{"id":16666,"date":"2019-10-13T02:30:42","date_gmt":"2019-10-13T09:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thepolymerarts.com\/blog\/?p=16666"},"modified":"2019-10-12T23:08:33","modified_gmt":"2019-10-13T06:08:33","slug":"sunday-serendipity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thepolymerarts.com\/blog\/sunday-serendipity\/","title":{"rendered":"Sunday Serendipity"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Are you, like me, one of those folks that just wants everybody to share your joy in creating art and especially your favorite medium? I think my family is pretty tired of hearing about the many wonders of polymer although no one objects to the handmade Christmas gifts. I have, however, gotten one niece and one step-grandchild into it so all my talk has had, at least in part, a desired effect! I just want everyone to experience that same kind of joy that I find in creating with a fascinating medium like polymer.<\/p>\n

During this break I\u2019ve been taking from production, I\u2019ve been thinking really hard about how I can best share this joy as well as consider what this community needs and how we can help spread the word about polymer and the benefits of having a creative outlet in general. It wouldn\u2019t really matter to me whether people work in polymer or some other medium, as long as they have the chance to discover how creativity, in whatever form it takes, can enrich their lives. But, since I am so integrated into this community and would like to see it stay vibrant, I\u2019ve been pondering ways to increase our reach and bring in some new blood or at least get other artists interested in using polymer in addition to their primary medium.<\/p>\n

To that end, I have been researching and talking to various non-polymer specific outlets to see how we might be able to increase polymer\u2019s exposure. My first successful foray this round was with the Craft Industry Alliance<\/a> with an article I wrote on the possibilities of polymer clay, their first on the medium, published on their website early this week. You can see it at the link here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m excited about this because polymer has such a potential to add truly unique and inexpensive additions and accents to so many other types of art forms. And you just know that some of those people will be complete converts before all is said and done. I was a sporadic fiber and found objects artist before polymer was put into my hand. Actually, come to think of it, that happened in the very room I\u2019m sitting in right now in Aurora, Colorado, almost exactly 13 years ago. My polymer centric path was nothing I could have envisioned back then, but then, oftentimes, the best things we end up with in our life were not planned.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>That\u2019s why I like to encourage serendipity as often as possible. Magazines are a serendipitous source of information in that, although you know you have an interest in the subject, you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re going to get out of that publication until you open it up and flip through. The opening image of this post is of a bracelet by Jill Palumbo<\/a> who, some 8 years ago, opened The Polymer Arts <\/a><\/em>Winter 2011–Education<\/a> issue and found my article on a wax impression texturing technique,\u00a0 shown here with the wax and polymer clay impression made from it. \u00a0She fell in love with it. The bracelet shown above is from 2018 using the same basic technique although she has taken it much farther than I have and has made it her signature technique. And that happened by just opening a magazine with no expectations.<\/p>\n

Same goes with this blog. You don\u2019t know what I\u2019m going to talk about each week but I hope, on a somewhat regular basis, you find something that gets you thinking and helps nudge you onto a path where you find more and more joy and fulfillment in what you do and create.<\/p>\n

Inviting Serendipity<\/strong><\/p>\n

To that end, while I am here in Colorado, embroiled in the fun and frenetic event that is my baby sister\u2019s wedding while visiting with family and friends including the coincidentally present Debbie Crothers<\/a> and Christi Friesen<\/a>, all on the one weekend, (and thus my time for research and pulling and prepping photos and all that has been severely limited) I am going to suggest that you consider pushing your creative boundaries a little this coming week by going out and finding serendipitous inspiration around you. Here are a few suggestions on how to do that:<\/p>\n