Claire’s Accident
November 8, 2014
Inspirational Art
I thought we’d end this week on depth with an in-depth mini-interview conducted by Randee Ketzel. This time she spoke to Claire Wallis who doesn’t work with illusionary depth, but does explore faux and illustrative techniques quite a bit. Here is what Randee sent to share with us:
Claire Wallis is probably best known as the creator of the faux knit tutorial in polymer clay, which she generously shared with the world, but there is so much more to her work. Caner, sculptor, illustrator, Claire is a self-taught artist from the south of England and came to polymer ‘entirely by accident’. She played with it as a child and became re-engaged with it after viewing the works of other artists on the Internet.
An avid fan of Fantasy/Sci-Fi, she has carved her favorite characters on pumpkins, sketched them on chinaware, and sculpted them in polymer. She also illustrates–this elephant cuff is smashing–and clearly has no fear of color, as evidenced by her eye-popping bangles.
The influence of her other artistic explorations like ceramics, acrylics, pastels, printmaking and pyrography is evident in her work, though she says she had very little formal training. She counts that a blessing, as it leaves her free to approach polymer with no preconceptions as to how it ought to be used. As she puts it, “I find ignorance is not only bliss, but genuinely constructive, particularly in a medium as adaptable as polymer clay.”
Her driving force is a keen desire for craftsmanship, every piece should be the best it can be, and she can’t imagine a day without some artistic endeavor to try her hand. Claire recently gave up her job as an assistant manager for St. Barnabas’ charity shop (which helps support their hospice work) to be a full-time mom and is waiting to see where motherhood leads her creative processes.
She describes herself as ‘a bit of a one-trick pony,’ with which I humbly beg to differ, given her obvious mastery of so many media and techniques. She says of herself, “I love to read and learn, and for me nothing beats the sense of achievement you get when you master a new skill.” We will eagerly await the next chapter in her new adventure. In the meantime, you can certainly glean hints from her Flickr photostream and maybe recognize a kindred soul.
Randee Ketzel, a life-long craft artist, previously worked in metals, but is now a polymer enthusiast and co-author of “Polymer Clay Gemstones, the Art of Deception” a different kind of polymer book devoted to faux techniques and the reproduction of historical jewelry. Her book can be found on Amazon while her other tutorials can be found in her Etsy shop.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
The Dark and the Light
October 30, 2014
Inspirational Art
I love that polymer illustration is coming more and more to the forefront. There are some amazing illustrators out there. In our last issue of The Polymer Arts we featured Tammy Durham’s playful work and in the upcoming winter issue we have the honor of being able to include an article by Joseph Barbaccia, the creator of the amazing illustration you see here. The article reveals the steps in his process, as well as how he came to this new calling after a full and successful prior career in graphic design and years of traditional sculpting.
This image is a beautiful and striking mix of the dark and the light, the two sides, as I mentioned on Monday, that are needed for either side to be appreciated, and in this case, create the heavy contrast that is the basis of the dramatic atmosphere here. The beautiful range of additional color beyond black and white have added to the drama. Look closely at the lovely saturated teals and magentas in the raven and the various shades of blue that make up the rich and glowing night sky. Even the moon gives into off-whites and various yellow and green relations to gray.
The rough, and yet wispy, edge created by just leaving the tapered tendrils of clay displays an unusual and effective treatment of the boundary for the image. It really brings out the dimensional quality of the work that may not be as apparent seeing it just as a photograph. To learn more about Joesph’s work, take a look at his website and, of course, be sure you are subscribed or pre-order the winter issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, due out November 28th.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
A Wall Collective
July 29, 2014
Inspirational Art
I think a lot of clayers may avoid trying wall art because working on a larger scale may be imposing. But most wall art in polymer is smaller parts put together. We saw that yesterday. Today, we have an even more specific example of it.
This is a collective work of multiple polymer tiles by Dan Friedlander. As you can see, the whole installation is a series of smaller tiles arranged as a larger piece. Although, at about 6″ square, the tiles are larger than most of us work with to create jewelry. However, think of each tile the same way you consider each bead or element you put together when you create a necklace, and you are using the same approach needed in order to construct a wall sculpture like this.
From this perspective, does creating wall art seem imposing at all?
