Flower Powered Polymer

May 5, 2019

Kathy McCurry, Bearded Sadie

Have you ever walked outside and been assaulted by a cloud of butterflies? Sounds like something that might happen in a dream, right? But it actually is happening here in Southern California. The first wave came through a month ago as Painted Lady butterflies traveled north on their annual migration only this time there were many more than usual, supported by the crazy wildflower bloom that we have going on out here. Between a very heavy rainy season and all the fires around here, the ground has been very fertile and supportive of tons and tons of mustard flowers, orange poppies, and purple lupines. So now, the next generation of butterflies, laid here by the first migratory wave, have grown, transformed, and are continuing the migration, with streams of them cavorting down the hills, rolling through backyards, and, strangely enough, traveling in clouds down the streets, following the asphalt rivers

So, of course, I had to get out in it (and out of the house) yesterday and now my head is full of flowers and butterflies. Which is weird for me. Although I love these fascinating and colorful gems of nature, they aren’t usually the thing that I turned to, especially when it comes to artwork. But, with flowers on the mind, I sat down to drum up something lovely to show you this week and came up with all kinds of polymer flowers, but not quite what you’d expect.

Let’s look at how people are switching up this most common and enduring subject for artistic inspiration.

Flower Power

first of all, if you read last week’s blog, you know I wanted to focus on mica shift techniques on my own studio table this past week and challenged you all to try a little yourselves. Well, I did get started but it was a tough week for getting things done. However, that post initiated a number of experimentations in a slew of other artist’s studios as well. It does seem that a majority of people are still in the experimentation stage so I will hold off sharing any results until we all have something more complete.

What did happen though, was a lot of online conversations as people shared their work. One such online chat was with Kathy McCurry, one of our most creative floral polymer artists. I am really excited to see what she comes up within mica shift for her flowers as they are already so intriguing. Kathy creates pieces that could be nothing else but flowers yet they are like nothing you ever have, or ever well, see on this earth. They are eye-catching, colorful, shimmery, and crazy exotic looking, as you can see in her piece opening this post and the one below. Being Cinco de Mayo today, I thought these Fiesta flowers would be an apropos example.

It is always hard to pick just one or two pictures from a talented artist like this so please to click over to her website to see more of her work if you’ve not seen it before. You can also find her featured in Polymer Journeys 2019, and she’ll be in Issue #3 of The Polymer Studio. with a bit of a personal story. You can buy the book or subscribe to the magazine (Issue #2 was released last week and is ready to ship if you need a copy!) on the website.

 

Other creative and beautiful, yet not-found-in-nature flowers made in polymer can be found in the studio of Ann Duncan-Hlavach. Ann has a habit of making up her own patterns for petals from just about any source of inspiration besides actual flowers, resulting in some really delightful combinations.

Here is an ode to the Monarch butterfly (since butterflies started this, it seemed like I should bring them in here somewhere on this post), but in a rose shape. Don’t you love the translucent quality of the “wings”? The translucence glows when light hits it. This makes for truly stunning and unusual bouquets as you can see in a wedding set of hers that made it into Polymer Journeys 2019.

 

Just how else can you mix and match inspiration for flowers? Well, the possibilities are endless, and sometimes even frightening! But in a good way. There are few people who have taken the light and delicate nature of flowers and melded them with the far end of the spectrum quite like Anastasiya Khramina. Here carnivorous flora are at once beautiful and horrifying. I do have to wonder what inspired her to add vampiric teeth and a forceful tongue lolling out of her flowers’ centers. And yes, this is not a one-off thing for her. Most of her posted creations are sharp-teethed flowers. I posted one of her pieces a year or so ago and it was one of the most viewed post of that year. I guess us humans will always be drawn by beauty, especially when it is combined with what scares us.

 

Now, if you really would prefer to go the more traditional way and have realistic looking flowers for adornment, you can do so while still taking it up a notch and showing up mother nature herself. Just come up with a color combination and arrangement nature hasn’t quite gotten around to creating. See how Vera of Etsy’s Handmade Blossoms does it … in pastels or a full and bright rainbow.

 

But, perhaps you, like me, are not so much into the flowers but you do love the shapes and forms of them with their layers or rows of petals, and the balanced swirling repetition of their arrangement. Those formations do not only come in flowers. Albina Asadullina popped an extremely realistic succulent onto the focal point of the pendant instead of a flower as one might expect. It has a bit more substance and so is not quite as delicate looking as most flowers but it visually has the same effect for the piece.

 

Moving on From Flowers

To quickly wrap this up, I’m going to let you do further research as you are inspired. I am utterly exhausted by a long arduous week of decision-making, further house rearranging, and trying to keep the dust at bay. Here I am in the middle of what once was my kitchen, contemplating the problem plumbing which instigated this whole thing. I now spend my entire day in my studio (and my nights this week since I have to sleep here for the time being too!) which wouldn’t be that abnormal or too bad if the family didn’t all have to retreat here too when they are home as it’s still a bit nippy outside. We are making the most of it and looking on it as a challenging adventure. Now I just need to figure out how to get work done amidst this all!

