The Many Faces of Micro Mosaics
September 11, 2015
Inspirational Art
When we do an article related to a technique that has been explored by several artists, we try and include art by these other explorers of the technique, but when it came to Karen Mitchell‘s article on polymer micro mosaics there was just too much wonderful stuff that Karen was sharing to expand on it. The article includes a history of micro mosaics, how the originals were created (including images from Karen’s hands-on experience recreating this old art form) and a tutorial on how to design and construct them successfully in polymer, as well as an endearing story of her discovery and exploration of the technique. That didn’t leave a lot of room for extras.
So, here is an example of micro mosaics not unlike what Karen does, created by DDee Wilder. DDee created these ‘vertical micro mosaics’ almost exclusively in rings and put together an album of them on her Flickr page. She used simple narrow canes and extruded polymer strings for her tiny mosaic elements and played with the design born from the pattern of color they created. If you enjoyed Karen’s article and are intrigued by the idea, you definitely need to take a look at DDee’s rings. And if you haven’t gotten a chance to check out the micro mosaic article and tutorial, you can admire these while you wait for your very-soon-to-arrive subscriber’s copy (issues are still making their way to many of you on the East Coast especially and overseas), or you can order your copy directly from us or from the retailers listed on this page.
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Expanding on the New Fall Issue
August 31, 2015
Inspirational Art
Okay … the Fall 2015 – Elements issue of The Polymer Arts had a successful release this weekend (well, with a couple tiny bumps along the way). Thank you for all the great comments already coming in. It is a pretty awesome issue … so many great contributors and ideas!
So, if you are expecting a copy, DIGITAL issues should be in your emailbox. Check junk mail folders or other email addresses if you’re sure you should have one and don’t see it. If it can’t be found, write us at connect@thepolymerarts.com and we will look it up, see what is going on and get it to you as needed. PRINT copies went to the post office at the end of the week, so they are all on the way now as well. If you need to buy a copy or get a subscription, you can do so here: http://www.thepolymerarts.com/Subscribe.html
Now onto the pretty stuff …
As always, we had more material than we could fit into the issue. And then there are simply the articles I wish we could have expanded on more. One such was Laurie MacIsaac’s interview of Celine Charuau titled “Strange Beauty”. I am personally so enamored by Celine’s work and, I do admit, the article was a request of mine that I hope you all will agree, is an enthralling look into an artist’s process and view of the world. Celine’s work is just so wholly unusual, and although it’s obvious that she pulls from nature, I didn’t realize how connected she was to plants, but after reading the article, you can really see just how much her passion for them comes out in her work. You’ll see what I mean if you read the interview. I wish we could have had room for a few more of her direct garden interpretations such as this succulent inspired necklace.
Like so much of her work, there is quiet and harmony in the sparseness of this piece. She creates a lot of these bunching kind of compositions which echo the way plants often grow. She also chooses just very particular parts of the plant, so that you aren’t sure what you might be looking at to start with. I also very much admire that she does not restrict her use of space, and has her creations come out quite dramatically from the surface of the pieces, sometimes dangerously so. But that dimensionality gives her work a boldness that might otherwise be nearly impossible with the unassuming minimalism she tends towards.
Celine is definitely one of those artists whose work is best seen in a collection in order to really appreciate the genius of her design choices. I would suggest reading the article if you have the issue in hand already, then go over to her Flickr photostream or her DaWanda shop and spend a little time looking over her varied pieces. Having a little background on an artist can really open up how you see their work and can bring such a rich understanding and enjoyment of it.
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Melanie’s Creatures
August 14, 2015
Inspirational Art
Apparently this is exploration week. A lot of people are out trying other artist’s techniques or pushing their own forms. And there has been a lot of sharing!
I was particularly excited to see this new work by Melanie West. Although it’s not a series of disks as we have been seeing this past week or so, we are still in the arena of stacked forms. Here’s Melanie’s description of this curious creature: Chiton Brooch in Brown and Crimson polymer, formed, carved and laminated, clasp is magnetic.
That’s pretty straight forward, not at all alluding to the otherworldly feel or mysterious intent of this particular entity. But she does call it a chiton, which is a form of mollusk with overlapping plates. But regardless of the mollusk inspiration, Melanie’s forms all tend to be this way–heavily organic and appearing to be living creatures, undulating and moving through space. This wonderful sense of movement comes from the structure of her forms, moving from small to wide and often back to a slimmer form again. That and her lines–sometimes literal in the canes she applies, sometimes showing themselves in the edge of her elements–which skate, slither and wriggle, are where we get that sensation that her pieces are alive.
