Contrast of Self
March 14, 2021
Design lessons, Supplies & other fun stuff
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…
Tactile Form
May 24, 2020
Inspirational Art
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!
One Element at a Time
February 3, 2019
Inspirational Art
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).
MidWeek Update – 15% Off Sale, Mokume link, and Sampler Magazine
January 31, 2019
Polymer community news, The Polymer Arts magazine news
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!
Spikey Blue
December 7, 2018
Inspirational Art
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.
Getting Squared Away
November 21, 2018
Inspirational Art
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.
Going With the Flow
November 9, 2018
Inspirational Art
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.
Doreen Strings it Up
November 7, 2018
Inspirational Art
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.
On the Flipside
November 2, 2018
Inspirational Art
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!
I have to bring up Christine Damm this week since the first time I ever mentioned naming on this blog was in reference to her shop name–“Stories They Tell”. It’s simple, but really effective, and she also names all her pieces to reflect her thoughts on the work. This one is a happy piece called All That Jazz. The name definitely pushes you towards considering the more musical parallels the colors, shapes and lines convey.
So what does your art, your shop, and (if different) your business names tell others? What do other artist’s shop and business names say to you? These are great questions to ask yourself if you are looking to start something new or change things up in where and how you sell your work.
Find out more about Christine’s work as well as checking out more unusual and story conveying names on her Flickr pages and her 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.
One of the common hallmarks of elegant art is understated design choices. In the case of this necklace by Elizabeth Kosterich we have a single predominant and austere blue color as well as simple long rectangular shapes accented by nothing more than a stop bead on the end and the shine of polished silver. It’s such a simple composition but the symmetry and simplicity contrast against the organic texture of the polymer creating all the interest it needs to draw the eye and dress up the wearer.
Elizabeth creates art jewelry in polymer clay, sterling silver, and other mediums as well. Her work is sometimes simple, sometimes visually complex but always contemporary and understated in some aspect. You can take a look at more of her approach on her website.
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.
Read More
Kathryn Doll gives her art jewelry a feel of age and austerity with layered visual texture and classic forms. She uses liquid polymer clay with paint, metal leaf, and glitter to achieve the depth you see here. That slight shimmer and the cool brilliance of the stones brings a quiet elegance to the pendant’s antique look.
Kathryn’s work has shown up on actors in a number of shows as well as being gifted to numerous celebrities. See who wears her work as well as seeing what else she creates on her website and on her blog.
Read MoreI was going to do a themed week on embedded bits (not the best theme title but that is as far as I got with the idea!). But most of the pieces I wanted to use were unattributed finds on Pinterest. So I thought I’d take a moment to post some thoughts on pinning images with Pinterest as well as getting your help this week with these pieces.
I am actually in Los Angeles–a very sudden, last minute trip due to my father having some health issues. (All is looking very positive here so no real worries; he just needs some help getting into a new routine and keeping an eye on his condition.) On top of getting the latest issue out and things wrapped up for it, I’m a bit frazzled and distracted to say the least. So … would you all like to help me identify some artists and talk about these beautiful pieces this week? I would be so grateful!
This first image is a collection of rock like beads with these meandering textures and embedded bits of shaped clay that remind me somewhat of Amy Eisenfeld Genser‘s paper wall pieces I wrote about in a post last year. There is a sense of serenity and peace in these understated, organic looking beads. I wonder why I’m so drawn to them right now. Hmmm …
So, do you know who created these beads?
Ideas for better Pinning…
When you pin to Pinterest there are a few basic things you will want to pay attention to in order to ensure an artist is properly credited and that you, and any of us that find that pin through you, can find more information about that talented person:
- Put the artist’s name in the caption–it’s not likely to be removed when repinned so at the very least, people will know who created the piece they are admiring.
- Pin from the original blog post or article, not a blog’s or website’s changing home page. If you go to a person’s blog or blog based sites, you are usually on a homepage that will show you all the latest blogs or news but if you pin an image from this homepage, the link associated with that image will be the current home page which will not have that piece on it at a future date. Instead, click on the entry of the blog post or article title so you go to the post’s actual page then pin from there. That way, if someone clicks on the pinned image, it will go to the original post with all the information about the piece and artist as posted by the writer of the post/article.
