winters’ new work and polymer clay history

Elise Winters’ website boasts new pieces bursting with color, playful shapes that sway, swoop, curve and curl and a boundless energy that is matched by the artist.  She’s having fun and it shows!

Red Ruffle Ruche, 2009

Frosted Boa Bangles, 2009

Cool Jewel Ruffle Brooch, 2009

Elise was my first teacher when I started working with polymer clay seven years ago.  At the time I knew very little about the medium so when I signed up to take her class I had no idea that I was about to study under one of the leading artists in the field.  Lucky me!  I continued my studies with her for three years and can still remember the first time I held one of her brooches.  The Asian inspired color palette was captivating and the brooch was luminous – so breathtakingly luminous.  I’ve never seen a picture that effectively captures that quality of her work.

In addition to being one of the leading innovators and artists in the field, Winters works tirelessly to promote polymer clay as a recognized medium for fine craft.  In October 2007 she launched Polymer Art Archive, documenting the evolution of the medium. From the website:

This is a site where professional artists working in the medium of polymer will find inspiration. Museum and gallery curators will be able to access documentation about the evolution of this vibrant medium for artistic expression. And serious collectors will discover windows to new works and the medium’s most collectable artists.

Bookmark it.