Melanie has a lot of beautiful newer work on display around her website, so do go take a look at Melanie’s particular zoo.
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.
Bright Organic
August 5, 2015
Inspirational Art, The Polymer Arts magazine news
Thank you to everyone who took part in the Reader’s Wish List Survey. We had 389 people respond, so it’s been taking me some time to get through all your ideas and questions and then compile them, but we’re working on it! I will directly answer some questions and note some of the comments in our next newsletter, so if you don’t get it already, hop on over to the website and fill in the two line form to get that email of news, cool polymer tips and community information sent to you twice a month. www.thepolymerarts.com.
The winners were chosen by a random number generator (your number coming from where you landed on the spreadsheet that your survey responses go to.) The lucky ducks who will be receiving Goodie Boxes this time around are Lorna Slack and Beth Schwartz! Congratulations!
In the meantime, we have fielded so many complements on the Fall cover. Ronna’s necklace is stunning, and that whole organic disks and seed pod theme seems to always turn heads. I thought I’d look for more pieces like that, but something a bit different. I think I found it!
The organic forms are so often created in nature’s muted or darker tones, but I have to say, this shot in the arm of brilliant color works wonderfully with them too. The saturated color and stylized shapes create a fun and joyful version of this kind of necklace. Jenna Wright uses tools she bought from Celie Fago to carve the marks into cured clay. She calls this “Inked Necklace ii” from her Electric series. I am trying to figure out the inked thing—dyeing the carved out spots perhaps? Regardless, it’s a beautiful piece of warm brights and brilliant white that brings organic up to a very cheery level.
If you want more brilliant color and fun ways with organic shapes, jump on over to Jenna’s Flickr page, Boxes of Groxes (what a fun name!) for a bright and cheery break in your day.
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 Memory of Tidepools
July 29, 2015
Inspirational Art
My absolute favorite part of the west coast of the United States is the tide pools. They are an amazing microcosm of marine life; not to mention the texture of the rocks and lava flows you find them in is uncommonly beautiful. Although this necklace is not the re-creation of a tide pool –the artist Aleksanta mentions still lake water among trees in her description– but for me this is so very reminiscent of the tide pools I’ve visited on the coast of California with their many tiny basins crowded up on one another that have been created by water wearing away the stone in rippling rings that are revealed at low tide as shallow reflective pools.
Don’t you love that about visual art? You can bring whatever you want to it–and you do it without trying to. Aleksanta created these with a lake in mind and it took me to the ocean. It also grabbed my attention because this looks like an example of Pebeo paints, which we will be reviewing with instructions on how to use them in the upcoming Fall issue. Speaking of which, be sure to check in here on Friday as we’ll finally be ready to show off the next cover and let you in on all the exciting stuff we have in store for you next month.
To see what else Aleksanta has done with these paints and her other beautiful explorations, take a look at her LiveMaster store.
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.
Dots, Lines and Tendrils
July 6, 2015
Inspirational Art
** Sorry this went up half a day late. We had an error in our scheduled time. But back to regularly scheduled postings …***
We’ve talked about using lines as design elements for direction and energy before and about dots and their use as accents and to create rhythm, but I don’t think we’ve spent much time looking at what happens when you use the two together.
There are many, many beautiful examples of using line and dots as a combined design treatment, but I think these brooches by Ivana Brozova are some truly stunning recent examples I’ve run into. In this case, dots are used to create lines. Or maybe the lines are distorted until they look like strings of dots. Either way, the effect is the same—a strong, rhythmic and directional vibrancy radiating from a center that itself is alive with slow, winding lines in the form of tendrils. It makes for rather mesmerizing work.
Ivana is rather fond of lines and dots used together. You can see more great examples in some of her older work, as well as admire Ivana’s new and rather shiny pieces on her Flickr photostream.
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 Merging of Felt and Polymer
July 3, 2015
Inspirational Art
Today’s piece is both an outside inspiration and a polymer piece. It’s a little different take on the aged look in that it isn’t so much about that look of disintegration as it is about the way materials meld together over time that have been left out in natural surroundings.
I can’t say what Russia’s Svetlana was thinking of when she created this felted scarf, but this makes me think of the way rocks become embedded in sandstone or maybe how they are exposed by the low tide on a beach. The combined textures of fuzzy felt and smooth polymer along with the little bead accents create a rich landscape that I think must be reminiscent of some place that she has been. It seems an unusual choice for a scarf, but that just adds to the mysterious atmosphere of what she’s done here.
