with friends and family plus so many of us are virtually conferencing for work but after a month full of online chats, perhaps we need a break from the scheduled screen time.
However, readers sent fantastic such questions, so I do really want to get together with some of the artists that reached out to me about participating and answer some of those questions. Just recording it should also keep it simple on the technical end. Assuming I can wrangle up the artist for the discussion, I hope to get back going by the beginning of May and then I’ll get them posted, most likely on the blog, so be sure to check in and I will keep you apprised of the project.
Sharing the Love … and some deep Savings!
If you need further inspiration, get in on the 30% off Sale going on at the website to scoop up great magazine back issues, project books, and retrospective books. Just hope over to Tenth Muse Arts and browse. Discount is good on anything in the shop that isn’t already discounted (basically no discounted packages or VAB subscriptions) and the sale is on until April 30th.
Use the promo code: SHARE30
Now off to get some spring gardening done. My vegetable seedlings are anxious to get into the ground and the battle with the spring weeds is in full swing. It’s also a salve for the soul, to be outside in the sun with my hands in the dirt, creating a satisfying arrangement of newly planted seedlings in the raised beds we set up down near our little creek followed by a triumphal foray plucking weeds, root and all, from the rain soaked soil. Maybe that’s not everybody’s idea of a good time but I have to say, I’m looking forward to it.
I hope you have something wonderful to look forward to this weekend and in the coming week. I wish you a safe, healthy, and creative week.
Markedly Punctured
March 29, 2020 Inspirational Art, Polymer community news
How is everyone holding up out there? I’m guessing that most of you reading this are not bored. That is one of the advantages of being a creative – we have tons of ideas to work on and a great imagination to work with so let’s keep at that!
I’ve not only had a busy week, I have also been under the weather. Is it the coronavirus? Probably. I have had most of the symptoms, although none too severe, and my husband spent hours in close quarters with someone hospitalized for it not long after while I have rarely left the house but was super cautious when I did, being the (then) annoying lady in line asking everyone to stay 6 feet away from her. I got through the illness with tons of vitamin C and other immune support supplements (having a nutritionist in the family is really helpful!) while my husband never showed signs so we are all good here and I just have that dry cough hanging on. It did, however, slow me down this week.
So, I’m going to share with you a slightly pared down version of the one thing I completed this week which was the Virtual Art Box weekend nudge. So, if you got your VAB nudge yesterday, you’ve seen this, not that a second read isn’t useful!
In the VAB this month we talk about a rather basic but very important design element, the mark. This last weekend of the month, I want to talk about a rather common mark although it’s rarely thought of in those terms. Most of you would simply call them holes. This refers to any kind of puncture that goes through (or nearly through) the material or form that you’re working with.
I, like many people, am fascinated by holes. You can see things through them, revealing layers, depth, and the space beyond. They draw the eye. Think about traveling past caves in a canyon wall or passing an open window. You try to look in, if even just briefly, don’t you? Think of the hollow in a tree trunk or the big holes in a piece of artisan bread. You take notice of these, I bet.
This is why holes are such strong marks. They will be noticed. If there is just one or a spare few, they usually become focal points. When there are many, we usually try to take them all in, see into and through them all. That causes our eye to wander all over the piece, peeking in at all the open spaces. But small holes used as marks are particularly intriguing because we have to take a closer look to see in and beyond them, inviting the viewer to get a bit more intimate with the piece.
Let’s look at a few examples and pay attention to how you look at them. How strongly are you drawn to the holes? Can you imagine the piece without those puncturing marks? How would it change the piece if the holes were just surface marks and not punctures?
We can start with the opening image – a brooch with some variation in hole marks by Sabine Spiesser simply titled, Reef 1. What draws your eyes first? It might be the red, being a strong draw itself, but did you stop to look into the little holes?
Sona Grigoryan’s holes nearly take over her pieces sometimes, as in these brooches.
Sometimes holes become edges, as readers discovered in February in the Virtual Art Box with the featured pin lace technique, but in the enameled piece by Danielle Embry that opens this post, we can see through them clearly to the bright yellow background beyond. This brooch made 10 years ago, and I didn’t know when I picked it that she had titled it “Corona”, but it feels visually metaphorical for us all right now. Kind of gives me shivers actually.
