Polymer Clay Daily

Yummy Colors

Grape, chocolate, kiwi, mandarin orange, avacado, blueberry, raspberry, mango, papaya and mint. Lindly Haunani’s 2006 colors make you hungry for more. In her hands polymer clay looks alive and edible.

If you’re feeling shy and tentative about your colors, if your supply of gray waste clay is larger than it should be, sign up for a color class. Check Lindly’s site, track Maggie Maggio down or sign up at your local art school.

Knowing more about color will save you money. You’ll buy three colors instead of the rainbow you now invest in. Your pile of scrap will shrink. You won’t have to pretend that mud was what you were aiming for. Your confidence will grow.

Landscape bracelet


This Tuscan landscape is a recent work from Bettina Welker from Germany. It’s a nice twist on the bangle bracelet originally developed by Margaret Regan. It’s especially noteworthy because it was Bettina’s first landscape cane.

Sometimes when you run into a technique that resonates with your artistic sensibilities, things just "click". It looks like Bettina’s on to something.

Thanks to Jackie Sieben for sending us this example from the Claypen group.

East and West

Maybe others can fill in the blanks here. It’s fun to look at the works of Danqing Coldwell. Apparently there was an article about her in the February 2000 Jewelry Crafts magazine but I missed it.

The artist moved from Beijing to Tokyo to Oklahoma…an interesting story which plays itself out in her found objects, metal and clay collages. Enjoy the pictures and we’ll fill in the rest of the story as we discover it.

On the Fritz

Joyce Fritz is one of those polymer artists without a site (sigh). Luckily Susan Rose found Joyce’s work in the Niche Magazine catalog and brought it to my attention. Joyce is famous for her exquisite bugs…take a look.

Friday’s post and video clip generated a lot of interest. As SL Savarick points out, the video is from an up and coming studio in NYC called 1st Avenue Machine. You’ll be seeing a lot of their work, I’m sure. Here’s how RES magazine describes this piece which is the video for the music "Sixes Last" by Alias.

Reflecting Arvind Palep’s fascination with the disappearing boundaries between organic and constructed life, the video questions the long-term effects of widespread genetic engineering while simultaneously creating a gorgeous array of futuristic life forms. …the clip depicts strangely familiar, remarkably active plants with perfectly formed petals and stems, moving to the song’s beat.

Polymer Meets Photoshop

It’s a weird Friday so I’m going with this theme…weird. Organic meets polymer clay. The effects are computer-generated but it looks very much like polymer.

Doesn’t this short video (click here and then press the arrow to start it) just remind you of FordForlano pieces? Lindly’s pods and tendrils? Jeffrey Dever?

The new Google video stuff is exciting and I’m absolutely thrilled at the possibilities. Hang onto your hats, ladies and gents, there’s some interesting stuff ahead.

A mind-stretching Friday. Call me crazy. Have a lovely weekend.

Another male in our midst

Jon Anderson’s "FimoCreations" is an Arizona family business that’s been around for over ten years. A prolific artist, Jon’s animal sculptures appear in galleries all around the country. His animals are densely covered with exceptionally intricate cane work in muted colors.

His work is nicely photographed on his web site and it’s a pleasure to browse. Thanks to Robin Johnston for bringing the site to our attention.

Self Portrait

Just for grins….Dan Cormier’s self-portrait "Astronaut Inro" was made for the "Moves in Polymer Clay" invitational at The Brookfield Craft Center in Connecticut in 2003. The space boy is Dan at age 6.

This is the most complex and ambitious inro project Dan says he’s ever tackled. It even has its own ‘flying saucer’ display stand, complete with glass bell jar astronaut chamber and 2.5 rpm motor.

"Astronaut Inro" open shows the four interlocking chambers, and the helmut lid.

Read about Dan’s recent work and upcoming classes in the current issue of PolymerCAFE.

Backfilling


I saw pictures from a Carol Blackburn demo given at the San Diego guild’s 2005 Sandy Camp and I couldn’t figure out how this technique was being accomplished.

(To see the demo pix, go to the Sandy Camp pictures and scroll down to her demo.)

Carol’s secret is backfilling. She cuts into raw clay with cutters or blades, bakes and then backfills into the baked clay. Or she makes impressions in the raw clay, bakes and backfills. It’s a simple technique that Carol has taken to a whole new level.

A British guild member, Carol first arrived at Sandy Camp in 2004 when she couldn’t return her airline tickets purchased for the canceled national show that year. She’s been coming back ever since. Carol makes great tassels as well…but that’s for another day.