Felting was the one thing I never took to in my years of fiber art work, but then, I was taught mostly the classic thick felting techniques. The more textural and undulating applications and forms that are becoming popular these days feel more broadly appealing. If any of you have a penchant for felting (or are intrigued enough by this to want to try it), the page I found this on is actually a tutorial on how she created the piece. The textures you’ll see just from the in between steps are worth a gander, so hop on over to Svetlana’s Livemaster blog page and maybe drop by her shop as well.
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.
Aged Absence and Added Color
July 1, 2015
Inspirational Art
The absence of something can be just as intriguing, or even more so, than the addition of something to a piece of jewelry. In these beautiful headpins, we actually have a little of both.
If you find yourself inexplicably drawn to these but not really knowing why, you’re not alone here. There is something unusual about this faux deterioration, but it takes a minute to understand what it is. The corrosion these polymer beads emulate speaks to a passage of time and disuse, but in this case, it is also a reveal. How often are you likely to see a rusted out piece of iron or old steel eaten away only to show brilliant color underneath? Well, it’s quite unlikely you’d see a turquoise blue like this beneath a bit of unused metal, but somehow it feels right. The corroded look shows an eating away of the form, and the unusual blue, added by jewelry artist Alison Sachs, adds to it. So we are drawn by the subtraction of form, the addition of color and the unusual juxtaposition that looks like something mother nature might have created even though it isn’t common.
And these are only headpins. But hey, headpins got a bit of attention as well in the last issue of The Polymer Arts where you could learn to make your own quick and easy headpins. Take those lessons and add interesting polymer bead-like ends as Alison does in your favorite canes, textures or other clay treatments. The old and well-worn look can be seen throughout much of Alison’s work, which you can find on her Etsy page and more or less on her blog. The images were not coming up for me on the blog last time I checked in, but maybe they will soon.
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.
Almost Ancient
June 29, 2015
Inspirational Art
The obvious visual signs of age have been at the center of many conversations I’ve had this week. Many of us try very hard to cover up the signs of aging in ourselves because we don’t think they are considered beautiful. But I, for one, think the visual changes that come with age and being well-used can be quite beautiful. I do admit that I prefer to see these marks on inanimate objects rather than on myself, but even the soft wrinkles beneath the eyes and the laugh lines on the face have an inviting texture. They show we have lived and laughed; that we got out and lived our lives. That we have stories to tell.
I do believe that same feeling–that there are stories where we see age and change–is why we are drawn to old items and why we enjoy the aged faux looks we can achieve in polymer. This necklace here by Staci Louise is a kind of faux ceramic, but both the forms and the crackling affect make the set feel like something almost ancient. Doesn’t it make you want to hear the history of the civilization that bore these? And have a chance to ask about the significance of the beads, and where they got their color?
Luckily, the creator is not from some distant past, but is alive and well today. Staci even has a tutorial for her technique. Find it in her Etsy shop after you drop by her blog to see how she transforms white clay into these spectacular beads.
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.
Would you call yourself a selfish person? I doubt very many of us would think that way about ourselves. Yet, as artists, we often find ourselves “stealing” time away from others or other things to do what we love, reveling in it when we have it. Is that selfish? I mean, it is more about us than anyone else, isn’t it?
Yes, it is about us, and that is as it should be. In the requested comments for last week’s giveaway (scroll down to see the winner and this week’s giveaway), participants mentioned some version of the “me time” aspect of getting to sit down and create more than anything else. I mean, I know we create because it is something we enjoy, regardless of what anyone else thinks, but I just love that so many people acknowledged and celebrated it. We should!
I strongly believe that everyone should have something of their own, something they can turn to in order to express themselves or at least put something out into the world that would not have existed without their desire to create it. The art we create gives us purpose, exercises a uniquely human part of our brains, and helps us to love ourselves. Not to mention that we deserve the joy we get from it!
But, by definition, that is selfish—doing something because it’s what we want. I wish our society would get over the idea that doing something for ourselves is bad. I think not doing things for yourself is self-negligence. Why is that not a commonly understood thing?
This also highlights the bigger, contradictory world that we inhabit. We live in such strange societies where selflessness and humility are expected or requested, and yet we are also pushed to strive for excellence in what we do. How do we reach excellence without focusing on ourselves? And then there is this silliness where we are not supposed to acknowledge when the work we do is good or that we’re proud of it. If we do, others may think we’re being arrogant or grandiose.