Holes as marks don’t have to be round or organically scattered as most of the above are. They can be any shape and can be orderly, even to the point of creating an image as show in this ceramic bowl by Annie Quigley who does nothing but make holes in her ceramics.
Okay, now it’s your turn to find holes being used as marks. Go look at work in your studio and see if you use holes and if so, how do you use them? Are they used as marks or for functional purposes or maybe you don’t know or recall your intention with those holes?
If you’re not seeing holes in your work, I would normally say go out and look for them at galleries and shops, but most of us can’t and shouldn’t be doing that kind of thing. So how about a virtual tour. Or 30? Click here to get a list of virtual tours. This list is actually more than museums which I thought was neat in case you have young ones with you that might really enjoy a virtual tour of an aquarium or zoo. There are some wonderful places to virtually visit here.
Ok, now to go rest up for a bit as I have much to write this coming week between sewing masks and keeping up with isolated family and friends. (We have THE busiest social schedule we’ve ever had, and its all virtual!) Please, everyone take care of yourselves and make the most of your indoor time with a lot of creative exploration!
https://www.craftcast.com/ 30% off code: Spring2020
Christi Friesen free play days, next one on Sunday
A Voice Inside (Big Sale Inside too!)
March 15, 2020 Inspirational Art, Polymer community news, The Polymer Arts magazine news
How often have you heard that you need to hone your artistic voice? It’s a bit of a catch phrase in the art world, a nebulous goal that sounds like it will herald your arrival into the art world as a “real artist”. Well, although I am one of those who talks about artistic voice a lot, I thought I’d put the record straight and just say … you don’t need to develop a unique artistic voice to create meaningful work.
It’s true. The need to develop a creative voice isn’t for everyone as it rather depends on why you create. Some people simply enjoy the process of creating or have an intense passion to acquire new and better skills. If that’s you, then fabulous! Go at it and don’t worry about a unique voice. Just create what you like but don’t copy (or don’t sell or teach those pieces if you do.) Do hone your skills so the work goes more smoothly and so you can enjoy your creative time that much more.
If however, you are one of those who have something to say or something they need to pull from inside themselves and put out into the world, then having a particular voice, versus just muddling around with the styles and inspiration of artists you admire, is rather important. Your particular voice is a pathway to self-expression and sharing your vision with the world. Even so, I don’t think you should put undue pressure on yourself to find that voice. I know… I sound rather contradictory, but the fact is, if you put in the work, learn the skills, follow your true passions, and work with a particular intention always in mind, your voice will come out of its own accord.
I don’t know why people go on about the need to be unique so much. We all are unique already! There is no one else in the world quite like you so there is no reason to try to be, or create, something that will make you more unique than you already are. If anything, we need to lose those crippling preconceptions of ourselves and how we need to be or act in order to find a more authentic sense of self. (That would be a discussion for another time, though!)
So, keep in mind, a discussion of creating a unique voice has nothing to do with becoming a unique person. Rather, it is about determining what, if any, mode of expression you want to explore in order to share yourself, your passion, and your vision with the world.
Voices Calling
Who do you know of that seems to create with that kind of authentic voice? Think on that for a second. Then ask, why does their work come across as unique and personal or as a passionate mode of self-expression?
Asking myself those questions, I just have dozens and dozens of artists that come to mind and probably as many reasons why. I really believe that polymer clay draws some very unique people due to its broad range of possibilities which leaves so much room for expression as well as room to reach into the realm of other materials and approaches.
For instance, is there anyone else that you’ve seen that does the range of work that Wendy Wallin Malinow does? It’s really different, a bit macabre (or sometimes more than a bit), and utterly fascinating. What I personally really love about her work is that she creates in absolutely whatever medium fits her purpose. Polymer clay is one she returns to time and again, but really, no material is off limits to Wendy.
