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:
Elevating the Squiggle
September 17, 2018
Inspirational Art
I recently realized that I don’t think I’ve ever talked about the lowly squiggle. But who doesn’t like a well-done squiggle? I guess it’s hard to take it seriously with such a silly-sounding name but the sound of the word itself describes it so well.
I myself am very fond of squiggles and apply them throughout my work, primarily as accents, but some people take the squiggle to wonderfully elevated levels as the central theme of their piece.
This pin by Petra Nemravová is an excellent example of the squiggle stealing the show. The organization of these wonderfully unruly squiggles brings a regular rhythm to their organic movement. It reins in the rambling energy that this kind of squiggle contains. The bright array of colors, which could also get out of hand, is held in check by a regular graduation from one color to the next, helping to create an energetic but contained feeling.
Petra is such an advocate of bright colors and cheerful compositions. Enjoy a stroll through her colorful world on her Flickr photostream. She is also the genius mind behind the wonderful selections found in the online polymer shop Nemravka, serving the European polymer and craft communities and beyond.
A Bevy of Books
September 14, 2018
Inspirational Art
First of all, a shout out to our friends and colleagues in the Carolinas facing hurricane Florence. Stay safe and, if you had to evacuate, I hope you get to return to your home and studio very soon. We will be thinking of you.
So, as I wrap up this week, I have one more cool announcement about some things to look forward to and one you can get right now!
First of all, just a general observation… there have not been a lot of books out specifically for the polymer enthusiast in the last couple years but our veritable drought seems to be over. As you may have read on Mondays blog, we started presales for the new Polymer Art Projects – Organics book – and what a response! Thank you. Myself and all the artist involved are very happy to see you like the idea well. By the way, it is at the least expensive pricing it will be all year, possibly ever, so if you haven’t done so yet, be sure to jump over to our website to claim your book now and be one of the first to get it when it is released October 22nd.
But also, last weekend on Cynthia Tinapple’s Studio Mojo – an every Saturday shot of news and links on what is going on in the polymer community and beyond – Cynthia announced that she’s working on a new book and revealed that she’s heard whispers about books from both Loretta Lam and Dayle Doroshow as well. If all goes well with this first Projects – Organics book, we well began working on another Polymer Art Projects book for next year. That’s sounding like at least maybe 4 books to look forward to in 2019. How wonderful all this news is!
But if that makes you excited and yet frustrated because none of these books are available yet , there is a book that came out just this past week that you can get a hold of now. Christi Friesen just released her latest book, Do You See What I See, and, lucky me, I already have it in my hot little hands – that is the advantage of pre-ordering (it also helps to be but one county away from Christi Friesen headquarters). And, oh my … what fun this book is! I tried counting how many mini-tutorials and technique tips there are in this book but then I kept running into other fun stuff and would get distracted.
The piece here is probably my favorite found in the book. This woodland river mirror is one of those pieces that you can look back at again and again and find something new each time. Take a close look at the details. Her joyful nature and whimsy can be found throughout this piece from the curls of the clouds to the nibs in the trees to the little creatures tucked in below. It’s a little peek through the eyes of Christi, a view even more illuminated by the observations in this book.
Go to this page to order either or both the print and e-book versions of Do You See What I See. And, while you’re over there, you can stop in on her shop and see what new and nifty things you need for the studio.
Almost Late to Class
September 12, 2018
Inspirational Art
You know those times when you’re so busy that, although you sense something exciting is going on around you, you don’t stop to check it out until it’s too late? That was me these last few weeks. I knew that Dan Cormier’s and Tracy Holmes’ Bioforming class was coming up, but not that registration was nearing its end. Then, in my weekly search for cool polymer goodies to share with you this past weekend, I found this refreshing brooch by Dan and realized I didn’t know what was going on with their class. And guess what? It looked like registration for the class may have come and gone. Could this be true?
Not that I would have time to take it, much less sleep much, this year. If you read Monday’s news, you know about the new Polymer Art Projects – Organics book for which pre-sales started at a discount price on Monday, and you probably know about our new magazine, The Polymer Studio, coming in January, and you may also have heard that the next Polymer Journeys book will be on its way in November, so you know I’m beyond busy! But I wished I’d managed to make the time to tell you about this great new class before it was too late.
But then I thought, maybe it’s not! And a couple emails later and I have for you … drumroll please … a secret back door into a few extra spots Dan and Tracy have kindly opened just for you, my readers!
