Outside Inspiration: Ruffled Organics in Felt
June 26, 2015
Inspirational Art
When talking ruffles, most likely fabric comes to mind first as a source for outside inspiration, but do you think of felt as a particularly ruffled fiber? Instead of flouncy and fluffy, felted ruffles offer substance and a more solid and open canvas for dramatic textures and colors.
This scarf shows some of the potential of using felt to create undulating edges. Felt has been making a bit of a come back in the fashion world and felt crafters are coming out big and bold with it. I thought this work by Irena Rudman would intrigue polymer artists as the composition of the work looked immediately to me like wonderful inspiration for leaf-shaped beads or the facing ends of a curious cuff bracelet.
There is something kind of Melanie West about this scarf. I can also see a thin polymer component with a center of slices taken from stacked circular extrusion canes or mokume surrounded by ruffled Skinner blends or mica dusted polymer. It got my wheels turning. Is it intriguing you?
Irena is really big on the ruffles in her work, which you can see in her Etsy shop. If you are just dying of curiosity as to how she accomplished this or simply have a budding interest in felting (which can and has often been combined with polymer pieces), Irena has a number of tutorials for scarves and collars in 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.
Big Friendship
June 3, 2015
Inspirational Art
Now off to the world of big and bold and even a bit of wild; although, this piece is not that wild when it come to the work of polymer artist Sona Grigoryan.
Everything Sona does is big and unabashedly bold. She shares what seems to be a kind of expressive abandon with our Monday artist, Christine Damm, in regards to her approach to form, texture and a loose organic style. Just maybe, that is at the heart of the big and bold, at least with polymer. Being able to be so expressive, to not feel confined by any standards of size or shape, and although I am sure there is a lot more planning than is readily apparent, the forms feel open and free.
It was just really tough to pick just one of Sona’s many bold pieces, but I do like the complexity and arrangement of the elements in this necklace and found the overall form quite intriguing. Plus, you have to like the connection it has to others in our polymer world. This piece was a gift from Sona to Wendy Moore, so she called it an Armenian-Australian Friendship Necklace. I added an image of Wendy wearing it while standing next to Sona, so you can get a better idea of its size. It looks great on Wendy, doesn’t it? Some people can really carry the big and bold jewelry well. They just need a personality, and maybe the stature, to match.
If you like this, then be prepared to see bigger and bolder on Sona’s Flickr page and on her website where you should spend a bit of your day pouring over her unique work.
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 Journey in Organic Domes
March 19, 2015
Inspirational Art
Picking items to feature this week was quite diverting. There is so much out there in this form but no easy way to search for it, so I just meandered the polymer highway; very grateful to find such cool things as this highly-organic ring by Tanja of Flickr’s Fantastisch-Plastisch. I actually found it after spotting the domed beads you see below it. They were created six years apart. If you meander through Tanja’s Flickr photostream you can see the journey and exploration she goes through as she returns to variations of this form over and over.
The interesting thing here is, she created these based on the teachings of other artists. The influence is pretty obvious in the ring–she shares that this and the other recent rings in this series were inspired by projects in Ronna Sarvas Weltman‘s book Ancient Modern: Polymer Clay and Wire Jewelry. The beads below were inspired by Grant Diffendaffer. She has other work in domed disks that are wholly her own, as well, but they all look quite different. The one thing that most all of them encompass is an organic quality. Even the Diffendaffer inspired beads with their high shine have distinctly organic textures. Because of the easy way we can form domes and disks on lightbulbs with cookie cutters, it is nice to see them rough and freeform, 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 supporting our advertising partners.
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A Proliferation of Disks
March 16, 2015
Inspirational Art
There are certain forms or elements that make a regular and popular appearance in various types of art. Sometimes they appear so often because the form is something the material and associated tools are particularly suited for. Sometimes they have simply been a large part of the culture in which the art form originated or grew. In polymer, one of the ones we see so very, very often are disks, especially domed disks. I was looking over my little collection of links and images and noticed that there are just tons of that kind of thing. It looks to be growing in popularity and variation, too. I can’t say why that is true, but I thought we’d look at how this type of element is currently being used in polymer.