Here is a collection of nests of by Wendy that I got a photo of at the Racine Museum in 2017. The upper left one is cut from copper, the one on the right (if memory serves me well) is created from polymer and paint, and the third is a detailed pencil drawing. Wendy seems to explore ideas and materials simultaneously, but lets the project determine the possible material, not the other way around. That distinction can be so necessary when feeding your own voice as, ideally, you don’t want to restrict your options simply because you identify with one material more than others.
Wiwat Kamolpornwijit also comes to mind as a really authentic voice, primarily because his artwork developed out of pure exploration while learning the material for a purely charitable reason. He had not set out to be a jewelry artist but was merely looking for a way to raise money for a cause he deeply believed in. But then the need to raise money continued and so the creating never stopped. His distinctive look came out of a natural progression in his process as he picked up skills and developed ideas out of a self-imposed necessity. As I understand it, he never aimed to create a distinctive voice, it just manifested itself from all the work he put into his craft and from letting his curiosity lead his designs. The result is that his award winning work is always easily recognizable. Below is a collection of his pieces from the Smithsonian Craft show in 2018.
Meredith Dittmar is another artist that is definitely on her own path. She too moves between materials, largely polymer and paper, in order to fulfill the needs of her projects and vision. It’s interesting to see though how polymer is sometimes treated like paper in a very flat manner, while other times, paper is rolled and folded to become more dimensional. The piece opening this post is listed as mixed media although I think it is primarily polymer. You can see how some pieces of it could be (and may be) paper. And below, she had to be working with some construction materials as well as paper and polymer, for this huge installation piece at the KAABOO Del Mar 2018 festival in southern California.
These are just a few of the people that have intrigued me over the years with their unique expression and sense of authenticity. By the way, the reason I can make rather certain statements about these artists is because they were all interviewed for articles in The Polymer Arts at some point. You can read more about Wiwat’s intriguing path to art in the Spring 2017 issue, about Wendy’s color approach in the Winter 2013 issue, and get a peek at Meredith’s process and studio in the Summer 2018 issue of The Polymer Arts.
Coaxing Your Authentic Voice
Okay, so I have an idea to help you bring out your authentic voice but it’s going to sound like a sales pitch because, well, it is although that’s not my primary motive. I want to help people find a place of joy, solace, and accomplishment in their personal creative endeavors. That’s my passion! My publications and projects happen to both help you in your creative pursuits and helps me pay few bills so I can keep doing this.
But let’s talk about you now. If the subject of your artistic voice and identifying your passions or the direction of your artwork is important to you, then you really should join us for the March Virtual Art Box. The VAB is not just another publication–it’s a community and virtual classroom with group creativity coaching that focuses on design education and exploration to help you cultivate the creativity and skills that lead to joy and fulfillment in your creative endeavors. The content applies to all professional and aspiring artists who, like the artists above, want to follow an authentic and fulfilling creative path.
So, come join your kindred spirits (from novices to some really well known and accomplished artists) already enthusiastically digging into their Boxes by snapping up the March box, or both boxes for February and March, available without a subscription if you just want to get a taste. Or jump in feet first while getting significant savings on recurring subscriptions. It’s a minor investment in your art and your creative self – less than a couple cups of coffee and it’ll warm you from the inside for longer, too!
As it does look like most of us will be spending a lot of time at home these next few weeks, it seems like a perfect time to put your spare energy into your creative endeavors. If you join VAB, you will also have access to a deep store-wide discount on all publications on the Tenth Muse website (much bigger than the one below even) and on Christi Friesen PDF tutorials as well!
But if you just want good old magazines and books, well, I want to help you out too. So, here …
“Make Your Own Package” Sale: 25% off $29 or more!
The discount is good on whatever collection of single publications, print or digital, that you put together in your cart when they total $29 or more.
Use coupon code: MYOP2529
Offer good through March 31, 2020. Discount doesn’t apply to sale items, packages, or the Virtual Art Box.
Okay, my dears, I am off to clean the studio so, hopefully, I can get some creative time in this week. I hope everyone is staying safe, staying sane, and keeping in touch with loved ones, especially those that can’t get visitors or go out during this crazy period. This too will pass. We got this!
