Silhouettes of the Past
November 30, 2018 Inspirational Art
I think everyone knows Jeffrey Lloyd Dever‘s work but he’s not as prevalent on the social media networks as a lot of other polymer artists. So sometimes, when his work does pop up, it feels so entirely refreshing and new. And sometimes it doesn’t even seem like his work but he has such a definite signature, especially in his forms and the way he arranges them.
I remember talking to Jeff in Racine, Wisconsin at the Racine Art Museum’s In-Organic exhibition in 2014. His installation piece, Whence from a Darkling Heart, a jacket with black shapes arranged on it and below it, was front and center when you walked into the exhibition space. Jeff asked if I knew it was his work when I walked in. I said of course I knew and told him I would be surprised if not everyone else did too. He was surprised. He thought it was so different that people might have wondered whose it was. I think it’s hard, when looking at our own work, to see what our signature style is.
But here’s another piece of Jeff’s, absent his familiar combination of sunset colors or a dominance of blues, and it seems very obvious that this is his work. Or maybe you would see it and wonder if somebody was emulating his work. But no, this is all Jeffrey Dever and I would say it’s the shapes, the immaculate finish and his careful consideration of balance that makes it so obvious.
The thing about going predominantly monochrome like this is that you are challenged to set color side and heavily consider all the other design elements. The forms, the size, the juxtaposition and contrast of elements, and the way the work is finished become paramount considerations. These other design elements must be attended to with care to make it work. Not that those design elements should not always be attended to with care but sometimes, with color, you may be tempted to let the color carry a piece because a bold or well-chosen color palette will still result in a piece that people admire. It’s just that the work can generally be taken up a notch or two if the other design elements are deemed just as important and are given just as much consideration as color.
And this is why this piece works so well. There is contrast in the form of black shapes but the base shape is the same in each one so there is a connection between them all. The red ball adds the drama with his heavy contrast in color as well as surface treatment and shape. Still, the ball’s roundness is an echo of the curves in the pod shapes. Just imagine if the red element was a square. It would lose so much. But it could have been a triangle, with the points of the pods and the points of the triangles echoing each other, although it would’ve felt very different.
Jeff has some other very different forms he’s been working on which you’ll see more of when we get the Polymer Journeys book out in February. In the meantime, you can take a look at his website to see what he’s been up to over the past couple years.
It’s All About the Fall
September 24, 2018 Inspirational Art
Saturday was a bittersweet day as we released the final issue of The Polymer Arts. It is enjoying a wonderful reception as it is packed full of great ideas, beautiful techniques and lots of food for thought to get those creative wheels spinning.
If you are one of our readers expecting a digital edition but haven’t seen it yet, look in your inbox for a midday email Saturday or check spam/junk mail folders if it’s not there. The print editions headed to the post office on Friday so they should start popping up in mailboxes soon. If you are on the east coast of the United States or overseas, allow up to four weeks for it to arrive.
Here is a collage of some of the first pages of articles if you haven’t seen the issue yet. This issue feels a bit like a transition between what The Polymer Arts has been and what the new magazine, The Polymer Studio, will be. There are a lot of tutorials focused on technique, as always, but with a more accessible range for the novice to the intermediate craftsperson. Rather like The Polymer Studio will be.
I also wrote a couple of short pieces in this issue, talking about the role of publications in our creative lives and how these ideas caused me to make the changes we are making with the magazines. You can read about the development of these magazines in the “Editor’s Worktable.” In this issue’s back page “Muse’s Corner” is my personal story about how circumstances and refocusing on self-care precipitated the decisions to close one magazine and start another.
As always though, we have lots for you to ponder and act on regarding things like your creative vision, the use of color, selling your work, expanding your jewelry forms, and working as an artist in the world of polymer. The fascinating interview with Helen Breil is reason enough to get this issue. She is a very unusual woman who really took a different path. I think you’ll find some surprising details in this and many of the other articles in this issue.
So if you haven’t yet, you can get your own copy of this very special last issue of The Polymer Arts by ordering it online here.
While you do that, I am going to go visit family in Colorado and drive through the mountains in all their changing colors but I’ll drop in here Wednesday, as usual, with a peek at a few things that we weren’t able to fit in this issue of The Polymer Arts.
Almost Late to Class
September 12, 2018 Inspirational Art
You know those times when you’re so busy that, although you sense something exciting is going on around you, you don’t stop to check it out until it’s too late? That was me these last few weeks. I knew that Dan Cormier’s and Tracy Holmes’ Bioforming class was coming up, but not that registration was nearing its end. Then, in my weekly search for cool polymer goodies to share with you this past weekend, I found this refreshing brooch by Dan and realized I didn’t know what was going on with their class. And guess what? It looked like registration for the class may have come and gone. Could this be true?