We can’t start with the idea that maybe these forms are cultural because we see them in polymer art from all over. This set is from Russian artist, Olga Sypkova. She calls them “Mars Flowers” and uses the basic form of a concave disk to create flower like pieces that do have an other-worldly feel to them. Here, the disks are used as the base of a stylized image. Either the imagery Olga was after determined the need for the disk form or the form suggested the imagery, but either way, the disk form is integral to the look of this set.
Olga works in a similarly rough, organic and yet, very feminine style. Her beautiful pieces can be found for viewing and for sale in her Livemaster 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 supporting our advertising partners.
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Just Add Mint
February 11, 2015
Inspirational Art, Ponderings
Here is an example of a love story that someone thought no one else would be much interested in. But, I can’t imagine anyone not finding this touching; if for no other reason, than to remind us of the hope we all should have. Debbie Crothers shares her amazing rough and beautiful beads and her once rough and now beautiful love story. And when you’re done brushing the tears from your eyes, go see what other luscious things this polymer explorer has been up to on her Flickr photostream.
Just Add Mint
I was 30 years old and had just come out of a terrible relationship. Two and a half years of my life had been invested, and I was planning on marrying this man. It certainly wasn’t the world’s best relationship. He could be so charming when he wanted to be. I think I held onto those moments and tried to forget all the bad times. Huge mistake. Two years into the relationship, I found out he turned to heroin – what!!!; how could I not have seen that; how on earth could I not know? Believe me, I had no idea. He was the world’s best liar and manipulator, and you know what – it was apparently, all my fault!!! We tried to get help; we tried to fix things; we tried to make our relationship work, but there was no way it was going to. He left town, and I was left to deal with the financial mess, the “drug people” who came looking for him and the thought that I must be a horrible person to make someone turn to drugs. My life was shattered, and I was an emotional wreck. The nightmares started, the stress started and the depression began. Life was hard, but I had to keep going.
The story moves on to about six months later; still nightmares, still financial stress and definitely not looking for a partner. I was having drinks with my sister and some friends. Her boyfriend, Colin, had been trying to match-make me with his best mate, “Mint”, in Perth, but I sure as hell wasn’t ready to get involved with anyone – or so I thought. Anyway the phone rang. Colin answered it, spoke for a while, then handed the phone to me and said “Deb, there’s someone here who wants to talk to you.” I took the phone and said “hello.” A beautiful, calm voice came on the other end and said “Hi, just wondering if you’d like to marry me?” I was a little surprised, but stayed calm and said “sure, where shall we have our honeymoon?” To be honest, the rest of the conversation is a bit of a blur now (well, it was a long time ago), but all I remember is this beautiful voice that filled me with a sense of calm and made me feel safe. Crazy, I know, because I didn’t even know the guy – had never even seen him before.
I wanted to meet him, and he wanted to meet me, so he arranged to come to Geraldton in a few weeks time. We decided to have drinks again at Colin’s unit while waiting for Mint to arrive. I remember when he walked through the door – I can still picture it now. He said his hello’s to everyone, and then came over to me. He smiled at me and shook my hand, and it was a moment I’ll never forget. I was excited and nervous all at the same time. I knew this was a good man, and I loved the way he made me feel. We all spent the night talking and laughing, and then when everyone else had gone to bed or gone home, we still sat and talked – it was like we had known each other forever. We met up again the next night, and that’s when we decided to have children together. We even chose the name of our first son – Red.
That was December; we moved in together the following July, got married in September and had our first son, Red, in February.
20 years on, we now have 3 beautiful children and a wonderful life together, and I still get excited every afternoon when he comes home to me.
He is my love story.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or an issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
Do it Again
December 13, 2014
Inspirational Art, Ponderings
The one article in the Winter 2014 issue of The Polymer Arts that seemed to greatly affect both the readers and the participants in the creation of its writing was the piece by Anke Humpert, “1,700 Pieces of Jewellery“. If you haven’t read it, you really need to. Anke developed a game based on limitation and a challenging process rather than a single challenge concept, and she invited several dozen artists to participate in her first run of it. That alone is a reason to read this; perhaps, in order to get ideas about developing more in-depth challenges for yourself or for your guild.