A Bit Abstracted
March 1, 2020 Inspirational Art, Polymer community news
Have you ever thought about how often polymer work is abstract? Many polymer artists who work in jewelry, wall art, and functional art do not work with recognizable imagery. Quite often polymer artists express themselves with little more than color, lines, forms, and textures. Technically, much of polymer art is decorative art due to so much of polymer craft being created in functional forms (decorative art being defined as functional as well as beautiful), but is there that great a difference between the intuitive arrangement of elements to create mood, impressions, and symbolic meaning in a piece of jewelry and that used in a painting on canvas? Well, no, there’s not, except in how we categorize it.
Unfortunately, that separate categorization, in my view, performs two disservices—it allows for a perceived difference in value (where art that is not functional, created just for art’s sake, is deemed more valuable) and creates a mystique around non-functional abstract art that makes us think we need to “understand” it, while nearly the same thing on a pendant can simply be admired. I find that sad. Why can’t just any piece of art be simply admired without looking for deeper meaning? Let’s look at just a few pieces that you can recognize as similar to familiar polymer work but is not, and use it as a back door to appreciating the inspiration that non-functional art can be for us “decorative” artists.
Abstracted Double-Takes
Take a look at the beautiful mixed media painting by Carol Nelson that opens this post. Can’t you see it as a lovely polymer pendant? Carol’s painting is cracked and textured and layered with metal foil. Is that not a familiar combination in polymer too? I think of the wonderfully crackled and painterly effects of Debbie Crothers’ work like this pendant below when rummaging through Carol’s portfolio.
If you are familiar with the polymer and metal jewelry of Susan Dyer, then this next painting might immediately bring to mind some of Susan’s well-known designs, of which there is one example below. The painting is Squares with Concentric Circles by Vassily Kandinsky.
These two pieces are so similar, you might think the jewelry was a direct translation of the painting but I would guess the designs came either quite independently or wholly unconsciously from the painting.
Much of polymer surface design is about abstract expression. We just immerse ourselves in the color, texture, marks, and mix of materials until we’ve manipulated it into a place that speaks to us. I know that is how I worked on abstract paintings when I had my short stint with those. I imagine that is not too different from what Christine Krainock was about when she created her painting Drifting Away, that you see below.
Now, doesn’t that remind you a bit of some lovely mokume created with translucent polymer and metal leaf, such as in this bracelet by Tatiana Parshikova? It’s a different material but has a similar feel, doesn’t it? That painting would make a lovely bracelet if the painter was so inclined to make her work decorative art.
So, why isn’t our jewelry highly revered abstract works of art? In some arenas it is in its own way but being functional or wearable will likely always be separate from what is often referred to as “fine art”. It really doesn’t matter though. What does matter is that what we often do in polymer can be derived from much larger work hung on walls in museums and galleries. Also, if you’ve been stumped by abstract art but can appreciate the wide breadth of polymer art, you can apply your appreciation of the decorative to an appreciation of abstract paintings–the colors, textures, lines, etc. are used in a similar manner and often with similar goals.
So if you have time this week, maybe you can go to a museum or traipse through some galleries and try to imagine the pieces you see translated into polymer. You might find some amazing inspiration and ideas in work you just hadn’t considered in that way before.
The next Virtual Art Box will be released at the end of the coming week and here’s a peek at the digital cover. Not only will we be exploring our passions, finding one’s unique artistic voice and, the wide world of mark making, I have a couple amazing discount offers for members as well. March is going to be a great month! Come join us if you haven’t already.
Shimmer and Shine
Also, if you haven’t seen the newsletter, I am presently taking submission ideas for tutorials for the next book, Shimmer & Shine Polymer Art Projects. You can get more details by going to this online version of the newsletter if you are interested in pitching an idea.
My apologies for any distracting typos this post. I’ve been a bit exhausted and my dyslexia, usually quite mild, is playing havoc with my proofreading skills. So, I’m off to just relax for a bit before I take up the reins on a busy first week of the month.
Have a beautiful first week of March!
I know I was talking about having the blog once a week, and that is the plan, but for corrections and any really exciting news, I may be dropping in mid-week, like now. Ignore me if you’re busy – I get it!
