Global design trends

Tina Holden, Canada Galina Grbennikova, Ireland Gudrun Stolz, Austria

The first three wire-filled forms filled with polymer clay come from two very different sources. Tina Holden from Vancouver Island was thinking of Picasso when she bent her rebar wire into shapes and filled them with clay.

Galina Grbennikova (she writes in Russian and lives in Ireland) used copper wire to create sea creature shapes. Others have bent and filled wire shapes and I see the trend re-emerging. (I should also have mentioned Italy’s Marina Lombardi…see here and here.)

The rough rings and bracelets made by Austria’s Gudrun Stolz are made by wrapping thin bands of clay into rings and bangles. It brings to mind earlier works of Ford/Forlano and a recent French trend to use dry, brittle-edged clay as a design element. (Thanks to Ann Staub for the link.)

I’m intrigued by our growing global design synchronicity. Have a harmonious weekend.

  • reply Karen Sexton ,

    This lovely wirework also reminds me of Seattle artist Linda Goff’s “wire-4-clay”. She made a frame by wrapping 20 gauge wire with 28 gauge colored wire to which she’d added glass beads. She then added embellished polymer clay inside the frame. Her animal pins were especially charming. Linda was MHPCG’s guest artist at our first retreat, way back in 1998. She generously shared her creative spirit and unusual clay/wire technique and still lives among my happy memories. It’s nice to see a similar technique interpreted by talented artists.

    • reply Isa ,

      I love Gudrun Stolz’s work, it’s always with originality !

      • reply Judy P ,

        I would like to get started with clay, but I’m starting out basic with some sculpey clay first. My main question is how do you get the clay to stick to the wire frame?

        Leave a reply to Karen Sexton Cancel reply