If you’re like me, you need a bit of a boost to start your week right and Barb Kobe’s site is sure to do the trick. The doll shown here is her Creativity Shaman, she who builds links to creativity. Barb, who is based in Minneapolis, makes art dolls, therapeutic dolls and puppets that nurture personal growth and healing. She uses a variety of materials, including polymer clay, to create shape, color, textures and moods for her dolls.
Some of her inspirations come from other cultures’ spiritual and healing symbols. Other inspiration comes from words, her art journals, nature, and her healing process. She uses sticks, roots, materials from nature, clay, fibers and painted fabric.
Her site is dense with images and explanations. If your internet connection can handle it, I recommend that you download her slideshow (it’s a 5Mb .pdf file) which is a fascinating read about her process.
Thanks to Carol Simmons for the link. Happy Monday.
I’m not usually a fan of cute names but this one tickles me. It’s not surprising that Amy Wallace credits her babysitting jobs as the thing that led her to more serious polymer work. Teaching her young charges to make beads kept them occupied and made her realize how much she enjoyed the clay.
Amy makes what she calls a "stacker" bead and combines them in many ways. She’s a Cincinnati girl and a member of the Cincinnati Craft Mafia, according to her site. Thanks to Shirley Guenther for the tip.
I snagged Dolly Traicoff’s site while poring over the Detroit guild’s information. I like the layering of words and pictures and objects that she combines into her quirky pins.
I’m also drawn in by the handwriting and the stories that her pieces hint at. A little food for Thursday thought.
by Cynthia Tinapple on May 17, 2006 · 1 comment
A bit of a lesson today from California’s Kim Korringa. Kim has a sequence of fish cane pictures on her site that may teach you a thing or two. 
Kim’s web site is a pleasure to browse through and includes a studio tour, always a winner in my book. In her former life Kim was a graphic artist.
I like the quote by Robert Henri that Kim includes on her site, "The object isn’t to make art, it’s to be in that wonderful state that makes art inevitable"
by Cynthia Tinapple on May 16, 2006 · 1 comment
Look who updated her website! Louise Fischer Cozzi has added loads of colorful new pictures to her site. Her colors are vibrant but soft….like sherbet or Italian ice (in the spirit of Louise’s adopted home). Her designs are simple and elegant.
Louise and Kathleen Dustin will both be teaching in Stresa, Italy this July. Read her class descriptions to find out more. Thanks to Loretta Lam for the tip.