15% OFF SALE … Only through Friday, Feb. 1
Exciting money-saving stuff first … we are running a spur of the moment 15% off sale on books and back issues including the fabulous Polymer Art Projects – Organic book, and back issues of The Polymer Arts. Subscriptions and single issues of The Polymer Studio are not included in this sale, nor are the All Back Issues packages … but those are 40-50% off instead!
Grab books and magazines in print or digital format at www.tenthmusearts.com through February 1st.
Use Promo Code TMA15
Sampler Flipbook of The Polymer Studio
Now, if you haven’t subscribed or purchased a copy of the new issue of The Polymer Studio, here is a little bit of a tease for you. This link right here leads you to a sampler of most of the first pages of this new issue for you to check out. Find the crossed arrow icon and click to go full screen when you get there for the best view.
Go peek at it and then once your curiosity is piqued, get your full copy on our website to get fully immersed!
New and Missing Mokume links
Now on to an apology … the mokume billet image on Sunday’s post was apparently too small and was fuzzy on many an email and device and the link to the original page was missing. I’m so sorry about that. It’s added in the post now but for those who wanted a closer look, you can find the metal mokume process chart here. Mind you, that chart is in German and is but one method for making such a ring. However, here you can find a mokume video showing another approach, one that could be directly recreated with polymer … hint, hint.
Thank you for your Feedback!
And last but not at all least … I just wanted to thank all of you who left comments about the new blog format. It was a resounding “yes” to the more in-depth once a week approach which so gladdened my heart. And now it is our It’s a great reward for me to see so many of you are enjoying it. So I am excitedly outlining content ideas for future posts but if you want to push for anything in particular, leave a comment below this post (email readers, click here) and I will happily look into it!
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Well hello there! Surprised to see me on a Sunday? Well, I am here because I am trying something different. To start with, you may have noticed that blog posts were missing this past week. My apologies for that. Suffice it to say that my system, and life in general, made me take a break and so it was not until this weekend that I was able to put something together for you.
The funny thing is, I had already been looking at changing the frequency of the blog. We only have so many minutes in the day for all the fun stuff that comes our way and its more likely that we’ll set aside the stuff seen regularly than the rarer offerings. I’ve decided that I’d like this blog to be one of the rarer offerings, making a tiny contribution to the de-cluttering of your email inbox or RSS feed and giving me a chance to put together some juicier posts for you.
So, how does once a week sound? On a weekly post, I can share a couple of pieces of fabulous art along with polymer relevant news and fun takeaways like tips, tutorials links, sales, and discounts from polymer retailers. And how does this Sunday arrival feel? Cynthia already provides us a jumpstart to creativity on Saturday with Studio Mojo, and the weekdays seem a bit overburdened with news and emails and so I propose being a part of your Sunday, giving you a bit of eye candy, inspiring ideas and useful news to start the day or wrap up the weekend. And if the blog comes to you as an email at work, well, it will be there waiting to brighten up your Monday morning.
So let’s get rolling.
Some news first, since it relates to the beautiful mokume you see here … The first issue of The Polymer Studio was released yesterday, Saturday the 19th, and already the response is a glorious hurrah! Whew! The first of anything is always a bit nerve-wracking to put out but feedback has been nothing but glowing so far. If you were expecting to get a digital edition, it went out at the crack of dawn East coast time so check your inbox (and if it’s not there, check your spam folder or write us). Print editions went out in the mail Friday so they are on their way as well.
If you haven’t subscribed or ordered a copy yet, do it soon so you’re not missing out on some really wonderful tutorial projects including this “Kitchen Sink” mokume technique from Julie Picarello. You get the step-by-step on how to make the brooch/pendant you see here as well as how to create the “dropout” pieces you see surrounding it, from the same mokume blocks. Working with the translucent layers to get this intricate mokume is easier than you might think and it’s just too much fun seeing what comes out in your slices.
So, if you haven’t gotten your copy ordered or started your subscription already, you can do so on our website at www.tenthmusearts.com.