So, do we strive to be great and then pretend that we’re mediocre? We talk about contrast being good in art, but this is so not the right kind of contrast!
I’ve long found the dichotomy of these contradictory but societally prescribed behaviors beyond aggravating as well as having the potential to be debilitating. I think that is why it made me so happy to see so many people acknowledging their creative hours as me-time, self-care, and a time of wonderfully selfish joy. Keep it up, I say!
Now, let’s talk about the good kind of contrast in art.
Design Refresh
Let’s look at the beautiful brooch by Lyne Tilt that opened this post. What do you notice first about this? There’s a lot going on in this little space, isn’t there? What are the three things that jump out at you as far as design elements?
I’m going to say color, shape, and texture. Did you come up with the same three? There is also a lot going on with marks and size. So, any combination of those would be spot on.
How about design principles? What do you think is the number one principal used in this design? Sure, we could refer to scale and proportion considering all the different sizes of the layers, or we could talk about focal point or even just key in on the centered composition. But the one thing this has in spades is contrast.
Obviously, there is color contrast in all the major color characteristics—she has a vibrant trio of warm colors contrasting the cool of the blue and cyan; color values range from the dark blue and deep red to the moderate orange to the light yellow and pale polished silver; and, if you check your CMY color wheels, you’ll see that the color of the bottom layer is a blue-cyan whose complementary AND split complementaries are the yellow, orange, and red that you see in the upper layers.
But doesn’t a color palette have to have at least one common characteristic between all the colors? Well, ideally, yes, and this does. Here it’s saturation. These are not muted colors. The orange may be slightly tinted (has some white in it) but not enough to feel it’s gone off base from the saturated characteristic that ties them all together.
Now, look at the contrast in the textures. The top and bottom layers might have the same texture, but the rest are vastly different. There are even different materials—metal and clay. But they work together pretty well, don’t they? Why?
The textures work together in part because they are all drastically different—the wide variety is part of the charm of this piece. But, like color, they need something to tie them together.
Did you notice that the textures are applied to the entire layer from one edge to another? Thier differences are connected because the application on each layer is the same. That does seem to be enough to allow them to exist in the same piece and not have it feel completely chaotic.
The shapes, on the other hand, are not completely different but they are not the same either, right? They are all some version of a hand cut circle, but some of them are definitely more oval. I think pulling back on the amount of contrast between the shapes also helps to rein in the potential chaos all this dramatic contrast and color and texture could fall into. The centered composition also adds a bit of calm to the piece.
Let’s take this week to consider the design principle of contrast. Would your pieces benefit from more contrast, or do you need to rein some of that in? Remember, it all depends on your intention. There are no wrong levels of contrast, at least not in art.
Last Week’s Giveaway
Drum roll please…
This last week’s randomly chosen winner is Eloise B! I’ve spoken to her and her clay is already on the way. Congrats Eloise!
This Week’s Giveaway
Thank you to everyone who participated in last week’s giveaway through comments on the post. As mentioned above, it really made me happy to see all the fantastic, positive and self-caring observations. I also hope it gave you a moment to focus on and appreciate what you love so much about creating.
So, let’s do this again.
The Goodies:
- This week I have a selection of Sculpey clays in 2 new Soufflé colors, 3 new Premo colors, and 2 big 8 oz. blocks of clay stash basics—Sculpey III in Pearl and Silver. That’s 26 ounces of fresh clay along with a three-piece set of Sculpey silkscreens.
- Or if outside the US, I have a $25 Tenth Muse certificate, since it would be such a gamble to ship clay outside the US.
How to Win:
- Put a comment in the blog comments* (below), telling me what type of contrast you enjoy creating most in your own work, or the type of contrast you wish you used more of. And, yes, if you want to share pictures, you can do so by including a link. Just don’t put more than one link in or it may spam filter the comment.
- Note: It can take some time for the comment to appear if you’ve not commented before since, due to annoying spamming, I have to approve it .
- Giveaway winners will be chosen by random—it will NOT be based on your answers. I do hope you’ll give it some thought anyway. The answers could be helpful to you as well as interesting for the rest of us.
- And let’s say you can only win once this month so we can spread the love around.
- Get your comments posted by Wednesday March 17th at midnight Pacific time to get in for the raffle.
- I’ll announce the winner here on the blog next weekend!
