Pasteled and Fractaled
January 26, 2018
Inspirational Art
For our last day of rich color, I thought I’d take it down a notch saturation-wise. This isn’t polymer or any kind of dimensional material but it is a fabulous fractal design and what lovely colors and light it has. Fractals have been a fascination of mine and many other artists for a while now. Their intricate patterns make inspiring textures not to mention that the color choices of these designers can be a great source of ideas for polymer work.
If you are unfamiliar with fractals, these are both a natural and math-based design where one form is repeated over and over, usually getting smaller as it progresses and even forming the same shape in the way it is laid out. Found everywhere in nature, fractals have moved into the realm of art with people developing designs based on natural formations but using math as a kind of paintbrush to help create the composition.
This stunning piece is by a gentleman who goes by Troythulu online while stating that his real name is “either Troy Loy or Troy Thompson.” Not sure why he is confused but I imagine just he wants to remain mysterious, and quirky. His fractals are amazing, though. This piece, in particular, could easily be translated into pearl clay with some mica powder painting to color tips and edges. I think it’s something worth playing with, especially if you like both shiny and colorful pieces.
See more fractals by Troy whatever-his-name-is on his Tumblr page.
Patterned Perfection
April 27, 2016
Inspirational Art
I saw a piece of Jon Stuart Anderson’s, before I even knew what polymer clay was, in a gift shop in the Denver airport. It was a frog so beautifully patterned in a material I didn’t know and since it was nothing I could afford that was as far as my admiration was able to go. It wasn’t until several years later when I was starting the magazine that I found Jon’s work again. We were compiling our resource list of artists and my assistant found his work and couldn’t stop gushing over it. Then he saw Jon’s work in that same gift shop and called me quite excited about seeing it in person and it clicked into place that I had seen this work in person myself.
I got to interview Jon, the first person he ever agreed to do that for, a year later. In a phone call from Bali, I got to know Jon a bit and was even more impressed by his kindness and joyful nature not to mention his complete immersion and dedication to his craft. He is certainly one of brightest gems and it’s no surprise that the board found him to have some of the best work of the last couple years.
Although Jon creates a lot more than animals, those are his best known pieces. I was going to pull out one of his sculptures or laminated guitars for you but these fish heads were too beautiful and fun and I don’t think they’ve really gotten around the web like his other creatures. The canes on top along with the varied texture of their underbellies show his wide range of fine caning skills and his brilliant use of color.
Images are really not enough to convey the vibrant colors and the flawless finish of Jon’s work. His work is in galleries and gift shops all over the world so keep your eye out for his work or see if you can nab some gorgeous piece from his retailer directly. In the meantime, you can discover more of his pieces on his website and for your tea or coffee break, I suggest sitting down to watch his videos on how he makes his canes. It’s a treat to watch a master at work!
Inspirational Challenge of the Day: Make the theme of your next piece ‘pattern’. Create small patterns, textural or visual, that are repeated over and over lining up to emphasize form or create the feel of movement. You could create with canes but you can also use handmade stamps, hand-tooled marks, or tiny tiles or shapes punched out of textured sheets of clay.
_________________________________________
Like this blog? Lend your support with a purchase of The Polymer Arts magazine and visit our partners:
_________________________________________
For our last day of rich color, I thought I’d take it down a notch saturation-wise. This isn’t polymer or any kind of dimensional material but it is a fabulous fractal design and what lovely colors and light it has. Fractals have been a fascination of mine and many other artists for a while now. Their intricate patterns make inspiring textures not to mention that the color choices of these designers can be a great source of ideas for polymer work.
If you are unfamiliar with fractals, these are both a natural and math-based design where one form is repeated over and over, usually getting smaller as it progresses and even forming the same shape in the way it is laid out. Found everywhere in nature, fractals have moved into the realm of art with people developing designs based on natural formations but using math as a kind of paintbrush to help create the composition.
This stunning piece is by a gentleman who goes by Troythulu online while stating that his real name is “either Troy Loy or Troy Thompson.” Not sure why he is confused but I imagine just he wants to remain mysterious, and quirky. His fractals are amazing, though. This piece, in particular, could easily be translated into pearl clay with some mica powder painting to color tips and edges. I think it’s something worth playing with, especially if you like both shiny and colorful pieces.
See more fractals by Troy whatever-his-name-is on his Tumblr page.
Read More
I saw a piece of Jon Stuart Anderson’s, before I even knew what polymer clay was, in a gift shop in the Denver airport. It was a frog so beautifully patterned in a material I didn’t know and since it was nothing I could afford that was as far as my admiration was able to go. It wasn’t until several years later when I was starting the magazine that I found Jon’s work again. We were compiling our resource list of artists and my assistant found his work and couldn’t stop gushing over it. Then he saw Jon’s work in that same gift shop and called me quite excited about seeing it in person and it clicked into place that I had seen this work in person myself.
I got to interview Jon, the first person he ever agreed to do that for, a year later. In a phone call from Bali, I got to know Jon a bit and was even more impressed by his kindness and joyful nature not to mention his complete immersion and dedication to his craft. He is certainly one of brightest gems and it’s no surprise that the board found him to have some of the best work of the last couple years.
Although Jon creates a lot more than animals, those are his best known pieces. I was going to pull out one of his sculptures or laminated guitars for you but these fish heads were too beautiful and fun and I don’t think they’ve really gotten around the web like his other creatures. The canes on top along with the varied texture of their underbellies show his wide range of fine caning skills and his brilliant use of color.
Images are really not enough to convey the vibrant colors and the flawless finish of Jon’s work. His work is in galleries and gift shops all over the world so keep your eye out for his work or see if you can nab some gorgeous piece from his retailer directly. In the meantime, you can discover more of his pieces on his website and for your tea or coffee break, I suggest sitting down to watch his videos on how he makes his canes. It’s a treat to watch a master at work!
Inspirational Challenge of the Day: Make the theme of your next piece ‘pattern’. Create small patterns, textural or visual, that are repeated over and over lining up to emphasize form or create the feel of movement. You could create with canes but you can also use handmade stamps, hand-tooled marks, or tiny tiles or shapes punched out of textured sheets of clay.
_________________________________________
Like this blog? Lend your support with a purchase of The Polymer Arts magazine and visit our partners:
_________________________________________
Read More