The Polymer Studio, Issue #2 … click the image to see a sampler edition

Get oodles of inspiration and have fun with the many intriguing projects, artist interviews, studio tours and other tidbits in the latest issue of The Polymer Studio. Click here to see a sampler of it.

 Looking for your already purchased copy?

If you are due a digital edition, the access emails went out on Tuesday but if you didn’t see yours, check your junk mail folders or go to your account where you can access it. You can also write Sydney, my keeper of lists, from there if you have questions.

Print editions of the new issue went to the post office Wednesday  directly from the printer if you were subscribed or pre-ordered before April 22nd. My shipment has been delayed but I should have them Tuesday so recent orders will go out then from here.

 

 

I hope you all have a wonderful week full of flowers, butterflies, and lots of not-so-challenging adventures!

 

Organic Waves

July 17, 2017

With all the hot weather we’ve been having lately, I’ve been staying in my cool home a lot more than usual. Missing my time wandering around the property looking at all the cool and unusual plants, I found myself drawn to our organic brethren in polymer as I rummaged through images online and gathered a bouquet of curious and cool pieces that should pique the interest of many a nature lover.

Here we have quite a fantastical interpretation of nature’s forms, colors, and textures. The waves atop the petals would certainly make one want to reach out and run fingers across it, then down through the hanging strings as well. The combination of the old standard primaries is an interesting color palette choice. It gives it a carnival feel. That and the directional lines from the wavy texture and the yellow strings makes this feels like it is on the edge of some riotous dancing.

This is just one of several recent works by Kathy McCurry where she creates her own version of flowers. This looks to be the most ambitious piece so far, taking 40 hours and 8 curing sessions in the oven. As hard as these kinds of pieces can be to create, I think it’s just wonderful when an artist takes a risk, investing so much time in one piece. But what a reward we have in store for us when we spend a lot of time on one piece and have something so wonderful to show for it at the end.

You can see images of her recent work on Kathy’s Facebook page and on her website.

 

 

 

 

_________________________________________

Like this blog? Lend your support with a purchase of The Polymer Arts magazine and visit our partners.

    The Great Create Sept 15 blog   businesscard-3.5inx2in-h-front   Shades of Clay Sept 15 Blog

_________________________________________

Flower Powered Polymer

May 5, 2019
Posted in

Kathy McCurry, Bearded Sadie

Have you ever walked outside and been assaulted by a cloud of butterflies? Sounds like something that might happen in a dream, right? But it actually is happening here in Southern California. The first wave came through a month ago as Painted Lady butterflies traveled north on their annual migration only this time there were many more than usual, supported by the crazy wildflower bloom that we have going on out here. Between a very heavy rainy season and all the fires around here, the ground has been very fertile and supportive of tons and tons of mustard flowers, orange poppies, and purple lupines. So now, the next generation of butterflies, laid here by the first migratory wave, have grown, transformed, and are continuing the migration, with streams of them cavorting down the hills, rolling through backyards, and, strangely enough, traveling in clouds down the streets, following the asphalt rivers

So, of course, I had to get out in it (and out of the house) yesterday and now my head is full of flowers and butterflies. Which is weird for me. Although I love these fascinating and colorful gems of nature, they aren’t usually the thing that I turned to, especially when it comes to artwork. But, with flowers on the mind, I sat down to drum up something lovely to show you this week and came up with all kinds of polymer flowers, but not quite what you’d expect.

Let’s look at how people are switching up this most common and enduring subject for artistic inspiration.

Flower Power

first of all, if you read last week’s blog, you know I wanted to focus on mica shift techniques on my own studio table this past week and challenged you all to try a little yourselves. Well, I did get started but it was a tough week for getting things done. However, that post initiated a number of experimentations in a slew of other artist’s studios as well. It does seem that a majority of people are still in the experimentation stage so I will hold off sharing any results until we all have something more complete.

What did happen though, was a lot of online conversations as people shared their work. One such online chat was with Kathy McCurry, one of our most creative floral polymer artists. I am really excited to see what she comes up within mica shift for her flowers as they are already so intriguing. Kathy creates pieces that could be nothing else but flowers yet they are like nothing you ever have, or ever well, see on this earth. They are eye-catching, colorful, shimmery, and crazy exotic looking, as you can see in her piece opening this post and the one below. Being Cinco de Mayo today, I thought these Fiesta flowers would be an apropos example.

It is always hard to pick just one or two pictures from a talented artist like this so please to click over to her website to see more of her work if you’ve not seen it before. You can also find her featured in Polymer Journeys 2019, and she’ll be in Issue #3 of The Polymer Studio. with a bit of a personal story. You can buy the book or subscribe to the magazine (Issue #2 was released last week and is ready to ship if you need a copy!) on the website.