I’ll put together yet another pack of goodies for a giveaway in next weekend’s post, so stay tuned here!
You can support this blog by buying yourself a little something at Tenth Muse Arts or, if you like…
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Craft art is visual right? But is it just visual? One of the unique things about craft items in the world of art is that a majority of it is functional which means it is often handled which makes it not only visual but often tactile. When someone mentions tactile characteristics, you probably think texture, right? Well, our tactile sensation perceives form as well as texture (and density, temperature and even weight but that’s another set of subjects.) Functional objects and jewelry in particular are pieces that are regularly touched so people experience these works both visually and tangibly, even if the sense of touch is not always recognized as part of their enjoyment of the piece. However, the tactile experience can make a huge difference between people liking your work and being utterly in love with it.
Think about how often you touch adornment when you wear it – pendants, necklaces, earrings, and bracelets, are often where our hands go when we are nervous, contemplative, or excited. Functional objects often have parts that are specifically designed for our hands such as handles, knobs, and grips, or are formed for handling such as the neck of a vase or width of a cup. Because of these interactions, you have an opportunity in the form of such pieces to further express your intention.
I realized as I started to research potential pieces for this post, it can be really hard to “show” you things that feel good in the hand. So, we’re just going to have to guess and imagine it!
All the Feels
It’s interesting to note that the characteristics we might associate with visual shapes and forms often translates to our perceptions through touch. For instance, full, round forms, such as spheres and pods will relate the same characteristics as visual curvy shapes and forms – that primarily being comforting and feminine qualities. Imagine wearing this spherical bracelet by Bettina Welker. Even with the energy of the cracks and directional streaks paired with a deep black and the dramatically contrasting yellow-green, the roundness, both visually and tangibly, bring down that energy and drama to a refined and rather relaxed level.
If you want to encourage people to touch your work, a soft, smooth surfaces and smooth, knobby ones are pretty irresistible. Exploration of the texture may often be the original draw to touch something, but further tactile exploration can be encouraged by the form, especially those that lead the fingers around through amorphous, curvy structures or strong but flowing angular forms. For comparison with Bettina’s example, take a look at the opening image, a bracelet by Jana Roberts Benzon, which is primarily curvy but has sharp aspects to it in the form of those regular incisions. It’s a great combination as the fingers can follow a winding curvilinear path through the valleys of the bracelet’s form with vibratory sensations from running over the cut clay, making those cuts more texture than form but however it might be classified, those two elements certainly work well together.
Flowing forms, even when sharp and angular, are extremely alluring when it comes to touch. Tell me you don’t want to run your fingers along the ruffling but angular fins of this vessel by Melanie West. Honestly, it’s impossible not to touch Melanie’s polymer work if it’s in reach. Her forms are full and inviting, begging to be nestled in the palm of your hand, for details to be explored with your fingertips, and the softness of her unfathomably smooth matte surfaces … just dreamy! Seriously.
I don’t think you can come up with any object handled more than hand tools and writing implements. When decorated with polymer, the handles of most of these are simply covered rather than intentionally formed. Take pens for instance – polymer pens are typically cylindrical forms that are covered with a sheet of treated polymer or cane slices but why stick with just the cylinder? Look at these pens by Jana Lehmann. They’ve gone from cylinder to pod like with additional forms added for visual and tactile interest.
Now, I believe Jana’s pens are created over a standard wood form as they all have that basic elongated pod shape but since polymer is so sculptural, there’s no reason why functional objects you are decorating with polymer can’t be reformed. These spoons by Jacques Vesery are wood rather than polymer, but it would be no big thing to sculpt such enticing handle forms.
Okay, enough of just looking at the forms of artwork – why not search out forms in your house or around your yard that you like to touch and hold in your hand. Most likely you’ll find that you are drawn to the more rounded and curvy forms. They are simply more comfortable to touch then angular or blocky forms but that doesn’t mean when creating a form that will be touched by the user that it needs to be round or curvy. Sometimes comfortable is not what you’re trying to express. Other times you’ll want to focus on the visual aspect and not encourage people to touch so much as look at it. It all depends on your intention.
So, go be a 3-year-old and touch everything!
Some Big News
So, I’m going to be making some changes again, mostly to your advantage. The gist of it is that I’ve decided to share the upcoming planned content for FREE!