So, if you’re interested, jump over to this link to sign up for their in-depth Bioforming class. This secret back door will only be ope through this Friday so don’t wait as it is probably your last chance to get in on this.
Even if you can’t make the class, be sure to sign up for their newsletter so you’re one of the first to know when their next fantastic class is available.
In the meantime, here’s a bit of Dan’s latest work. The sophistication and mastery that underlies his approach to form, finishes, and design is all here but the little bouncing balls of color and the fun cactus form gives a humorous edge that is not as common in Dan’s work although, if you know him, is a big part of his personality.
For more on Dan’s work and on the classes Dan and Tracy have been teaching, go to their primary website here.
New book! Polymer Art Projects—Coming October 20th
September 10, 2018
Inspirational Art, Polymer community news, The Polymer Arts magazine news
This 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.
Architecture and Beads
September 7, 2018
Inspirational Art
Eva Maria Keiser found beadwork the way many of us found polymer—serendipitously, without the intention of becoming a bead artist. Somehow she saw in it a way to mix her passion for color and for architecture at the same time and she became obsessed. Familiar story, isn’t it?
Eva Maria pulls together a wide variety of shapes and colors by making every element in her work structural. She has the added advantage of doing it all with small seed beads which, of course, is one thing that will be consistent throughout the pieces. She also works with symmetry, creating symmetrically round forms with all kinds of shapes jutting and growing off the central round containment of the vessel.
But mostly I just love the imagination that is evident in her work. Take a moment this afternoon to take a look at her website and, if you’re into seed beads, she has quite a number of tutorials to share with you.
Keeping Busy
September 5, 2018
Inspirational Art
It has recently occurred to me that 2018 has been a very, very busy year for a lot of people for a wide variety of reasons. I think all this high energy and the complexity of our lives these days may be coming out in much of the work and techniques being used of late.
The Flickr page of Jana Honnerová is one such page that is full of new work and is visually busy but in a wonderful way. Her photostream shows off her explorations in surface texture as well as the completed pieces resulting from some of those explorations. The work is a beautiful mix of of undulating texture and color, reined in with simple but carefully finished forms.
These bracelets here, with the busy surface texture of each bead, have a lot of energy but it’s not overwhelming. One might expect them to be a bit riotous with all that texture and change of color packed into the highly kinetic visuals of swirls. But because of her chosen color palette and the repetition of the evenly spaced beads, all of the same size and form, the energy is controlled, giving each piece that sense of sophistication that is a signature of Jana’s work.
You can see what else Jana has been up to on her Flickr photostream.
A Day for Dots
September 3, 2018
Inspirational Art
In the US today, it is Labor Day. It’s a day to recognize and honor our working citizens. And we do… Most people get the day off as a thank you. Unless you work for yourself and your “boss” is a slave driver. I will join in our tradition of barbecues and games later but I’m working hard and wrapping up the fall issue, finally. It looks fantastic and will be a great send off to The Polymer Arts title. The release date has been set for the 22nd! You can preorder on The Polymer Arts website for the single issue.
In the meantime, whether you are in the US and join the holiday or elsewhere working, I thought I’d share a little something to do when you settle down tonight. I’ve seen these pins by syndee holt before but didn’t realize that Polyform had posted a video tutorial for them. What a fantastic and eye-catching texture this technique creates.
As syndee mentions in the video, this type of work is very relaxing and meditative as well as resulting in a beautiful polymer sheet to cut and use as you please. Her method does require the use of the pearling tool produced by Polyform but if you don’t have the pearling tools, use small hole punchers and seed beads. Click the image to go to the video.
So I’m going to leave you in the capable hands of syndee holt while I go get some more work done before I get a chance to play. Also, you can follow syndee’s experiments and ideas on her blog here. Enjoy your Labor Day or I hope you’ve enjoyed your Monday!
Shimmering in the Darkness
August 31, 2018
Inspirational Art
Sometimes it doesn’t take a lot to express emotion, energy, and atmosphere in such a way as to elicit a response. This necklace was just such a piece for me. It grabbed me as it came across my screen while I was rapidly scrolling through Pinterest and I slammed on the virtual brakes.
It may not speak to you quite so insistently but, then, I do have a penchant for things that are torn and worn down because of the sense of story I see behind them. It’s a twinge of curiosity, the same kind you would have if you saw an old torn dress – you would wonder what happened to it and the person that wore it. You just know there’s a story behind the state it is in. Story is fascinating and important to me, so visual echoes of a story will jump out to me. I imagine it does for this artist as well.
