You don’t need to speak a word of Russian to understand Juliya Laukhina’s pod tutorials that she offers free on her Instagram. Just watch closely.
She makes creating this black and white one look oh so seductively easy and fast.
Juliya has covered wonderfully colored bead bases with cane slices for years. Now she’s moved to larger pod shapes.
It’s generous of her to share their construction with us to start the week right.
Germany’s Bettina Welker arranges textured elements on a black spiral doodle of clay to form a thoroughly modern pendant/brooch.
Bettina is teaching this workshop in her hometown. Students bring favorite elements they’ve made or gathered. They evaluate and sort their finds and learn to arrange them into something new and better.
You can see more in this series on her Etsy site.
Upcycling and making old into new is another of the trends we’ll look at in this Saturday’s StudioMojo. It’s a heads-up for where our work may be headed in 2020 and beyond. We’d love to have you join us.
Russia’s Tanya Mayorova teaches this necklace of wraparound beads.
The graduated colors of these cone-shaped beads fit snugly into each other. The cones move in a sinewy, snake-like motion that makes them relaxing to make and fun to wear.
Here’s Tanya on Instagram.
“The rabbit hole is deep,” Florida’s Lynn Yuhr cautions as she prepares her class samples for the Bead and Button show.
You may have seen Lynn’s intro video that we snapped for StudioMojo last year. She demos the basics here.
Since then Lynn has fallen down the rabbit hole as she expands her skills for her Getting Wabi Sabi with Liquid Clay class.
Very loose. Very retro. Very cool.
Japan’s Yukari Tateuchi (ycollection) was introduced to polymer in 1995. That was about the time when Nan Roche and Kaz Kono were busy in Japan though there may be no connection. I like to think that’s when polymer seeds were planted.
On her class page, she notes that, “It is even better if you bring your own slippers. The workplace is small and dirty,” There are interesting stories here!
These disks covered with monochromatic canes have a soothing, minimalist and modern feel about them. Go explore her aesthetic on her pages.
Check out these belted bracelets from Belgium’s Delphine Vignoble.
This one sports an imitation green python texture with mahogany buckle.
Delphine composes her bangle entirely in Cernit to make simple and stylish arm candy.
These robin canes from New Hampshire’s Jayne Dwyer closely mimic what I saw outside my kitchen window this morning.
Jayne has a grasp of figurative caning matched by few other artists. Her shading and depth keep getting better. Jayne generously sends her cane ends to Ron Lehocky, Ohio inmates, and others.
The caned images are even more remarkable in person and she sells them for a very affordable price in her Etsy shop.
I thought the robins were the bomb and then I saw these 3D pinecones. Google her images to see the range of her work and how her canes continue to amaze.
Utah’s Jana Roberts Benzon turns her work in a new direction with these latest brooches.
Jana says she’s riffing on the work of Germany’s Attai Chen. He uses cast-offs, carved wood, layered paper, silver, paint, and graphite to express his aesthetic in both jewelry and wall sculptures.
But if you know Jana’s progression of works and understand that she has a background in flower arranging and a love of nature, you can see how this polymer interpretation is a natural next step.
The polymer and alcohol ink piece is 7″ x 5”. Its thin dense petals are very lightweight and it could be worn as a brooch.
How brave of Jana to show us her impressive first efforts.
Take a look at some of the questions posed on Tumblr that these college students answer in their class sketchbooks.
The college-level studio class in polymer clay is taught by Diane Levesque, Associate Professor of Art at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Students learn color theory, create a repertoire of textures and patterns and develop compositional strategies to make a variety of polymer and mixed media objects.
The class uses Lindly and Maggie’s Polymer Clay Color Inspirations: Techniques and Jewelry Projects for Creating Successful Palettes as the textbook. “The book is now out of print which is challenging,” says Diane.
I felt a mixture of pride and jealousy at those fresh faces tackling the exercises. Where will they take our art form?
Hats off to Diane and a whole bunch of artists who worked to get a college-level polymer class launched several years ago. How could we help the class continue and spread it to other art schools?
Italy’s Serena Ghidoni (mondoinundito) showers your Monday with a handful of polymer nymphs, mermaids, and fairies.
Mondoinundito means “world in a finger”. Serena says she wants to convey the idea that behind small things there is a huge and beautiful world that deserves to be discovered.
Take a closer look at the fine details she sculpts into these graceful and fanciful shapes. Her Instagram leads you to her Facebook and sales sites.