I’m doing this both because I’m not comfortable with the VAB’s automated subscriptions costs in a time when things are so uncertain. Nearly all the people who have had to cancel the last month or two are writing to apologize for not having the budget for it and lament missing out. That has made me terribly sad, especially for some of my long-time readers who have lost jobs and income.
The other reason is that with my increasing physical limitations, and no staff to pick up the slack, hitting deadlines are hard and quality suffers which isn’t fair for paying subscription members. But I want to create content—I love doing this stuff. If it is not paid for, though, I will have more leeway to take the breaks I need or change what I put out.
So, starting in June, I’ll be posting VAB content here, on the blog and have it sent by email to VAB and blog subscribers.
If you are a present subscriber, you should have received an email Friday night/Saturday morning to explain how that affects you. If you do not see this notice, please check your spam or junk mail folders first but if not there, write me to get the notice resent.
For those want to contribute to the cause …
Creating and getting out the free content will still cost money and time but with my husband still working, I feel secure and fortunate and am happy to share what I can. I am, however, happy to get a boost from those who want to support my work.
The best way, honestly, is to buy yourself an inspiring book or magazine back issue on my website where you can further get to know other artists and community businesses. It’s a real win-win-win. I have also set up a contribution option on the website for those who want to support the free work I do but have everything they want from the shop. Between steady sales and a contribution here and there, I can keep writing, pay the digital services and my tech guy, maybe hire back my proofreader, and support my need for dark chocolate!
There’s a bit more news but I will wait to post that in the newsletter coming out this week. If you aren’t signed up for it, I’ve been adding tips, bits of community news, and just fun creative finds to make you smile. You can sign up for it here if you don’t get it already.
So, with that, I am off. Still waging war with the ground squirrels in the veggie garden so getting my outdoor time and the movement my neck needs to not stiffen up although I have to watch how much I use my right arm still. Yesterday, I planted the last round of sweet potato slips which are up on a hill, hidden behind the ice plant, and will finish this weekend relegating the green beans and zucchini to pots up where the dogs like to hang out and the squirrels do not. I’ve given up on the cantaloupe though. That’s a little depressing but everything eats those leaves! So, wish me luck!
As always, I wish you all a safe and healthy week ahead!
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I don’t know if you have ever considered, or found important, the fact that most polymer art is a collection of elements constructed into a single piece. Yes, I know I am stating the obvious here but consider the fact that most polymer art is put together in such a way as to make the individual elements blend into a cohesiveness whole. Have you ever considered that maybe each element can be its own little piece of art, even if it’s to be a part of something bigger?
If you make the work about each individual elements and not the single composition they are part of, you should be able to give yourself more freedom in the creative process. The idea would be to just focus on the single component in front of you without regard for the other parts it may eventually be joined with. Since you don’t have to consider any other elements you should be able to just let your mind and hands go play. You could, in fact, just create tons of individual pieces and then pull together the ones that you find relate and from that create a finished piece. There would be no pressure to make things work together or fit. Does that sound intriguing?
Elemental Artists
There are a lot of artists that do this almost exclusively. When Debbie Crothers creates, a finished piece is usually the last thing on her mind. She is in love with seeing what the material will do and spends most of her time playing and exploring. Once her stock builds up, or just whenever the bug bites her, then she will create finished pieces of wearable art.
Recently she has also been incorporating her love of found objects as you can see in the image above. This is just a part of a very long necklace of Debbie’s. (The whole of which I’ve not seen her posted anywhere but will be featured in the upcoming Polymer Journeys 2019 book. Look for pre-sale announcements this coming week.) Each individual component definitely stands on its own here since each individual polymer and found object component is framed. But you can also see, if you look at her work on Facebook or on her website, that her pieces are almost always a variety show, one that features the results of her exploration and just having fun with the clay.
Another cool thing about this type of artwork is that the viewer will probably want to look at each and every individual component. Just the variety heightens the interest in these kinds of pieces which means the people viewing it will spend more time looking at it and more time appreciating your work. That can really help in terms of sales too because the more time someone spends looking at a piece the more likely they will be to want to buy it.
I think this kind of intrigue born of variety may be the primary draw when it comes to the jewelry of Olga Ledneva. This piece you see here is a bit more dense and has more potential movement than her newer work but I thought it was also a good example of how all these pieces, together, create a textural canvas since they are all kind of dangling on top of each other, and yet, as cohesive as it feels, you still want to look carefully at each piece in the assembly. Olga’s Facebook page and Flickr photostream are good places to look around for other assembled element ideas.
