Argentina’s Turkana (turkanajoyeria) uses translucent clay in her extruded cane (the retro cane developed by Bettina Welker).
Turkana’s designs have a carefree looseness in contemporary colors that appeal on an uptight Monday morning. Let’s let the light in.
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Isis Blackstock(littlepiecesjewelry) made me explore further.
It seems counter-intuitive that you can bend an extruded tube and still maintain the hole. The joys of polymer!
I’m remembering earlier variations on the idea from Lindly Haunani, Ford/Forlano, and Pier Voulkas. Oh, that takes me back.
Isis explores this concept, applying it to a wide range of bangles and necklaces.
She offers them in monochrome colors but what if you covered the tube with pattern? I’m talking to myself here. I really must try this.
Isis Blackstock (littlepiecesjewelry) turns squiggles and wrinkles and tubes into polymer chic.
Isis’ pieces are light on technique and heavy on making a smooth, sleek, modern statement.
The earrings that I raved about earlier this week were from Houston’s Sally Kirk (Blossomandclay) using Moiko silkscreens. Right tool, wrong artist.
Once I fixed that, I went to her Instagram for a wander. Sally’s two little girls giggle and sing and sort components for their mom. They are very proud of her. They scribble and paint and work on their own art just like mom.
I could be wrong again, but these waterfall earrings appear to be extruded strings laid out precisely. Such a simple and glamorous treatment from Sally.
Pandemic purchases…we’ve all made them. An imprint tool that will make you a mokume gane star. A class that will uncover deep secrets. We are all susceptible to the idea of a quick fix, the magic pill.
StudioMojo will offer you a few more. If you’re lucky enough to be economically stable, some of that stimulus money could be patriotically spent supporting artists. We’re all in this together and we’ll talk you through it on StudioMojo. Join us.
This 10″ shallow bowl from Denmark’s Debbie Kronsted (Kronsted Design) is all polymer. Skinner blends with touches of metal leaf are collaged to create the inside of the bowl. She extruded leftovers into strings that cover the back in a coil.
Kronsted & Sommer Gallery in historic Copenhagen is filled with polymer vessels, lamps, bowls, jewelry, and art for the home as well as other gift items. Shop the gallery online here.
My brain’s all mushy and there’s nothing better than this cane reveal from Australia’s Robyn at Kaori Studio to capture a tired mind. That first slice is the equivalent of a cat toy for caners.
Robyn has pumped out one big batch of extruded dots! She has a baby so she works at night which accounts for the lighting. Doesn’t it make you want to try it? This is what we extruder types dream about. Watch her upcoming jewelry to see where this pops up.
Get the full slicing effect on Robyn’s Instagram (@shop.kaori). Now wasn’t that satisfying?
Delaware’s
Joseph Barbaccia first drew this Notorious portrait using a digital pen and Photoshop. Then a client commissioned it as a 15″x15″ polymer work.
Watch how Joseph sets up his extruded string palette and gets to work.
He glides smoothly between digital drawing and polymer string mosaic. As you come closer, strokes become thin lines of polymer transformed into a stunning image.
Even his business card uses a polymer thread for a logo.
Don’t try to predict where your ideas will take you. Hop on Mari O’Dell’s magic carpet to see what I mean.
Mari’s journey started in the mummy section of the NYC Met Museum where she hung out as a teenager.
Recently she took my “Slots and Dots” online polymer class and reconnected with her Egyptian impulses. She learned to extrude narrow tube beads like those found in the layers of mummy wrappings. In Mari’s version, a scarab and beads dusted with metallics are interspersed with her imitative ancient faience tubes.
Beads are an ancient form of art and currency. Their echoes still ricochet around the globe. Please wait until the carpet comes to a complete stop before you leave your seat. Who says we can’t travel during a pandemic?
If you’d like to recharge your batteries, join us over at StudioMojo.
Many of Kristen Oxtoby’s designs (These Hollow Hills) rely on extruded clay laid down together to make corrugated shapes. Here, ball chain dangles from the bottom of her Farrah earrings. And in her Circa series, the polymer strings wind around circle cutouts.
Kristen’s pieces are big and bold. She calls it “…a ’60s-inspired aesthetic with a 90’s soundtrack.”
This North Carolina artist makes collections that have attitude. Get the full effect on her Instagram.
Belgium’s Nancy Blindeman (Art BeYou) has started making faces in polymer lately.
The illustrations of Patrick Nagel and the music of Duran Duran inspired Nancy to work in a new way and it suits her well. She builds up extruded strings of clay into a portrait.
She says of this character, “Her name is Rio and she dances on the sand.” When an artist can see and hear and her characters, we can sense that aliveness in the work.