I have also been sent a special offer from Helen Breil. She just released a new techniques video class, Six Exceptional Textures, and you can get it now for 15% off! If you have not yet had the pleasure of creating alongside Helen in one of her tutorial books or videos, you do need to treat yourself. She divulges a wealth of tips and ideas in crystal clear and highly detailed instruction. This video class includes step-by-steps, ideas and inspiration for making your own unique handcrafted one-of-a-kind texture sheets in 9 packed videos. Click here to get it. The discount is good through January 31st.
Okay, that is enough news and fun opportunities for this surprise Sunday post. I do have exciting plans for this once a week format so be sure to open it up next week and see what the regular postings will be like going forward. If you want to be sure you get all our news and publication announcements, sign up for our twice monthly newsletter as well. In the meantime, enjoy all the creative things you’ll be trying out when you get your new issue of The Polymer Studio!
Read MoreI was traveling this past week, otherwise I would have posted earlier about the passing of our iconic Elise Winters. I’m sure you have heard the news through other avenues that her battle with cancer ended on New Year’s day but I wanted to post a farewell here.
Although I did not know her well, we did talk and in our few conversations, I found we had some differing views but the details mattered little as we were on the same team, wanting to promote and raise the view of polymer to the level of a fine art wherever we could. My efforts have been tiny ripples to her tremendous waves, however. Elise is the reason we have polymer art in so many museums and, especially, holding its own at the esteemed Racine Art Museum in Wisconsin where polymer is one of the six categories of craft that the museum has placed its focus on. We have so much to thank her for.
Elise’s work is readily recognizable and has never been well replicated. Her combination of Skinner blends and crazed acrylic stripes were coaxed into some of the most unusual and unexpected shapes and forms. Although her ruffled and pillow forms were some of her most widely known pieces, I have always thought the piece you see here was one of her best. It’s a brooch from 2006 called Skinner Inner Brooch. This has a much more direct and grounded energy than her well-known ruffles and its inner reveal of a bull’s-eye cane gives it another dimension, bringing us to consider what is underneath, beyond the beautiful surface.
Movement and energy of this kind were paramount in her artwork and, as we have seen, also in her passion and drive to make polymer a recognized fine art material. I hope there are enough of us to amass a similarly zealous energy to continue the work for which she paved such an integral path for our craft. Thank you, Elise.
For a look back at this legendary artist, jewelry designer, and polymer art advocate you can visit her website here.
From Winter into Spring …
I would also like to put out a reminder that the first issue of The Polymer Studio is set to go to print at the end of this week. If you would like to get the first print copies straight from the printer, be sure to purchase your subscription or single issue pre-order by this Wednesday, January 9th, to get on the direct mail list we give to the printer. The issue will be released on January 19th in digital.
You can look forward to …
Tutorials
- Kitchen Sink Imprint Mokume by Julie Picarello
- Magical Phoenix Feather by Christi Friesen
- Martian Footprints Necklace by Anna Malnaya
- Swoop Pendant by Beatrice Picq
- More is More Fimo Bracelet by Jeannette Froese LeBlanc
- Mosaic Stained Glass Canes by Linda Leach
- Shimmering Scenery Pendant by Sage Bray
Tips
- Mix a Near and Far Color Palette with Tracy Holmes
- Mix it Up with Embossing Powders with Debbie Crothers
- Creative Studio Organization Ideas by our Staff
Inspiration
- Studio Tour: Small Spaces in Germany with Anke Humpert
- In-Depth Artist Profile: Julie Picarello
- Uncommon Clay Artist Profile: Travis Suda
… and much more!
Get your subscription here at www.ThePolymerStudio.com or www.TenthMuseArts.com.
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Today we’re going to do a little bit of business but it is exciting business!
I am so pleased to announce that subscriptions to The Polymer Studio are finally available online. I appreciate your patience while we worked all the kinks out in our new website but yes… there is also a new website! Tenthmusearts.com will house all of our publication information, purchasing, the biggest polymer resource list in the world, and your account if you’re a subscriber. We are very excited about the beautiful new layout and worked to make it as easy as possible to navigate but if you have any suggestions, don’t hesitate to write us.