I know those two ladies make some pretty interesting and complex components but don’t think you have to go to that extent. The individual elements you create in this process can be as simple as punched out squares such as you might see in one of Laurie Mika’s mosaics. I am such a fan of this kind of free-form collage work, one that allows you to simply show off the characteristics you love about working with clay. You can assemble bits of your alcohol ink treated sheets, mokume gane, complex canes, impressed clay components, or hand sculpted forms. A mosaic or even a necklace of just simple shapes can let those treatments and colors shine, each on their own.
Of course, this approach isn’t just for polymer clay. This brilliant green assemblage necklace by an artist known only as Gebrufa is all fabric and fiber, although some components could as easily have been polymer. My guess would be that she gave herself just the restriction of a limited color palette but otherwise made all the individual pieces as whimsy led her. Should you want to know that you can have a cohesive finished piece when you are done freely creating components, this kind of approach would give you a path to that while still creating with relative freedom.
So, have I got you thinking about the individual elements of your pieces in a different way now?
Planning and meticulously designing pieces is essential in many circumstances but letting yourself just explore can also be an important part of your artistic growth as it helps to free up and expand your creativity. Letting yourself just play can be hard to do when you don’t have a lot of time and you want the time you do have to result in finished pieces. Knowing you can focus on making great little individual components which you can later put together into a fabulous necklace or wall piece might just be the thing that gives you the license to let go and doodle away with your clay.
THINGS TO LOOK FORWARD TO:
- Want to CLAY OUT EAST or CLAY OUT WEST? Registration for both of this multi-instructor, 4 day workshop events are open now. Clay out East is in Atlantic City, New Jersey, June 12-15th and Clay out West will be held Sept 30 – Oct 3 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Here is the link for the East event’s registration. I couldn’t scare up a link for the West event registration but you can email them at clayoutwest@aol.com to get the details.
- Did you catch the “Make Your Own Silkscreens” article in the Summer 2018 issue of The Polymer Arts? It was so much fun to make these and right now, the company that made it so fun and easy, EZScreenPrint if having a 15% off sale but it ends today! Go here, and use coupon code JAN15. No minimum purchase required.
- Did you know that Poly Clay Play has a Shopping Discount Club? If you go through a lot of supplies (or just tend to get overly excited around polymer clay and tools and want to buy everything you see) this discount club could help in big ways. PCP is one of my favorite shops, especially for pastes, powders, and alcohol ink. She gets them all! Go here to check out the club deal or just shop around.
Always glad to get your feedback!
Last week we did some history, this week was about how you approach your work. Did you like the subject and did it get you thinking? Or do you thoughts on other things you’d like for me to research and write about? Just let me know. Write me in the comments below this post (click here if you are reading this in an email).
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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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Even here in Southern California there is quite the nip in the air and winter is making herself known all across the US and in other parts of the world. To match this weather and season, I thought I’d go with icy blues to wind up this week of blues and what a piece we have here to contemplate.
Maud Traon has taken gem-setting far beyond the classic expectation. These marquis-cut stones are installed not so much to be admired for their beautiful icy blue color but to generate energy and a sharp boldness that verges on the dangerous. This ring could possibly double as a weapon!
All kidding aside, you can see how this unusual setting reflects a gem’s organic origin where the crystals form in a variety of directions at the behest of various geological forces. They do not sit in the Earth, cut and clear and ready to sparkle for us but are surrounded by other elements, many that are dark, dirty, gritty and swallowing them up.
These were my thoughts before I found this explanation of her approach on Maud’s website. It seems her objective has been met when viewers like us read similar sentiments in the work:
Maud’s work sits in direct contrast to the standard approach to jewellery of setting highly cut stones within a traditional fixing. The stones are set in a manner that reflects their natural structure, glitter is treated as an equal to precious stones and the object in its entirety appears to have fallen out of a natural wonderland.
If you find this work intriguing, head over to Maud’s website to look at other pieces in the series as well is the variety of approaches she takes under this organic philosophy.
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Did you see the announcement on Monday that The Polymer Studio subscriptions are now available online? Check out our new website, www.tenthmusearts.com, to subscribe or just see what we’re up to or get a head start on holiday shopping with subscriptions, books or back issues of The Polymer Arts (Don’t miss out on the “All Issues Still in Print” package available for 40% off … that’s over $100 you’d save to have all available issues while we still have them!) available as gifts.
