Minnesota’s Layl McDill says she’s reducing this 13-pound giraffe cane as a stress reliever. What a way to absorb some of the election shockwaves!
Luckily she uses the soft Prism&Pro clay but still, it’s a major challenge.
Layl’s teaching online these days and she takes a most unusual, carefree approach to clay. Browse through her gallery of fantastical creations.
Even more than the size of this face cane from Warsaw’s Sacra Argilla, the dramatic dark pose, and dense background draw us in.
Sacra adds layer upon layer of slim lengths of clay around the portrait. At the smallest size, the background still vibrates with color.
The project took over 135 hours and she documents her process on YouTube and Instagram. This cane will last forever!
This is Sacra’s second try at the project. Her first one in 2017 was a disaster. Imagine devoting that much time and energy to a single project! It must resonate deeply with her.
What project won’t leave you alone?
 |
 |
 |
 |
Carol Simmons built this William Morris inspired cane here in New Mexico to add a new color way to her line of designs. I watched her construct the original extravagant cane that was about 6″ across by 2″ deep. Reducing the cane took a couple of hours with one or two 3-second trips to the microwave. She had only a miniscule amount of waste.
From this one cane, Carol generated at least 16 kaleidoscope patterns which will be turned into many, many beads. It’s a fascinating process that will soon be featured in a new color book by Maggie Maggio and Lindly Haunani.
New Mexico is a “target-rich” environment which means I won’t have to do much computer research this week. I’ll just pick up my camera and shoot. Even the sunsets are Skinner blends.
