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I’m experimenting again. This time I’m pushing polymer clay through metal. OK, maybe not through the metal, but you know what I mean. Since I’m not a metalsmith, I had to come up with another way – a brass filigree bracelet form seemed like a good substitute.
I pushed a sheet of clay through the ‘windows’, baked it, painted the cuff and sanded off some of the paint to reveal the colors below.
Smoothing the inside was a little tricky, so next up I will finish the back and work on the paint a bit.
Lots of potential here – just need a little ingenuity and some patience. Not a bad start, huh?
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I found the pictures. They were right there in the camera, where they belong. Don’t ask. It’s a middle-age thing.
I’ve been experimenting quite a bit in the studio, sewing, using acrylic medium, pushing the clay and enjoying the special properties of liquid polymer clay. I have also been revisiting ideas regarding the combination of zentangle doodles and polymer clay.
Polymer Clay Zentangle Mold
The
zentangle doodles captured my interest for two reasons: I love repetitive patterns and you don’t need drawing skills/talent to create wonderful doodles! At first I thought I would make image transfers with my doodles. Maybe carve the transferred image into the clay and make a texture plate.
But the more I played, the more I liked the idea of actually making a doodle in raw clay using cutters, and texture tools. Yes, this appealed to me. So I made several. The picture below is a detail of a tile made with a zentangle texture plate.
Just one of the things on my studio table right now. What do you think?
Detail of Polymer Clay Zentangle
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I was trying to upload pictures of what’s on my studio table right now, but somehow I’ve lost the pictures. However, I did find pictures of two very small vessels that I made a few years ago. Small, like the size of ring boxes. It was my first attempt to make this type of vessel after watching a Gwen Gibson video.
Faux ivory with faux abalone inlay. I still love these little guys!
And a detail of the boxes. Check back later – I hope to have the ‘what’s on my studio table now’ picture to show and maybe even a review of a very cool DVD that I watched yesterday.
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Thanks to everyone who commented on my octopus cylinder experiment. You convinced me – I will make more of an effort to write ‘work in progress’ posts on a regular basis – promise!
My daughter was visiting for the holidays and her fashionista tendencies kicked into high gear when she saw the cylinders.
Here’s how the conversation went:
Her: Hey mom, you made these?
Me: Yup. What do you think?
Her: Wow…they’re great…unbelievable…and the texture…mmmm…
Me: Thanks, they aren’t finished yet – what do you think they are/should be?
Her: Cuffs. You should make cuff bracelets (as she played with one, trying to see how it would look on her wrist).
Me: Really? You would wear something like that? (she’s 25 and fabulous).
Her: Are you kidding? Yes. So would all of my friends – AND the other women at work (she works for a Fortune 500 company).
Me: Really?
Her: (Rolls her eyes at her crazy mother)
Me: Ok, Ok – I get it.
On New Year’s Day I went back into the studio and made the cuff pictured above. It was built over a brass form. I left some of the brass exposed on purpose – liked the shiny metal next to the rough texture of the octopus/barnacles. She hasn’t seen it yet – let’s see if she weighs in with a comment. I’m headed back to the studio again to work on the rest of the octopus/barnacle/organic sea-life-like cylinders. I still don’t know what I want to do with them…
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Top on my list of Goals (notice the capital G – I must be serious) for 2008 is to show more of my own work on PCNotes. Even if it is still in the experimental stage. Even if it isn’t perfect. Even if I don’t know my way around a camera…any camera.
I’ve been experimenting quite a bit, stitching, sewing, manipulating paper thin sheets, using acrylic mediums, stretching the definition of vessel, sometimes moving past objects towards installation pieces, deconstructing/reconstructing. I’m not sure where this is taking me, but I thought I’d let you share the roller coaster ride.
Grant Diffendaffer’s textured tube beads were the inspiration for the objects you see here. I’m calling them objects because they are unfinished – I set out to make a series of vessels using Diffendaffer‘s bead technique (in his new book) but then decided to cut the vessels apart and reconfigure them. Each hollow piece is approximately 2″ in diameter and ranges from 1-3″ tall.
I’ve been told that they look like octopus legs. Yes?
After I cut them apart I added more paint, sanded and played with gel medium on a few of the cylinders.
Then I stacked them.
And reconfigured them again.
I’m not sure how I will actually complete this series but I’ll let you know when I get there. I had a blast researching octopus legs after several people made that comparison and now I think I will make a second group – slimmer, tapered, swirly, more like the real thing. What do you think?
Stay tuned for more of my experiments in 2008!