Now back to our regularly scheduled programming. I don’t have a theme for the week unless it’s rectangles and squares. You know, like magazines are rectangles and books are rectangles and this piece is rectangular with squares inside it. Rectangles and squares have such a solid dominant feeling. They are great shapes for work that you want to project boldness and confidence. This mixed-media piece of metal and polymer was created by Angela Garrod whose work of late seems to be all about the exploration of metal with polymer.
If you look at her Flickr photo stream, you can see the transition and how the new material is challenging her and giving her opportunities to stretch her design skills and creative muscle. You can see the influence of other artists, whether intentional or not, such as Sonya Giordon and Vicki Grant, coming out in her recent designs as she works toward a new facet of her own voice.
In this piece, she calls on her hallmark work with texture, deftly but subtly echoing the organic roughness found in the metal and the polymer. The contrast between the materials is all about support where the metal gives structural strength and a background canvas to the polymer squares, whose job as focal points runs second only to its work of imbuing the piece with atmospheric color.
To get a full picture of what Angela has been up to, jump over to her Flickr photostream, her Facebook page, and the gallery on her website.
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Here is a slightly different twist on organic jewelry (pun intended).
I love the flow in rhythm of natural organic formations especially plant and geological ones because of the sense of movement they often have. The work of Germany’s Lydia Hirte is an example of those formations brought to adornment. Mind you though, this is not polymer but paper, although the concept of stacked and shuffled layers is not at all unknown in polymer and a connection and source of inspiration between the two materials is readily found.
Lydia works in ways similar to what I have heard from many polymer artists. She likes to let the materials steer the design. In her words:
My ideas arise from working with the material and my observations of what happens when forcing the bundles of card[stock] by my hand in different directions. I always use the same basic shape. For me, as an artist, it’s also very important to generate tension in the material when working.
I am mainly looking for spatiality, direction and movement and I am always aiming at linking wearability with sculptural form.
To see more of these wonderful types of forms, go on over to Lydia’s website.
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The organic, both flora and fauna, have long been the focus of Doreen Kassels’ work, which usually takes the form of sculptural pieces, ornaments, or wall art. However, this year we’ve seen beads and pendants and the like and then a few weeks ago this lovely piece popped up on her social media feeds. This was a delightful surprise—a chunky necklace consisting of a series of very organic beads, redolent with her signature colors and forms.
This is a feast of tactile as well as visual sensations. I imagine the wearer would get tons of comments, compliments, and requests for a closer look. I also imagine the wearer would not be able to stop touching the beads, with all the wonderful shapes and directions of the forms for fingertips to wander over.
You can see what else Doreen is up to on her website or follow her on Instagram.
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We are going to hop back to the new book, Polymer Art Projects—Organic (which you can still get 10% off on for the next couple of days, promo code PAP10), for one last day this week to give you another taste and some additional information on one of the beautiful projects in there.
One of our contributors, Fabi Ajates, has this wonderful collection of objects at the end of her tutorial, showing you some of the different decor items you can make with the many little techniques she teaches. In a conversation we had after the tutorial was in layout, I found out that some of the objects are actually reversible and Fabi, with the help of her son David, graciously sent us these additional images and some information about the pieces for you to enjoy. Here is what they sent:
CORAL KELP
All the textures and shapes I create are one-of-a-kind and handmade, conceived in the pursuit of the pieces’ harmony and the most dramatic result. Furthermore, the project [in the book] is meant to be versatile because it can be used not only to create jewelry such as the necklace, but also décor elements which can add a touch of individuality. When used for interior design pieces, these can have a double purpose which makes this technique even more resourceful, attractive, and interesting.
What looked like a turquoise coral vase from which a leaf of kelp languidly emerges, has become a bowl or small plate. We observe the same effect with the piece that imitates an anemone; its face changes relative to whether it sits upright or it is reversed, while it contrasts or harmonizes with the landscape and with the rest of the pieces.
Inspired by coral and marine vegetation, [these forms are] mysterious nature that awaits silently like a treasure in the depths of seas and oceans whose colors and shades, a combination of seawater and sunlight, are uniquely beautiful.
Thanks for the extra images and your thoughts, Fabi!
Find out more about this amazing artist who has not let her deaf condition or language barriers get in the way of sharing her skills. Check out her class schedule here and follow her artistic adventures on her blog.
And don’t forget to get in on the 10% off offer to get your own copy of the book or other items we presently have in print, here on The Polymer Arts website. Use promo code PAP10 before midnight on Sunday Pacific time to get the discount off everything in your cart!
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