Not that I would have time to take it, much less sleep much, this year. If you read Monday’s news, you know about the new Polymer Art Projects – Organics book for which pre-sales started at a discount price on Monday, and you probably know about our new magazine, The Polymer Studio, coming in January, and you may also have heard that the next Polymer Journeys book will be on its way in November, so you know I’m beyond busy! But I wished I’d managed to make the time to tell you about this great new class before it was too late.
But then I thought, maybe it’s not! And a couple emails later and I have for you … drumroll please … a secret back door into a few extra spots Dan and Tracy have kindly opened just for you, my readers!
So, if you’re interested, jump over to this link to sign up for their in-depth Bioforming class. This secret back door will only be ope through this Friday so don’t wait as it is probably your last chance to get in on this.
Even if you can’t make the class, be sure to sign up for their newsletter so you’re one of the first to know when their next fantastic class is available.
In the meantime, here’s a bit of Dan’s latest work. The sophistication and mastery that underlies his approach to form, finishes, and design is all here but the little bouncing balls of color and the fun cactus form gives a humorous edge that is not as common in Dan’s work although, if you know him, is a big part of his personality.
For more on Dan’s work and on the classes Dan and Tracy have been teaching, go to their primary website here.
BioSystem Impact
August 15, 2018 Inspirational Art
We can’t talk about wall art right now without bringing up Donna Greenberg’s newest series—BioSystems. She’s creating these amazing conglomerations of organic shapes, bursts of color, and all kinds of variation of texture in these wall pieces.
Like Pavla’s piece on Monday, there is no particular focal point in these wall pieces. However, there is a flow-through from one set of shapes and forms into another through the use of repetition and a gathering of color that defines multiple paths from which one can explore this visual adventure.
This series was an adventure for Donna herself as she wanted to work on something that she was inspired by without concern for the selling of the artwork. Ironically, these pieces have resulted in numerous commission requests. I love that because I have long believed, since my days of being a full-time artist trying to read the market, that if you put yourself into your work it will speak to people and the sales will come.
So, I say, create what pleases you, that which is drawn from your passion, and your vision will come through in a more original and meaningful way, creating work that will please both you and many a customer.
Do set aside some time to explore the other pieces in the series as well as the photos that show the different views of the work. You can do so on Donna’s Facebook page and Instagram.
Celine Crushes It
January 10, 2018 Inspirational Art
Another artist with a bunch of new images posted recently on Flickr is Celine Charuau. Her alien-like plant forms an interesting combination of materials and forms have taken on a sparkly and crumbled texture, maybe from crushed shells. I’ve seen a similar product used in acrylic nail art although she doesn’t list that.
Here she balances the texture polymer forms with steel leaves. Although the beads are more dimensional, I like the echo of the leaf shapes with the pod shapes. They are basically the same shapes but contrast in dimensionality and texture. It is also the quieter of the pieces she created with this intriguing new texture.
You can see the rest of this collection to date on her Flickr photostream.
The Many Faces of Glass Beads
June 10, 2017 Inspirational Art
To round out this week’s quick focus on beads, I thought I’d share focal beads in another medium that is very well-known for them–glass.
Glass artists have some very particular and, literally, inflexible limitations and yet they create these extremely intricate and amazing beads. They do get to work with super clear transparency–a characteristic of their medium that they use to great advantage–which is something that is difficult to achieve in polymer, but their forms and patterns are something that, I think, could be a gold mine of inspiration and a jumping off point for ideas in polymer that go beyond the basic and common beads seen in polymer.
Here are just four examples of the intricacy and beauty in glass bead making today. Starting from top left is a bead created by Leah Nietz, top right is Lisa Fletcher, bottom left is Andrea Guarino, and bottom right is Ikuyo Yamanaka. You can click on each artist’s name to reach their shop or website to look further into what they create. You can also immerse yourself in glass focal beads by putting that very phrase into a Pinterest, Google Images, Etsy, Flickr, or even Instagram.
Weekly Inspiration Challenge: Choose your favorite image posting service, such as those just listed above, and enjoy the art and inspiration that comes up when you search for “focal beads”. Choose a couple of images and try to determine what you like best about the bead or beads and then figure out how to recreate those characteristics in polymer. Hopefully that leads you to some original and very fulfilling polymer bead explorations.
