October 4, 2014 Inspirational Art

I have a treat for you today. When I asked around for artists that wanted to guest blog, I got an enthusiastic “Yes!” from the energetic Randee Ketzel. I thought she would find and comment on a selection of work based on a theme as we do here every week, but instead she decided she would like to interview a few artists for us. I was thrilled. This will be the first of those interviews. We’ll get out these special posts by Randee every couple of weeks or so for as long as she’ll send them along!

Wendy is definitely one of a kind. What else can you say about  a workshop instructor who shows up in a Mad-scientist lab coat, rainbow leggings and a faux bone/bird skull tiara? Plus, when she pulls out the giant polymer radish who grins impishly at you with REAL human teeth–well, you know this is going to be an interesting class. But, beyond the mischievous  showmanship is a serious artist with some serious talent. That talent will be on display at the Carthage College exhibit, “A Re-Visioning: New Works in Polymer”, through the end of October.

Art was in her blood; coming from a family of artists, she  has been working in polymer since the late eighties, creating her signature bone and skull jewelry. She had known about the medium, but seeing a  full page article on the work of Pier Volkous sent her into the hunt. Her work with ceramics–and frustrations with it–made polymer a natural fit. Earlier in her career, she had  been an in-house illustrator and art director for a graphic design firm (she has a dozen books to her credit), and her work is informed by that experience. Wendy has a BA in both Art and Business and feels that it is a mixed blessing. One professor told her that he worried she would not stick to just one path, and fortunately for us, she didn’t. Her wild, thought-provoking combination of many media is precisely what makes her work so unique.

Wendy is a driven artist. She describes her brain as a constantly simmering stew of ideas that must find some sort of expression every day and hopes that people either love her work, or hate it; the only thing she fears is indifference. In preparing for this post I asked Wendy to describe her passions and she responded in a very Wendy-kind of way:

“Hmmmm… running, skiing, snow, anything sparkly, animation, my husband’s music, my sons’ art, wine, good food, the sun, the water, anything transparent, rocks, biology, geekery, bones, chartreuse, neon (the lighting and the colors), anything woodland and candy…”

We all need a little sparkle in our lives. Thank goodness we have Wendy.

You can find more of Wendy’s work in her Etsy shop and on her Tumblr pages.  Be sure to scroll down on the Tumblr page to see her incredible paper cut pieces!

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.  

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