Dan’s work is all about texture and contrast. His pieces involve tiles or components that would ideally work as a collective as they show off the subtle difference in their compiled forms, which is the basis for his textures. It’s rather hard to describe, but it’s much easier to see and experience. Take a quick jaunt over to his website to see what I mean. On his Shows page, take a look at the large porcelain installation “Isotope Breakfast” for a rare look at his integration of color. This is another great example of gathering individual components in order to create wonderful wall art.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
I thought we’d end this week on depth with an in-depth mini-interview conducted by Randee Ketzel. This time she spoke to Claire Wallis who doesn’t work with illusionary depth, but does explore faux and illustrative techniques quite a bit. Here is what Randee sent to share with us:
Claire Wallis is probably best known as the creator of the faux knit tutorial in polymer clay, which she generously shared with the world, but there is so much more to her work. Caner, sculptor, illustrator, Claire is a self-taught artist from the south of England and came to polymer ‘entirely by accident’. She played with it as a child and became re-engaged with it after viewing the works of other artists on the Internet.
An avid fan of Fantasy/Sci-Fi, she has carved her favorite characters on pumpkins, sketched them on chinaware, and sculpted them in polymer. She also illustrates–this elephant cuff is smashing–and clearly has no fear of color, as evidenced by her eye-popping bangles.
The influence of her other artistic explorations like ceramics, acrylics, pastels, printmaking and pyrography is evident in her work, though she says she had very little formal training. She counts that a blessing, as it leaves her free to approach polymer with no preconceptions as to how it ought to be used. As she puts it, “I find ignorance is not only bliss, but genuinely constructive, particularly in a medium as adaptable as polymer clay.”
Her driving force is a keen desire for craftsmanship, every piece should be the best it can be, and she can’t imagine a day without some artistic endeavor to try her hand. Claire recently gave up her job as an assistant manager for St. Barnabas’ charity shop (which helps support their hospice work) to be a full-time mom and is waiting to see where motherhood leads her creative processes.
She describes herself as ‘a bit of a one-trick pony,’ with which I humbly beg to differ, given her obvious mastery of so many media and techniques. She says of herself, “I love to read and learn, and for me nothing beats the sense of achievement you get when you master a new skill.” We will eagerly await the next chapter in her new adventure. In the meantime, you can certainly glean hints from her Flickr photostream and maybe recognize a kindred soul.
Randee Ketzel, a life-long craft artist, previously worked in metals, but is now a polymer enthusiast and co-author of “Polymer Clay Gemstones, the Art of Deception” a different kind of polymer book devoted to faux techniques and the reproduction of historical jewelry. Her book can be found on Amazon while her other tutorials can be found in her Etsy shop.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
I love that polymer illustration is coming more and more to the forefront. There are some amazing illustrators out there. In our last issue of The Polymer Arts we featured Tammy Durham’s playful work and in the upcoming winter issue we have the honor of being able to include an article by Joseph Barbaccia, the creator of the amazing illustration you see here. The article reveals the steps in his process, as well as how he came to this new calling after a full and successful prior career in graphic design and years of traditional sculpting.
This image is a beautiful and striking mix of the dark and the light, the two sides, as I mentioned on Monday, that are needed for either side to be appreciated, and in this case, create the heavy contrast that is the basis of the dramatic atmosphere here. The beautiful range of additional color beyond black and white have added to the drama. Look closely at the lovely saturated teals and magentas in the raven and the various shades of blue that make up the rich and glowing night sky. Even the moon gives into off-whites and various yellow and green relations to gray.
The rough, and yet wispy, edge created by just leaving the tapered tendrils of clay displays an unusual and effective treatment of the boundary for the image. It really brings out the dimensional quality of the work that may not be as apparent seeing it just as a photograph. To learn more about Joesph’s work, take a look at his website and, of course, be sure you are subscribed or pre-order the winter issue of The Polymer Arts magazine, due out November 28th.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
I think a lot of clayers may avoid trying wall art because working on a larger scale may be imposing. But most wall art in polymer is smaller parts put together. We saw that yesterday. Today, we have an even more specific example of it.
This is a collective work of multiple polymer tiles by Dan Friedlander. As you can see, the whole installation is a series of smaller tiles arranged as a larger piece. Although, at about 6″ square, the tiles are larger than most of us work with to create jewelry. However, think of each tile the same way you consider each bead or element you put together when you create a necklace, and you are using the same approach needed in order to construct a wall sculpture like this.
From this perspective, does creating wall art seem imposing at all?
Dan’s work is all about texture and contrast. His pieces involve tiles or components that would ideally work as a collective as they show off the subtle difference in their compiled forms, which is the basis for his textures. It’s rather hard to describe, but it’s much easier to see and experience. Take a quick jaunt over to his website to see what I mean. On his Shows page, take a look at the large porcelain installation “Isotope Breakfast” for a rare look at his integration of color. This is another great example of gathering individual components in order to create wonderful wall art.
If you like this blog, support The Polymer Arts projects with a subscription or issue of The Polymer Arts magazine as well as supporting our advertising partners.