If you subscribe now, before the end of the month, or you are an existing subscriber to The Polymer Arts rolling over into the new magazine subscription, you will receive a couple of gifts to thank you for your support and to hold you over until January when the first issue comes out: bonus discounts and a video magazine!
Bonus Discounts! Subscribe before the end of the month and we will send out an email with exclusive discounts worked out with some of your favorite online polymer shops. As we enter the holiday season, you can use these discounts to purchase gifts as well as stock up on your own goods all while supporting small independent businesses run by polymer artists and enthusiast like yourself. You’ll get discounts and deals from the likes of Christi Friesen, Shades of Clay, Linda’s Art Spot, Nemravka.cz, Helen Breil, ilove2Craft, Lisa Pavelka, The Whimsical Bead, and Tenth Muse Arts. Give us 1 business day to get that discount email to you.
Video magazine! What is a video magazine? It’s just what it sounds like—a collection of videos on a number of related subjects, collected much like articles in a magazine. This is an idea I started looking into earlier in the year and I will wrap up my first trial edition to share with all new and existing subscribers—you get to be my exclusive viewers who can help me shape this into a possible future publication or bonus material for magazine subscribers. Not sure where this is going yet but it sounded like fun for us all!
For this trial video magazine, you get to hang out with me in my studio and Tenth Muse headquarters for a behind-the-scenes peek at how we put together a magazine, as well as seeing a number of product demonstrations and technique tips. I’m still working out details on the other cool things going into this but I guarantee it will be a great time and should hold you over some until the magazine comes in January. So subscribe now if you’re not already on our subscription list so you don’t miss out.
For more information about the new magazine or to purchase books or back issues, go to the new website at www.tenthmusearts.com.
Read MoreThis week is going to be a series of announcements but I promise, they will all be very exciting, they will all be polymer, and they will all give you something you can look forward to as we move into fall and winter (or spring and summer if you’re down under.)
First up… I can finally announce and show off the cover of the first in an upcoming series of books, Polymer Art Projects. This series arose from your consistent request for more projects and a desire to support and promote our great artists, so, after many conversations, I came up with this cooperative book project. All contributing artists in the book will be part of a promotion and profit sharing team. That means they are highly motivated to provide you with some truly fantastic material on top of looking forward to sharing their love of polymer art.
For less than a couple of dollars each, you get 16 tutorials that will expand your abilities under the guidance of some of the polymer community’s best instructors. The skill level of these tutorials range from the experienced novice to the intermediate artisan, with tips and ideas for polymer crafters of all levels. The tutorials are very detailed, each showing off a variety of techniques, expert construction, and lists of ideas for variation so you can create your own unique pieces from what you learn.
The first in the series, Polymer Art Projects—Organic, includes tutorials by Donna Greenberg, Christi Friesen, Eva Haskova, Anke Humpert, Debbie Crothers, Kim Cavender, Stephanie Kilgast, Chris Kapono, Stacy Louise Smith, Nevenka Sabo, Adriana Allen, Dani Rapinett, Fabiola Ajates, Rebecca Thickbroom, Klavdija Kurent, and little ol’ me. Projects include a variety of jewelry as well as home decor, all inspired by mother nature.
Check out the cover for a sampling of what you can look forward to. The cover price for the print edition of this book will be $23.95 but for the next month, you can preorder for $16.75 – that’s 30% off the cover price. Or maybe you’d like a digital edition which will list for $15.95 – you can preorder the digital edition for just $11.95. These preorder prices are good through October 10th.
Don’t forget the last issue of The Polymer Arts comes out September 22. Preorder this last historic copy on The Polymer Arts website.
Read MoreThe End of a Magazine
I regret to announce that the upcoming Fall issue of The Polymer Arts will be the last issue, in its present form. Thanks to all its wonderful contributors, The Polymer Arts had become a highly influential magazine as well as an amazing and humbling journey for me but fate has pushed me towards other plans.
We wanted to give you the news before we shut down the subscription purchases (back issues and pre-orders for the Fall issue will still be available) and people started wondering. But we didn’t want to leave you on a sad note, so here is the good news!