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Spring Issue Has Sprung!
March 4, 2017 The Polymer Arts magazine news
Ta da! The first issue of 2017 is coming out today (scheduled for 11am PST) and, I know I am usually extremely enthusiastic about every issue but this one has so many wildly passionate artists sharing their process and their secrets. It is really heart-warming how much these people share. There are also a lot of cool techniques and new forms to learn, not to mention a few different ways to get and stay inspired in your own creative polymer endeavors. We really hope you like it!
If you are a digital subscriber, look for it in your inbox (or check your junkmail/spam folder if it’s not there) or, if you have a print copy coming to you, they were shipped out yesterday.
If you don’t have your copy on order yet, head over to the website and get yours now. www.thepolymerarts.com
Now I am going to go play with clay. That’s how I relax after a new issue goes out! How about you?
Weekly Inspirational Challenge: Let’s make this weekend simple. Create something in a familiar, easy and uncomplicated design and set of techniques. See what design choices come to you instinctively and just enjoy the process!
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Building out the Box
October 26, 2013 Inspirational Art
With my connection (and faith) in the internet restored, we will resume chatting about boxes and ways to expand on the popular form.
For our weekend peek at lidded containers, I saved a piece by Kim Detmers. The concept here simply stretches the way that you can use your ‘canvas’. Even though a canvas is a flat space to begin with, that doesn’t mean you need to create your work based on that kind of two-dimensional space. Consider possible ways to build up, build out, and work into the space around the vessel, not just the ‘real estate’ that is the surface of the vessel. Kim builds up on the lid, and out into the space above the container. She has also made the lid the unmistakable focal point, which is a bit unusual since it would seem that the tendency is to make the lid an accent or compliment to the body of the box. In fact, with the lid on, it may not look like a container at first, but rather more of a sculpture. And in essence, what should an artistically formed box meant for a bit more than function be but a sculpture?
I know the concept of building into space, considering design and composition in terms of the form, and then using the space around it can sometimes be daunting to ponder. But it is great fun and quite visually impressive when something as simple as a box has been grown into a sculpture that lives in the space around the container, not just on its surface.
If you want a little more information on how to use the space surrounding your pieces, check out the article “Create With Space” in the very popular Spring 2012 issue of The Polymer Arts about this very subject. (Said issue which is just about sold out in the print format, so if you want this or the Summer 2012 issue, you might want to order them soon before we run out.)
And if you like Kim’s work, take a look at her engaging blog and her Etsy shop.
I had a great conversation this past week with the wonderful Mitchell sisters. We are, all three of us, very big on function. Just because something can’t funtion as the object it was created as doesn’t mean it’s not art. But if it can’t function as the type of object it is labeled as, should it actually be categorized as such?
For example, look at this ‘necklace’ … it’s huge! I don’t see it being worn comfortably or well for any length of time. So is it a necklace? Some people will say yes–it fits over the head and rests on the neck and shoulders. But what is a necklace for? It is to adorn the wearer, right? But what if no one will wear it long enough to say the person was even adorned with it? If something doesn’t really fit its function, I am for simply calling it art, usually sculptural art since sculpture doesn’t have a particular function. But if not, do we call if a failure for not fulfilling its function? I don’t know if we should go so far as to say it’s failed. let’s reserve that bit of labeling for things like bad toupees and monstrous high heels.
I am certainly not saying this piece is a failure or not worthy of our consideration. I saved it for a reason. I like the careful consideration of every plane on this piece–the sides, top, bottom, and insides are all colored and coordinated through their saturation. And the artist, Marjorie Schick, recognizes that her work pushes the boundaries of what can be called functional. A book collection of her work was titled “Sculpture to Wear” rather than something about art jewelry or sculptural jewelry. The work is acknowledged as sculpture first, and so we can say it fulfills its primary intended ‘function’–as art to be viewed without undue expectation about how it will operate and survive as anything beyond that.
But this brings us to a notable point about our work. If you are making something that is expected to perform a particular function, it should be able to fulfill the role–it should be able to hang, stand, or move as needed, it will not come apart when used with reasonable care, it won’t harm people when it is worn or displayed, etc. Looking good is, of course, important; but if you neglect to consider how it will hold up, how it will be worn or displayed, or whether it will be comfortable enough for the wearer to keep it on for the day or even a few hours, you haven’t made a successful piece, not to mention you’ll probably disappoint someone. Creating functional art means creating the functional aspects as well as the art.