 

Other creative and beautiful, yet not-found-in-nature flowers made in polymer can be found in the studio of Ann Duncan-Hlavach. Ann has a habit of making up her own patterns for petals from just about any source of inspiration besides actual flowers, resulting in some really delightful combinations.

Here is an ode to the Monarch butterfly (since butterflies started this, it seemed like I should bring them in here somewhere on this post), but in a rose shape. Don’t you love the translucent quality of the “wings”? The translucence glows when light hits it. This makes for truly stunning and unusual bouquets as you can see in a wedding set of hers that made it into Polymer Journeys 2019.

 

Just how else can you mix and match inspiration for flowers? Well, the possibilities are endless, and sometimes even frightening! But in a good way. There are few people who have taken the light and delicate nature of flowers and melded them with the far end of the spectrum quite like Anastasiya Khramina. Here carnivorous flora are at once beautiful and horrifying. I do have to wonder what inspired her to add vampiric teeth and a forceful tongue lolling out of her flowers’ centers. And yes, this is not a one-off thing for her. Most of her posted creations are sharp-teethed flowers. I posted one of her pieces a year or so ago and it was one of the most viewed post of that year. I guess us humans will always be drawn by beauty, especially when it is combined with what scares us.

 

Now, if you really would prefer to go the more traditional way and have realistic looking flowers for adornment, you can do so while still taking it up a notch and showing up mother nature herself. Just come up with a color combination and arrangement nature hasn’t quite gotten around to creating. See how Vera of Etsy’s Handmade Blossoms does it … in pastels or a full and bright rainbow.

 

But, perhaps you, like me, are not so much into the flowers but you do love the shapes and forms of them with their layers or rows of petals, and the balanced swirling repetition of their arrangement. Those formations do not only come in flowers. Albina Asadullina popped an extremely realistic succulent onto the focal point of the pendant instead of a flower as one might expect. It has a bit more substance and so is not quite as delicate looking as most flowers but it visually has the same effect for the piece.

 

Moving on From Flowers

To quickly wrap this up, I’m going to let you do further research as you are inspired. I am utterly exhausted by a long arduous week of decision-making, further house rearranging, and trying to keep the dust at bay. Here I am in the middle of what once was my kitchen, contemplating the problem plumbing which instigated this whole thing. I now spend my entire day in my studio (and my nights this week since I have to sleep here for the time being too!) which wouldn’t be that abnormal or too bad if the family didn’t all have to retreat here too when they are home as it’s still a bit nippy outside. We are making the most of it and looking on it as a challenging adventure. Now I just need to figure out how to get work done amidst this all!

The Polymer Studio, Issue #2 … click the image to see a sampler edition

Get oodles of inspiration and have fun with the many intriguing projects, artist interviews, studio tours and other tidbits in the latest issue of The Polymer Studio. Click here to see a sampler of it.

 Looking for your already purchased copy?

If you are due a digital edition, the access emails went out on Tuesday but if you didn’t see yours, check your junk mail folders or go to your account where you can access it. You can also write Sydney, my keeper of lists, from there if you have questions.

Print editions of the new issue went to the post office Wednesday  directly from the printer if you were subscribed or pre-ordered before April 22nd. My shipment has been delayed but I should have them Tuesday so recent orders will go out then from here.

 

 

I hope you all have a wonderful week full of flowers, butterflies, and lots of not-so-challenging adventures!

 

Read More

Organic Waves

July 17, 2017
Posted in

With all the hot weather we’ve been having lately, I’ve been staying in my cool home a lot more than usual. Missing my time wandering around the property looking at all the cool and unusual plants, I found myself drawn to our organic brethren in polymer as I rummaged through images online and gathered a bouquet of curious and cool pieces that should pique the interest of many a nature lover.

Here we have quite a fantastical interpretation of nature’s forms, colors, and textures. The waves atop the petals would certainly make one want to reach out and run fingers across it, then down through the hanging strings as well. The combination of the old standard primaries is an interesting color palette choice. It gives it a carnival feel. That and the directional lines from the wavy texture and the yellow strings makes this feels like it is on the edge of some riotous dancing.

This is just one of several recent works by Kathy McCurry where she creates her own version of flowers. This looks to be the most ambitious piece so far, taking 40 hours and 8 curing sessions in the oven. As hard as these kinds of pieces can be to create, I think it’s just wonderful when an artist takes a risk, investing so much time in one piece. But what a reward we have in store for us when we spend a lot of time on one piece and have something so wonderful to show for it at the end.

You can see images of her recent work on Kathy’s Facebook page and on her website.

 

 

 

 

_________________________________________

Like this blog? Lend your support with a purchase of The Polymer Arts magazine and visit our partners.

    The Great Create Sept 15 blog   businesscard-3.5inx2in-h-front   Shades of Clay Sept 15 Blog

_________________________________________

Read More
If you love these posts ...