A small group of very persistent people have pushed me to start a new venture (and are joining me in this in a few cases) that we hope will draw new people to the wonderful world of polymer clay. I’m thrilled to be able to announce that we will be publishing a new magazine for the polymer community, The Polymer Studio, with its first issue scheduled for a January 19th release.
This new magazine will continue to encourage readers to improve their skills and think creatively through quality content such as:
- Inspiring project tutorials from all over the globe, for all levels
- Expert instruction for improving skills and learning new techniques
- Tours inside the studios of unique and well-known polymer artists
- Invaluable studio tips and tricks
- Revealing artist interviews
- New product reviews
- A myriad of inspiring ideas and eye candy
- Regular articles by some of your favorite contributors including Christi Friesen, Ginger Davis Allman, and Anke Humpert, as well as myself.
We hope this new magazine will provide the new to intermediate polymer clay crafter with that regular, affordable creative shot in the arm that has been missing recently in periodicals, helping to fulfill your passion for learning and enjoying this fantastic medium.
Be an Early Subscriber for Discounts and a Special Gift
Subscriptions and pre-orders will be available in a couple of weeks. Go here to sign up to be notified when it goes live. Early subscribers will receive:
- An additional 10% off their subscription
- A very special little gift in November to hold you over until January.
- And the immense appreciation of the staff for your enthusiasm and encouragement.
Sign up for the Purchase & News Notifications here.
Would you like to be published in The Polymer Studio? We still have room in the inaugural issue for a few more project tutorials. If you would like to submit, send your tutorial ideas and a photo or two (or link to photos) to submissions[-at-]thepolymerstudio.com. You can also go to our Contributor Guidelines page for more information.
For The Polymer Arts Subscribers and Fans
Subscribers with ongoing subscriptions to The Polymer Arts will be receiving The Polymer Studios as of January 2019 as well as our little special gift in November to thank you for your patience during this transformation. This also means there will be no winter issue but, as most of you know there will be two books that you can look forward to that will be coming out before the end of the year. Wrapping those up is why production of this first issue will take until January.
If you have any questions about your subscription or the changeover, please write us at connect@ThePolymerArts.com
For those of you who enjoyed The Polymer Arts and all the conceptual articles and discussions, I’m not setting those aside completely. There is another related project on the drawing board that I will be investigating further after the periodical changeover is taken care of. So stay tuned!
If you’re curious about some of the reasons I had to close The Polymer Arts and, instead, started this new magazine, you can read about it on the About page on www.ThePolymerArts.com.
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Yesterday , our community got the sad news that one of our most influential pioneers and a most beautiful person, Tory Hughes, passed away. From the accounts I have heard, she passed peacefully. But we are stunned. Last week, Cynthia Tinapple let us all know she was ill and prayers and positive energies were sent in heaps and droves but, for all that, it was it her time, it seems.
My little family visited with her in Santa Fe just last month. She seemed fine. She told me about her plans and dreams, many involving the kind of charity and hope for others that were such a staple for how she created and taught. It is hard to imagine those plans and dreams are at an end. However, we are all so fortunate and blessed to have had her in our community, to have known her in any big or small way, in person or through her work. Tory didn’t just touch people, she changed them or at least the way they viewed the world.
There simply aren’t words that suffice to embody how so many of us feel about Tory. And so I’m going to just share this piece, that she said had always been one of her favorites and was on the cover of the Winter 2014 issue in which Irene Corman interviewed her on her view of what it is to be an artist and where that came from for her. This here is just a small sculptural piece, not created to be any particular piece of jewelry or type of decor. Just a unique, uncategorizable thing of beauty to wonder at. Like Tory. We’re so going to miss her.
To revisit her work and her words, take some time today on her website, read this lovely biography.
In other news … so you are in the know, the Spring 2018 issue, Big & Small, will be out on February 25th. Keep an eye on your inbox that day if you are waiting on a digital copy . Print editions will have been dropped in the mail the Friday before. If you want to order a copy, get a subscription, or renew a subscription, all that can be done on our website at www.thepolymerarts.com.
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