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:
Outside Inspiration: A Change in Texture
April 10, 2015
Inspirational Art
Some of the most dramatic focal points are the quiet ones. Like the way a room can be buzzing with conversation and movement as people mingle at a party, but the one person who keeps drawing your eye when you look around is the quiet one, not talking, just leaning up against a wall and watching. That quiet stillness is such a contrast to the rest of the environment and without saying a single word, someone or something can manage to grab all available attention.
This beautiful collar necklace by Laura McCabe demonstrates this wonderfully. The intricacy of the beadwork draws you in, but it’s that single red cabochon that holds your attention and seems to laud over the piece. It’s also what makes all the busy bead work visually manageable as it gives the eye a place to rest. Because of its contrasting calm, not to mention its central position, the viewer will constantly be drawn back to it. It’s one strong focal point in a very dramatic piece.
This is one of Laura’s older pieces, so the only thing I have for you to investigate if this particular style appeals to you is the blog I originally found this on, The Secret Life of Jewelry, which is an awesome spot for finding great art jewelry, by the way. Laura’s more recent work takes on a kind of punk aesthetic with a lot of pointy beads and darker colors. It’s very lovely work whether that is your thing or not. You can find her more recent work on her newer website
.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
Dramatic Open Space
April 9, 2015
Inspirational Art
Dramatic focal points don’t need to be shiny, bright, high contrast, busy or have anything much at all. In fact, negative space – the space between, around, or within elements – can create very elegant and dramatic focal points. Here is one such example by the talented Mathilde Colas.
The necklace uses a ring of combined textures to frame the negative, which is accented with a heavily textured bead. Although the bead sits in the center, the focal point here is the empty space itself. The ring and bead just define it and assist in drawing your eye to it, as well as bouncing your focus around the center composition and back out towards the beads on the rest of the necklace. I couldn’t find a straight-on shot that offered a more dramatic image, but I think you get the idea, right?
Empty space is actually one of the more dramatic focal points you can use because humans do have a thing for empty spaces–we tend to want to know what was there, why it’s empty and what might fill it. Enclosed negative spaces like this are reminiscent of windows looking out on the world, of welcoming open doors, of caves, boxes and tunnels with dark, unseen interiors. Open space is a mystery and an opportunity. Who wouldn’t be intrigued?
Mathilde does drama in bold and curious forms with many little surprises in her combinations and accents. Have fun buzzing around the spaces on her website!
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
Drawn to the Drama
April 8, 2015
Inspirational Art
Shimmering and shiny or high contrast are not the only way to make a focal point stand out. Texture and lines can bring our focus to the prime point in a piece as quickly as anything else. In this very curious brooch/necklace piece, Russia’s Radada combines pieces of paua (abalone) shell and textured polymer in such a way that it’s hard to distinguish which is shell and which is polymer. But from the lines on the bordering form to the dense texture in the center, all the elements are drawing us to the large center piece.
This focal point is not a well-defined gem or form, but its lack of contrasting definition doesn’t work against it; quite the opposite. I think it will make most, if not all, viewers step in for a closer look. There is a lot going on here, and the more time you spend with it, the more you’ll see. The piece is very dramatic even without any heavy contrast. But, I think that is where the balance comes in. It feel so dramatic, but even more so for its bold form and heavy texture. The colors and the way the textures blend keep it from going overboard.
Radada’s LiveJournal photostream is full of these organic and amorphous forms. And felted bunnies among other curiosities. It’s a bit of a crazy mix, but a fun bit to explore.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
The Spark in a Heart
April 7, 2015
Inspirational Art
A focal point can pop without a lot of shimmer or shine. This poor, but beautiful, little heart looks like it’s been through a rough time or two or ten. But, it has this one bright spot on its battered surface–an off-white accent that almost glows against the deep, dark colors of the rest of the heart.
This kind of real world heart is the creation of Greece’s Helen P. of Eleins Kingdom on Etsy. It’s kind of difficult to pull our glance from the one light colored spot here, but there is also a bit of lovely filigree work to pull you to the left side with a network that includes some lighter showings within some canes. But still, that one spot, out in the open landscape of this heart, draws the eye back. Here it is the contrast in color and value situated in a relatively open space that makes this focal jump out. A simple technique, but a very effective one.
Helen has many more of these kinds of hearts, as well as other charming pieces to catch your eye in her Etsy shop.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
Popping Focals
April 6, 2015
Inspirational Art
Who doesn’t like a little drama? Well, with half the world just in love with over-the-top reality TV and crazy viral videos, maybe a good deal of people actually prefer a lot of drama. But, rather than going over the top or trying to shock, let’s look at ways to get a big punch out of something singularly simple–focal points. It’s rare to have a piece of art that doesn’t have a focal point, but while some are quite subtle, others are undeniable and sometimes, even hard to look away from. Ideally, subtle or not, you want the focal point to pull a viewer in but have their eye stay to investigate the rest.
So, if you make that focal point pop, you also want to create it in such a way that what you have is a nice place to stop, but nothing so overwhelming as to keep the viewer from exploring the details that surround it. Encouraging the viewer to spend time looking at the work allows them to develop a more particular knowledge of, and maybe a personal connection to, the piece, which makes the viewing more of an experience than just a pleasant glance.
This piece here is a pretty dramatic example. The colors are what snap you to attention, but when you focus, it is on the large rivoli crystal. We do love our shiny stuff, and this one is too huge to miss. However, the rich rainbow colors that are gently wrapped around it begs to be explored as well. Once you’ve taken in the sweeping lines of graduated color, you still want to step back and take it all in. It’s dramatic, but relatively simple, and the combination will hold the viewer for a long, pleasant moment.