The thing that struck me, and I’ve had numerous comments back from readers on this and it obviously struck the artists that participated, was the step that required the participants to re-do the piece they made for the challenge. Yes … after the participating artists completed their piece, Anke asked that each of them make their piece again with changes and adjustments that came about from an evaluation of the initial piece. There was something about being given that bit of instruction, or, as I’ve been thinking of it, permission to start over and try again, that was a key illuminating moment for most of the artists. I know for myself, I plan on doing that exact thing when I get into the studio here shortly, maybe even making the same piece 3 or 4 times to see what I come up with. Many of us make just one piece, and then after that attempt move on, especially when it doesn’t work; when really, we could learn so much from trying to create a better version; to evaluate our work with a purpose; to see if we can create the improvements considered in that critique.
The image here is Sonya Girodon’s two pieces and her evaluation notes. There are more comparisons, notes and comments in the article that will get you thinking. Would you be up for challenging yourself to re-do a piece in this fashion as well?
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
Orbiting Frames
December 10, 2014
Inspirational Art
Strangely, this week has become all about frames, which, of course, fits with the theme of the new issue, but my thoughts and the pieces I am being drawn to are these multilayer frames. So, here is one other option for playing with multiple frames in one piece.
I love this idea of creating windows and multiples of them layered on top of one another, but not lining them up. The tiered windows still bring focus to the center image as frames will do, but the off-kilter layering of them creates such vibrant, yet contained movement. These are a beautiful bit of genius created by Vee (Veesuel), who has several versions of these; primarily with more solid colored surface treatments. I am rather fond of the cane work versions, as it adds to the energy of the pieces; an energy matched by the movement the varied placement of the frames create.
Vee does some beautifully finished work in a variety of styles. And her site is quite pretty and easy to navigate. So, why not grab a cup of something yummy and warm and go visit her for a while?
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
Outside Inspiration: Challenged by Simplicity
December 5, 2014
Inspirational Art
It would seem that successful, simple compositions would be fairly easy to achieve, but I have found that in order to be successful with simple creations is many times more difficult than with complex ones. When the elements are few and spare, every single choice made counts in a big way. This is how I see the challenge in the work of Jon Ryan. His work is gorgeous, but rarely even approaches complexity.
This carved scale aluminum brooch of his epitomizes this. There is really only one color, and that is slightly graduated. There is one texture in the scales, and the form is balanced. That is all that is here, and yet, you can recognize the genius of the design and the bold beauty of it, even if you don’t have any idea why that is so apparent. The genius is in being reserved while choosing elements that make the brooch feel alive. Scales are, of course, an element of reptiles, so there is a hint of a living creature. The slight change in the tint of the color makes the blue glow, so it gives off a sense of soft light and energy. Also, the form curves just enough on either end to introduce movement. These choices along with an impeccable finish is what makes this feel so masterly. I have a hard time imagining how I would go about creating something anywhere near as elegant with such minimalism. I find it quite amazing.
Jon’s body of work is all about simplicity. And, lucky for us, there is an easily recognized correlation to be seen between his metal work and working in polymer. Take even just a few seconds to look at his Flickr portfolio album to see what I mean. If you are intrigued by his work, you can read more about his process on his blog.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
A Few Floating
December 4, 2014
Inspirational Art
Simplicity often works best when presented in an unexpected manner. A necklace of leaves is nothing unexpected. A necklace of three leaves floating, however, is.
This interesting neck-piece is the creation of Delphine Roche de Montgrand of Paris, France. There is grace in the simple triad composition, the slight variation of the leaf sizes and the way they are arranged. But, we are halted by the way they float around the neck, and then, I think, we linger because of the rich color and the naturally attractive fan shape that makes ginkgo leaves so popular. To add anything else here would ruin the quiet feel of an autumn morning so succinctly replicated here. Do you agree?
Delphine works primarily in replications of nature with a little splash of illusion thrown in here and there. You can read more on her blog through Google translate if you don’t speak French.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as 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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