Beyond the Mokume Gane Reveal
June 25, 2013 Inspirational Art
When I think about how polymer revealing works, the mokume gane approach is what first comes to mind. I remember layering clay and metal leaf for the first time, punching and squishing and hoping whatever was going on in the middle of my beat up block of clay would result in something useful. Then there was that first slice. That disappointing one when you realize it might take a few slice to see what is really going on. Then I hit it … that first really gorgeous slice with rings and waves of translucent clay revealing the dull shine of buried silver foil. It was like finding a hidden treasure. Oh, who are we kidding … it was a hidden treasure! It was like doing magic or mining or gold panning. It was so cool to see those patterns emerge out of this ugly mushed-up block of clay. I was hooked.
Since then I’ve experimented with the layer and slice approach to working with polymer in dozen of ways. It never gets old. The reveal is always so very exciting because the process is partly done blind, so you can’t be certain just what will pop up when you start slicing–which is why this piece on the right here was so eye-catching. The organically occurring composition of a mokume gane slice is layered over a very controlled stripe pattern in such a way as to suggest the mokume layer is revealing the striped layer … chaos giving way to order, chance revealing the control beneath. What a great metaphoric composition.
If you didn’t immediately recognize the artist, these pendants are the work of Julie Picarello, who is rather a master of mokume and other ‘revealing’ polymer techniques. Her book, Patterns in Polymer, includes quite a few of her approaches to revealing the depth that polymer clay can go. She also has a very rich gallery of work on Flickr you may want to meander through for further revelations.
Polymer Outshining Precious Metal
October 3, 2012 Inspirational Art
Polymer is not an expensive material but that doesn’t mean it can’t look more precious than it’s expensive competition. The mokume surface on this pendant by Spain’s Anna Belchi gives one the impression that the material is some rare and costly stone or complex and highly valued enamel process … something more than manipulated, pigmented plastic.
Perhaps it’s because Anna works with precious metals as well as glass and polymer clay that her approach results in a carefully crafted and impeccably finished piece where the polymer is being considered as valuable as the rest of her materials.
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I know I was talking about having the blog once a week, and that is the plan, but for corrections and any really exciting news, I may be dropping in mid-week, like now. Ignore me if you’re busy – I get it!
15% OFF SALE … Only through Friday, Feb. 1
Exciting money-saving stuff first … we are running a spur of the moment 15% off sale on books and back issues including the fabulous Polymer Art Projects – Organic book, and back issues of The Polymer Arts. Subscriptions and single issues of The Polymer Studio are not included in this sale, nor are the All Back Issues packages … but those are 40-50% off instead!
Grab books and magazines in print or digital format at www.tenthmusearts.com through February 1st.
Use Promo Code TMA15
Sampler Flipbook of The Polymer Studio
Now, if you haven’t subscribed or purchased a copy of the new issue of The Polymer Studio, here is a little bit of a tease for you. This link right here leads you to a sampler of most of the first pages of this new issue for you to check out. Find the crossed arrow icon and click to go full screen when you get there for the best view.
Go peek at it and then once your curiosity is piqued, get your full copy on our website to get fully immersed!
New and Missing Mokume links
Now on to an apology … the mokume billet image on Sunday’s post was apparently too small and was fuzzy on many an email and device and the link to the original page was missing. I’m so sorry about that. It’s added in the post now but for those who wanted a closer look, you can find the metal mokume process chart here. Mind you, that chart is in German and is but one method for making such a ring. However, here you can find a mokume video showing another approach, one that could be directly recreated with polymer … hint, hint.
Thank you for your Feedback!
And last but not at all least … I just wanted to thank all of you who left comments about the new blog format. It was a resounding “yes” to the more in-depth once a week approach which so gladdened my heart. And now it is our It’s a great reward for me to see so many of you are enjoying it. So I am excitedly outlining content ideas for future posts but if you want to push for anything in particular, leave a comment below this post (email readers, click here) and I will happily look into it!
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Well hello there! Surprised to see me on a Sunday? Well, I am here because I am trying something different. To start with, you may have noticed that blog posts were missing this past week. My apologies for that. Suffice it to say that my system, and life in general, made me take a break and so it was not until this weekend that I was able to put something together for you.
