Earth Day is this Sunday. It’s a good time to look at young sculptor, Jessica Swanson, who uses polymer clay with sytrofoam and flocking to create her "Goats on the Summit of Mt. Debris" piece in zero degrees art online gallery based in Los Angeles, CA.
Jessica says of her work, "In the name of convenience, our culture often avoids considering that our own survival as human animals depends on the survival of the entire network of our earth and its life forms."
"Our habits suggest our reluctance to change. I believe our values and actions will shift through a deeper look at our views of the wild."
Thanks to Susan Rose for unearthing this thought-provoking link.
Enjoy a bit of Hawaii and Japan today by traveling with Donna Kato. She’s back from her teaching stint (two weeks in Japan and ten days in Hawaii) with some lovely pictures.
The polymer clay creations of Hawaiian artist Lani Chun, one of Donna’s hosts, perfectly mirror the vibrant colors and lush vegetation of Hawaii. Her one-of-a-kind leis and miniature bouquets show terrific attention to detail as well as great color and craftsmanship.
We start the week with illustrator Linda Olliver from Baltimore, MD. While Olliver illustrates mostly in traditional media, her personal work in polymer clay communicates strong messages with wry, ironic imagery and tone.
Thanks to Susan Rose for starting out our week with a link to make us think.
A bit of fun and frivolity for Friday! This is NYC’s Amber Dawn who put together a "charm swap" with her polymer clay pals as well as some beaders and collagers.
The results are fabulous frippery. It almost makes me want to be in a swap (until I remember how my stomach feels the night before the work is due).
Have a frivolous weekend. I’m off to my son’s final graduate art show. Life is good.
Olga Ayala grew up in New York’s Spanish Harlem. With its pulsating rhythms, spicy aromas, and the diverse make-up of its inhabitants, Spanish Harlem inspired Olga and her best works reflect the culture around her. Her dancers and drummers are filled with a remarkable sense of movement.
Olga’s been working in polymer clay since 1997, teaching herself techniques gleaned from books.
The best place to see Olga’s work is on her MySpace page which is as noisy and energetic as her work. It’s fun to look at some of her sculptures in progress.
This "Branches" bead from Heather Powers caught my eye. It’s a new line that reflects Heather’s art history background and her affinity for art noveau and art deco. She even developed a new "William Morris" bead (below), an hommage to her Arts and Crafts muse.
Be sure to read Craft Synergy’s interview with Heather where she discusses her processes, her motivations, her inspirations, and more.
One more kaleidoscope cane artist, Texas’ Susan Pickle courtesy of a link from Barbara Forbes Lyons. Susan shows a clever way to surround a kaleidoscope focal bead with biconal swirls.
No kaleidoscope beads on Rasa Lazauskaite’s site but plenty of spring color (needed here in cold, snowy Ohio). I admire her polymer clay bezels.
"Anything or everything goes," says Connecticut’s Peggy Dembicer of her girl in the white dress, "polymer clay, stones, metal, plastics, fibers, sequins, beads, wood, buttons, paper, bark, fabrics, push pins, hat pins, yogurt caps." There’s an attitude to start the week.
It looks like this piece is loosely based on a William Merritt Chase painting (or is it a John Singer Sergeant)? Peggy particularly admires the work of the Huichol Indians of Mexico who set bead designs in beeswax.
You can read more about Peggy and her fiber arts background here and here.
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