Spring is finally here, and, along with spring rains comes a packed spring teaching schedule! I'm home now for a couple of weeks, then off to Florida and after that, a final workshop to be given back here, in Montreal. I'm focused on teaching the Burlesque Blend this year, so, for now, the rustic, gritty, organic stuff will have to take a back burner. I find it interesting to see the effect that teaching has on my creativity - it squelches it totally!!! I get so left brain that my family refer to me as "Sheldon". For those of you who watch The Big Bang Theory, you'll get the point. It becomes all about the chemistry, the physics, the engineering, even the mathematics (even Sandra is working out the math of her latest effort!) of the project. For me, it's important that students not only understand the "how" but also the "why" of a particular aspect of the technique. I've always felt that an artist who understands his medium is in the best possible position to explore and take risks, and therefore is more likely to make new discoveries. Putting all this information into digestible form is time-consuming and laborious, but I started out as a "lab rat" and I love it there!
I've come to realize that there are many new artists coming to polymer clay who don't have a solid background in the medium or in the basics of working with the medium. I would like to do a Polymer Clay 101 post, once a month, with progressive technical as well as technique information. Some of it you will undoubtedly already be familiar with, but there may be little tidbits that will help you with a niggling problem.
For example, I was asked to look at a bracelet that had broken after wearing. The artist asked if I had any idea what the problem was. She had not reinforced the bracelet with wire, but stated that she thought maybe the problem was that she had used an inferior clay, Premo. After picking my jaw up off the table, I told her that Premo is a high-quality, artist-grade polymer clay and not likely the cause of her problem. Ultimately it turned out the problem was not knowing what time or what temperature was needed to cure Premo properly. The result of too low a temperature and a very short cure cycle led to the breakage.
If you think this kind of monthly post would be of benefit, please leave a comment and let me know. If there are specific questions you have that you would like to see addressed in this post, please let me know. I'll be glad to do my best to deal with it.
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Thursday, March 28, 2013
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Rustic Relics
Please click on the pictures for larger images |
Here I present my latest Eureka! Pretty? Not by any definition! Fabulous? Absolutely!
light shining through behind to show translucency of top |
Here's how it came about. It was time for me to
experiment. I wanted to work with the ivory and add the feel of glass and get really rustic - the primitive ceramic/pottery/faience type rustic. My studio does not even remotely resemble those pictured in glossy magazines. I usually have to search around for a clear space that will hold my backside, so fat chance of finding a clear space to park a sheet of clay! (The Arctic Fox often suggests that he hang a large sheet of melamine/plywood from a pulley system bolted into the ceiling above my work surface. That way, when I run out of space, I can just winch a clean surface down onto the existing chaos and start fresh). He thinks he's witty!!!
I try to find a used piece of wax paper to place the sheet of bone/ivory clay down onto. I don't want to use deli wrap (silicon-too hard to find, or dry wax-leaches plasticizer) or plain paper (leaches also). I spot a piece and plunk the clay down. I make up the translucent, adding dry pigment, white acrylic paint, embossing powders-just a trace (white, black and pale turquoise) onto half the clay, roll out thinly, tear in half, place the relatively clean half on top, roll out thinly, then roll up roughly, leaving creases and overlapping edge, cut into sections about 1/4 the height I want the finished bead to be.
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without the red outlines |
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Sometimes it's good to push through your "mistakes"!
Some more images below:
Friday, March 1, 2013
Annus Horribilis!
My first attempt at a Rock Cuff Bracelet |
PS. No, this is not a paid advertisement. These ladies do not know I'm posting this (I hope they don't mind!)
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