The artist here is Allison L Norfleet Bruenger, a metal jewelry artist who works in very organic shapes and applications. Much of her work is far more involved than this piece, with added color and layers but this necklace, with its dramatic torn edges and missing spaces, doesn’t need a lot of embellishment. It comes across as the remnant of some once functional object now elevated to a focused beauty. The sparkling teardrop, roughly wrapped with copper wire at its point relays a desperate but subtle insistence to raise what it is attached to up from a wrecked piece of metal to something precious in the eye of the viewer. And it does do that for me, and apparently many other people since it was shared around Pinterest quite a bit.
If this kind of work speaks to you, then you may want to take a moment to wander through Allison’s website here or follow her on Instagram.
Small Circles of Joy
August 29, 2018
Inspirational Art
Something else that really speaks to me is an expression of simple joy. Think about some of the favorite moments in your life. They aren’t always—maybe are not even usually—the big elaborate parties or exotic trips. They tend to be little things like that morning your granddaughter snuck out of her bed to come curl up next to you because she was so excited that you were visiting. It’s the time you and your sister laughed so hard at something the dog did that you literally fell out of your chair. It’s the wonder you feel that day in spring when the first flowers show themselves. Simple little joys are such disproportionately delightful and treasured things.
I can’t say for sure that the emotion of simple joy is what Denada Palla intended when she created these sweet little earrings but I can’t imagine, if it’s not, that it’s not something related. The stems the flowers stand on are not straight but wiggle just a little bit like they are starting to dance. The red poppies float to the top of their little canvas like they’re ready to fly off. The movement created by the imperfection of the lines and the proximity of the edge contributes greatly to that sense of joyfulness, as does the not-quite-alike pair. The uncomplicated design keeps that joy front and center.
Denada hails from Greece where she creates simple, floral-inspired jewelry which she sells on Etsy. Her sense of fun and, that which I interpret as joy, comes across on her Facebook page as well.
Eliciting a Response
August 27, 2018
Inspirational Art
I decided this week I would like to talk about work that speaks to me. Well, I don’t mean that I want to talk about me so much as use pieces that do speak to me as examples of what it means when a piece of artwork elicits a response from the viewer.
For various reasons, I ended up thinking and talking a lot about how we define art this past week. I have long felt that art should be defined as work that is made with expression and intention, with a goal of eliciting an intellectual or emotional response. Yes, I know a lot of people will say that it is the individual who should determine what art is to them but I would like to suggest that such a statement is not quite the right phrase. Each of us can determine what is good art or what is bad art—to that I absolutely agree. But shouldn’t a label such as “art” have a more specific definition than just whatever someone thinks is art, or just something that is made by hand, as the definition would seem to be nowadays?
I am guilty of this broad use as well so I’m not pointing fingers, I’m just a big proponent of using language to effectively communicate and I think it would be great if the English language had a well-defined use of the word “art” that allowed us to talk about work born of self-expression versus craftwork or artisan work created from skilled hands.
My definition also brings up the question of what does it mean to elicit a response? It is not as confined a concept as it might sound like so I thought I’d try to define that a little this week.
For a piece of work to elicit a response all it has to do is make the viewer stop and feel something, or stop and think. It could be something as simple as making them smile or as complex as questioning societal norms. It can be positive such as emitting a sense of peacefulness or negative such as work with a high shock value geared to make you appalled or angry. If the piece is made with intention, part of that intention will, consciously or unconsciously, be to communicate with the viewer, and if the artist is communicating then they are attempting to elicit a response. Good art accomplishes this. Bad art is too distracting in its failings to communicate or illicit anything of value.
This piece here feels like a very personal piece for Shannon Tabor who commented on her Instagram post of this that “I’m back to my roots in design with ‘Compass’. My Back To Basics study is over and I’m anxious to get all these design ideas out of my head and onto my clay!”
I can feel her excitement for this new work in the composition and surface treatment of this necklace. There is a buzzing kind of energy from the scratches and the asymmetrical placement of elements but there’s also a reservedness in the basic geometric shapes and the subdued and shaded palette. I found that I was drawn to the contrast between that reserved feeling and that feeling of excitement. It reminds me of that point in time right before things really take off in some exciting new venture, which I love, and so that must be what made me stop and spend time with this piece.
So, you see, Shannon may have been working on something specific to what she wanted to explore but the intention in her skilled design choices allowed me to connect with her emotion, or at least my sense of what her emotion must’ve been. That’s eliciting a response. And to me, that’s what makes it art.
See what else Shannon is up to by following her on Instagram or hopping over to her website.