The funny thing is, I had already been looking at changing the frequency of the blog. We only have so many minutes in the day for all the fun stuff that comes our way and its more likely that we’ll set aside the stuff seen regularly than the rarer offerings. I’ve decided that I’d like this blog to be one of the rarer offerings, making a tiny contribution to the de-cluttering of your email inbox or RSS feed and giving me a chance to put together some juicier posts for you.
So, how does once a week sound? On a weekly post, I can share a couple of pieces of fabulous art along with polymer relevant news and fun takeaways like tips, tutorials links, sales, and discounts from polymer retailers. And how does this Sunday arrival feel? Cynthia already provides us a jumpstart to creativity on Saturday with Studio Mojo, and the weekdays seem a bit overburdened with news and emails and so I propose being a part of your Sunday, giving you a bit of eye candy, inspiring ideas and useful news to start the day or wrap up the weekend. And if the blog comes to you as an email at work, well, it will be there waiting to brighten up your Monday morning.
So let’s get rolling.
Some news first, since it relates to the beautiful mokume you see here … The first issue of The Polymer Studio was released yesterday, Saturday the 19th, and already the response is a glorious hurrah! Whew! The first of anything is always a bit nerve-wracking to put out but feedback has been nothing but glowing so far. If you were expecting to get a digital edition, it went out at the crack of dawn East coast time so check your inbox (and if it’s not there, check your spam folder or write us). Print editions went out in the mail Friday so they are on their way as well.
If you haven’t subscribed or ordered a copy yet, do it soon so you’re not missing out on some really wonderful tutorial projects including this “Kitchen Sink” mokume technique from Julie Picarello. You get the step-by-step on how to make the brooch/pendant you see here as well as how to create the “dropout” pieces you see surrounding it, from the same mokume blocks. Working with the translucent layers to get this intricate mokume is easier than you might think and it’s just too much fun seeing what comes out in your slices.
So, if you haven’t gotten your copy ordered or started your subscription already, you can do so on our website at www.tenthmusearts.com.
I have also been sent a special offer from Helen Breil. She just released a new techniques video class, Six Exceptional Textures, and you can get it now for 15% off! If you have not yet had the pleasure of creating alongside Helen in one of her tutorial books or videos, you do need to treat yourself. She divulges a wealth of tips and ideas in crystal clear and highly detailed instruction. This video class includes step-by-steps, ideas and inspiration for making your own unique handcrafted one-of-a-kind texture sheets in 9 packed videos. Click here to get it. The discount is good through January 31st.
Okay, that is enough news and fun opportunities for this surprise Sunday post. I do have exciting plans for this once a week format so be sure to open it up next week and see what the regular postings will be like going forward. If you want to be sure you get all our news and publication announcements, sign up for our twice monthly newsletter as well. In the meantime, enjoy all the creative things you’ll be trying out when you get your new issue of The Polymer Studio!
Read MoreIt will be hard to talk about squiggles and not talk about Julie Picarello’s mastery of the squiggle in negative space. Or peekaboo space if you prefer.
Julie’s impeccably controlled polymer mokume is full of squiggles both in the mokume pattern itself and in these wonderful little rivers she creates in her compositions. Perhaps that analogy is part of our attraction to squiggles—some of mother nature’s best squiggles are things we have long held dear, such as life-giving rivers and streams. Julie does such a beautiful job of re-creating this essence of flowing water in her signature approach to the mokume technique. I imagine that is part of the attraction to her work and the popularity of her particular techniques.
You don’t hear a lot from Julie these days. She is not an avid poster to the social media sites although she does have a presence. We were actually wondering what she had been up to lately ourselves which is why we’ve asked her to be the first artist to be profiled in the new The Polymer Studio magazine coming in January—and she’s agreed. So we will have an exclusive peek into her world for you to look forward to in January.
And yes, we are just about ready to get subscription ordering started for the new magazine. We’ve been ironing out some issues in the new website but stay tuned here and be sure to sign up for our newsletter to be one of the first to hear about the reveal of our new website.
You can take a look at some of Julie’s other designs in this technique on her Flickr photostream and don’t forget about her book Patterns in Polymer which you can purchase here.
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