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As I research for the themed blog weeks we have each week, I quite regularly run into pieces that I would like to feature at some point because I find them surprising and unexpected, but which haven’t yet fit into any themes. So this week, I’d like to show you some of these curious and spectacular polymer pieces. These will not be typical work and may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but they are all a testament to the creative and wide-ranging aesthetic that polymer draws.
Pernille Moesgaard only recently graduated from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, but she is already doing gallery-level fine art in polymer. Her sculptural pieces are a little wild, and are much more symbolic and conceptual than representational, but you can still see the influences of actual natural forms in her work.
This piece seemed the most accessible, which is why I am featuring it first. This is all polymer clay. The detail and amount of work that must have gone into creating the texture and features is quite incredible (this piece is about 35cm/14″ to give you an idea of scale). Believe it or not, it’s one of her more simplistic pieces, if you can even use that word.
The consistent elements in Pernille’s pieces are texture, repetition, and a gradation of color. She seems to have worked these out quite well. Her forms I have had a harder time with, being that they are often uncomfortably balanced, although I do get the sense that the discomfort was intentional. Nonetheless, they are forms that I want to keep investigating, meaning that they work on a level of curiosity, which speaks to them having some success as a whole.
Here is a collection of her work at a show earlier this year at Gallery Pi in Denmark. are some truly unexpected forms here.
What do you think of this kind of work? Does it speak to you? Would you consider doing something so out of the ordinary? It certainly shows some of the potential for polymer, and the many textures could be used on any other kind of work, even if sculpture isn’t your thing.
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Although I didn’t emphasize this, yesterday’s glass artist was big on form as a means of expression, and the sense of movement she conveys is rather dependent on the forms she chooses. I find this to be true with polymer artist Jana Roberts Benzon as well. She creates a sense of flowing, staccato, or ebbing visual movement by building forms that change through the space they occupy in undulating or precise steps
Jana is well known for her laser cut technique, which can create an enthralling texture as well as a visually active form. Her pendant, Zorro, shows how the laser cut texture is used to create change across the surface of the piece, giving it a lot of energy. The technique also allows her to create a very active form, building the zig-zag through the shifting of slices already needed to create the texture.
It doesn’t hurt that there is also a progressive change in the dominance of colors from the top to the bottom. Any kind of gradual change will relay movement because that is what movement is perceived as: a series of related changes.
Enjoy more of Jana’s moving work on both her website and her Flickr pages.
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When we think floral, we tend to think of colorful arrangements. But a large part of the beauty of flowers and all types of nature’s decorative plants is the form they take–the slim stems, the folding leaves, the delicate thinness of a flower petal. Even colorless, they would be beautiful.
These lotus flower interpretations by Zuzana Liptáková of the Slovak Republic have such an elegant complexity to them, with a focus almost wholly on form. I think holding back on the colors is exactly what was needed here to show off the carefully crafted, folded, and layered petals.
When it comes to flowers, going a little wild with the color is a natural inclination, and rightly so; but sometimes, pulling back will allow us to further appreciate the beauty in the other characteristics of Mother Nature’s masterpieces.
Read MoreI considered moving on to rings today but since we covered that subject so thoroughly in The Polymer Arts Winter 2012 issue (and so many of you are subscribers), I thought we ought to move on to another kind of construction consideration … home decor! This most commonly involves covering objects–vases, bottles, boxes, switchplates, clock faces, etc. Our inclination is to cover the object, keeping within the boundaries and following the shape of the form we’re covering. But why? We work with a material that can create a myriad of visual effects and be built into almost any form we can imagine. Why would we let a pre-formed object dictate so much of what we do with it?
Ariane Freisleben doesn’t actually say she covered an object in the piece below but it certainly looks like it and it beautifully demonstrates the idea of moving beyond a standard shape.
This was created using techniques Ariane learned in a Jeffery Lloyd Dever workshop (but no pods here!) which could have been executed by layering the clay flat on a standard bottle shape. Instead she plays with the edges building them outwards and twisting them away and beyond from the expectation of straight vertical lines that would have stopped before the neck of the vase. The result is a much more dynamic object with curves in the form that reflect the playful lines decorating the surface of the clay.
If you missed the switchplate we showcased a week ago, that is also another example of breaking out of the boundaries of an object. If you cover objects, have you ever pushed beyond the boundaries of the form and shape?
If you haven’t played with covering objects or would like to learn more including some suggestions for some more unusual objects to cover, don’t miss the covered objects article in the upcoming Summer issue of The Polymer Arts due out second half of May.
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