This kind of drama can be found throughout the collections by Arbel Shemesh that you can see on Etsy here.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
Working in a Wisteria
April 4, 2015
Inspirational Art
Nature has such a wide variety of flower forms, and not just the nested petals we are so familiar with such as roses, peonies, daisies and the like. The forms, not to mention the colors of course, are incredible. Search “Unusual Flowers” on Pinterest or Google images and you will see some of the craziest shapes and textures in what are considered flowers. Some are stunning while others are kind of scary, and others still are just plain weird. But see if you find any that get your fingers itching to recreate them in polymer or have you scrambling through your clay to see if you can recreate the color combinations.
In the meantime, how about practicing some unusual flower shapes by creating wisteria flowers? These are a little oddly shaped for flowers, but their purple and pink colors are just so lovely, especially in the way they drip off the trees in delicate falls. Catherine Starkov shares her method for creating a fall of wisteria for a set of earrings in this easy tutorial (click here for the English translation). Have fun with this or whatever you find yourself creating or enjoying this weekend!
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
Outside Inspiration: Blooming Glass
April 3, 2015
Inspirational Art
Glass work has really been making the rounds lately, which is my excuse for showing off glass two weeks in a row. But really, this was just too beautiful of a piece not to share, and who knows when a theme would come up again that would have allowed me to share this beauty.
The work is by glass artist Kristen Frantzen Orr; another artist with a serious dedication to nature’s amazing floral creations. I was entranced by the way she has layered and blended the colors, which makes more sense once you know she has a background in watercolors. A couple of words from Kristen’s website reveals a bit more about how she achieves these color effects:
To add detail to her work, she makes special canes from multiple colors of glass, and by combining these component parts with layers of transparent colors, she creates depth and captures an exciting play of light.
You can find more of these intensely detailed glass beads on Kristen’s website, but there are tons more out there online, so search for her by name on Pinterest or Google images to dig up even more amazing beauties.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
Floral Lines
April 2, 2015
Inspirational Art
Today, I thought we’d just admire the easy way that flowers can be used, like any singular element, as a way to create lines. Lines define and give direction, as well as creating energy by creating visual movement. An arrangement of many small flowers will create those lines just as would a series of beads, crystals, hand tool marks, etc. So instead of bunching flower motifs into, well, a bunch, consider how you can create lines with them to convey the kind of calm or energy you are after in the piece you are making.
Here is a beautiful set of champagne bottles created by Anastaisa of Art-Kisto4ka on Livemaster.ru. I love the way the line of flowers twist back and forth on the first two bottles giving the compositions a flowing energy, which is further picked up and added to by the lines of pearly dots shooting off in little swirls. I included one that outlined a heart as well simply to show how the flowers can create a grounded line that easily defines a shape.
Anastasia makes the most realistic looking flowers. I have to look around to ensure they weren’t real and preserved flowers. The ones on the bottles are excellent, but it’s her larger flowers that will really blow you away. You can see more of her finished work in her shop and on her blog. She also sells her flowers as components in her supply shop on LiveMaster.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
A Sprinkle of Spring
April 1, 2015
Inspirational Art
Spring is not just about the flowers, but also about the vast expanses of green many of us were longing for during the winter. This little field with its scattered few flowers made me smile when I saw it. That really is how the fields are out here right now, densely green with a sprinkle of wildflowers here and there. The simplicity of this piece is the key to the design.
I know very little about the creator except that she lives in Baia Mare, Romania, sells her work under the business name of Handmade Experience and doesn’t like to talk about herself. I prefer not to post work without having a name to go with it, but it is better to be seen without a name attached than not at all.
Update: Thanks to Sara Kroger we have a name for our artist–Anca Ursentea. She unearthed this interview with her: www.revista-atelierul.ro/2014/03/22/despre-lut-polimeric-cu-anca-ursentea/
Speaking of things not being seen, I had quite the collection of possible pieces to show this week, but so much was removed from the list for reasons that make me a tad sad. Mostly it’s about the photos. I’ve said this before, and I’ll keep saying it … take good, clear, well-lit photos with simple contrasting backgrounds. Most of the work I decided not to post this week had terribly busy backgrounds that made the art hard to discern. Maybe the flower theme gets people thinking about texture, and they feel this draw to fill the image with busy backgrounds. Some textured backgrounds can be nice and add atmosphere to the image, but most of the time, it just takes the focus away from your work. And if it’s a primarily green piece, don’t shoot on a green background. Also, avoid too much photo manipulation, and don’t use special photo effects. Get a good shot into the camera so you can do a minimal amount when you get to the computer, leaving you with a fresher, truer image of your piece.
I’m just saying … if you would like to get your work into any of the many quality, well-read blogs and websites that report on and re-post images from the web, give them something great to work with. You and your artwork deserve it.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
Sudden Color
March 31, 2015
Inspirational Art
Isn’t one of the most breathtaking things in spring really just the blossoming of color after long months of a barely-there tint to the world? It’s a simple and even expected occurrence, the return of brilliant color, but when starved of something for a while, we become so much more appreciative and even excited by it, as if it was our first glimpse all over again.
Simple, but perfectly bright and cheery, is what I thought of this hair slide by Kathy of Flowertown Originals on Etsy. It’s really those jelly roll canes, going from light in the middle to bright color on the outside that makes the composition seem to glow. (See our Summer 2014 article in The Polymer Arts on creating the illusion of light for more on these techniques.) Between the blossoming flowers, the greening of the grasses and the lengthening days, this is just the kind of work that will be very well appreciated this time of year!
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, as well as by supporting our advertising partners.
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