by Cynthia Tinapple on September 2, 2010 · 0 comments
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Every day presents new ideas. Shall I work with metals, polymer clay, resin or felt and fiber, or do I want to stitch beads? Does my mood reflect cutting edge modern, vintage, or something in between? My creative world can change on a whim,” says jewelry artist Barbara Briggs.
She reflects the sentiment of a growing number of artists who move easily between other media and polymer as their vehicle of choice. This cross-pollenization is widening our circle of friends.
Barbara’s site is a treasure trove, including these polymer-handled makeup brushes and this Asian Influence pendant.
Niche Awards
The deadline for entries for the prestigious 2011 NICHE Awards competition has been extended to September 17. They’d like to encourage participation from our community.
There are new categories this year including: basketry, outdoor art, wedding jewelry, paper, and religious/inspirational art. If you meant to apply but forgot the date, jump on this second chance.
by Cynthia Tinapple on September 1, 2010 · 6 comments
This RoseBall polymer necklace from Italy’s Laura Bocchi is an elegant solution to jewelry construction. She embeds ball chain in polymer as a design element and bakes the entire necklace.
Laura has also used guitar strings to achieve the same effect.
I’ll be teaching a polymer sampler class at our new art center this fall (there’s still room!) and my eye is drawn to smart, simple designs as I think about class projects.
Dan Friedlander’s series of 4″x4″ white polymer tiles is a study of textures. This Colorado artist makes the process sound like a meditation – sculpting the clay with only his hands, firing the tiles in a solar oven, and giving each a poetic title. You can see how he digs deep to come up with his wide range of variations…and titles! Ann Kruglak sent the link along.
Jon Anderson lives and works in Bali. His distinctive animal sculptures, densely covered with rich polymer cane patterns, have for years been found in galleries across the US.
Now Anderson has branched out, covering custom electric guitars with polymer for Hand Guitars. Hear him talk about his 50-pound, 12-foot canes in this video (at the top of the column at right) taken at a trade show in Nashville. The guitars range from $1800 to $6000. Here are more pictures and videos of the new venture.
Home Again
I’ve returned to the midwest with a head full of ideas and a suitcase full of dirty laundry. I’ll be unpacking both this week.
by Cynthia Tinapple on August 27, 2010 · 8 comments
Gera Scott Chandler has taken polymer rock making to the next level – inter-planetary. Her Martian rocks reveal colors and images from another planet. Click here to see one of her finished necklaces.
As a rock hound myself, it was gratifying when several artists attended our “Rockettes” session. They shared their secrets and compared their faux river rocks, beach stones and exotic pebbles. Gera’s were the most outlandish.
Gera was also the first one to spot a magical moose this week. Have a magical weekend.