- Avoid pinning “media-cache-…” images. These can be found when clicking on an image on a site and getting it to open in a browser on it’s own. It may also occur when using sites like Reddit where people are posting without links back to the source. If you have a media-cache image, put as much info in the Pinterest caption as you can from the source you found it at.
Those are my pointers. Do any of you have any further thoughts about how to best use Pinterest and ensure people are getting credit? Please post any information about the mystery artist here or ideas for using Pinterest and similar image networks in the comments at the end of this original post. (If you get this by email, click on the blog’s title and it will take you to the page.)
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Even though English Artist Claire Wallis is self taught and is fairly new to polymer, her attention to detail is inspiring and her finishing techniques are immaculate. Take a look at these bracelets pictured here. The designs are fairly simple but strong. Her canes here use an approach that gives the pattern a subtle glow. This kind of technique uses color value and gradation to emulate light in a surface pattern. We actually have an entire article about ways to create the illusion of light in the Summer issue that starts mailing out this coming Friday.
Claire is also a talented illustrator and you can see her graphite drawings and painting as well as her polymer work on her website. You may also want to take a look at more of her work, including some delightful polymer birds, on her Flickr page.
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.
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As we continue our look at designs inspired by microscopic imagery, this necklace by Jael Thorp from Champaign, Illinois, brings to mind plant material under a microscope. This necklace is one of Jael’s Jewels and was made by the mokume gane method. She calls this her mini mokume gane set. They have an organic fluidity that almost vibrates with life.
Jael works with color to fit her mood. You have to wonder what kind of wonderful mood she was in here. To see more of Jael’s work, visit her Art Fire shop or her Flickr pages. You can read about her process on her award winning blog site “Jael’s Art Jewels 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.
Asymmetrical composition is common in every artistic area so choosing just one for today’s outside inspiration was tough. This necklace has been on one of my Pinterest boards for a while though so this seemed like a great chance to share it.
Felted jewelry is becoming more common and the felters are getting quite creative. I like this example by Nadine of Dans Mon Corbillon, not because it’s the most creative but because of it’s intricacy and use of other materials including beads and what I think are feathers. It’s just so full of varied textures. The variation and asymmetrical arrangement could have looked a bit too chaotic but I think it comes across as rather celebratory instead, the way nature can get at the peak of the season when all the foilage and flowers are taking over. (and those of us in the Northern hemisphere are sure looking forward to that!)
You can look at more of Nadine’s gorgeous work on her Flickr site and her blog.
By the way, the Spring issue of The Polymer Arts came out today. If you are due a digital issue but it’s not in your inbox, look in your spam/junkmail folder as they can be sometimes be routed there. If you are waiting on a print issue, they were sent to the post office in Idaho on Wednesday to be processed so most people will be getting those next week or the week after if you are in the east or far south of the States or overseas. Due to cuts in postal services a few issues took over three weeks in the US and some places in Europe last time but be patient. They are on their way!
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.
Have you tried the Swellegants yet? Or if you have, did you push what you can do with them?
I found this neat little grid of suggested combinations for using Swellegants recently … some are so juicy and realistic. These are done on metal elements but the exact same effect can be created on polymer pieces too. Check out these tips and color formulas for Swellegants Patinas by Heather Powers.
If you are up for trying these products or expanding your collection, you can get Swellegants along with metal embellishments, awesome tools, accents, and other goodies from Christi Friesen’s online store.
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.
I have been saving a number of pieces by Arden Bardol, hoping to fit this unique work into one of our themes but hadn’t yet found the right place to introduce her work. Arden’s work is a busy mix of varied elements, sometimes graphic, other times quite organic, and many times both. I just find the combinations intriguing and the colors so eye-catching.
Check out just how fun and varied Ardel’s work is on her website.
Hopefully you are winding down from the holiday bedlam and have time to enjoy your family and friends who might have been in town or the ones you went to visit yourself. Have a beautiful weekend!
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.
