Thoughts about creativity, polymer clay, beading and life

Wow.  I can’t believe I haven’t posted since October.  I’ve thought about posting, written a lot of posts in my head, but never really managed to write an actual blog post.  It has been a long hard dry spell for me.  I’ve been feeling rather rudderless.  I also had a project hanging over my head.  I was invited to make a piece for the Synergy 2 Exhibit.  When I got the invitation, many months ago, I was really jazzed.  I had a couple of complex and crazy ideas, and even lined up another artist for a collaboration.  Then it got pushed to the back burner.  I kept thinking about it and realized I couldn’t really make my original ideas work.  (Often my design ideas exceed my technical metalworking skills.)  Time passed, my enthusiasm and creativity fled and the project started to scare me.  I pushed myself to work (slowly) on some basic bezel forms.  Deadlines passed and progress was minimal.  Eventually I had to apologize to the other artist and decide to finish the piece alone. More time passed.

I thought about it a lot, but much like my blog writing, thinking did not progress to action.  This weekend when I should have been decorating the house for Christmas or at the very least cleaning some of the vast piles of dog hair and debris, I escaped to the studio and finished the necklace.  My husband always groans and shakes his head as I plunge into projects at the very last minute.

Anyway… I’m pretty happy with the results.  I’m going to write a separate post about the piece itself, but here’s a teaser peek.

It’s amazing how

{ 0 comments }

I’m still here.  I haven’t had much to say lately as I am practicing my usual autumnal creative sabotage.  That is, I think about projects, things I’d like to try etc., then I find all sorts of excuses not to start them.  I’m laughing at myself as I write this, because really that’s pretty pathetic behavior.  Note to self:  kick self in butt.

My blog got a nice mention in the latest International Polymer Clay Association Newsletter.  The Studio Snapshot feature got a special attention.  I’ll try to post a new one later this week.  I’ve been interested to see a proliferation of special magazines focusing on artists’ studios.  I’ve been wishing for a long time that there were more resources for seeing how other artists set up their creative spaces.  I’d love to see a magazine like Art Jewelry do a regular feature on artists’ studios.

Tagged as: creative inertia, studio

{ 0 comments }

Artist name: Connie Pelkey

Location: Augusta, Maine

Blog: Constance Pelkey Designs

Other websites: Etsy Shop and  Artfire Shop

Do you have a dedicated studio/artistic space? Yes

Where is it located? The small front room on the second floor of our home is the main studio where I work in PC, PMC, sewing, bead stringing and wire wrapping. My kiln, buffer, tumbler, and convection oven live in a small area of the basement, and a small photo studio is set up in the 3rd floor attic space. I crochet and bead weave in the living room while watching TV in the evening, and in the summer I often bring a small set up of whatever I am working on outside to the back deck.

Is it a large or small space? The main space is small, very small.

What medium(s) do you work in? Polymer Clay, Precious Metal Clay, Beads, Wire, free style sewing and crochet.

Do you have a separate area for each? Yes, I try to

What one word would you use to describe your studio? Small

What do you think is the best feature of your studio? It’s mine! I don’t share this room with any other household function!

What would you change if you could? It’s size and the carpeting on the floor!

Can you share an organizational tip? Everything NEEDS a home and when you are done with it, put it away! (yeah, right! !)

Describe the usual state of your work table? In progress. I ALWAYS have something I’m working on, on it!

Does your work table face out into the room or toward the wall? The main place I sit (PC station) faces out into the room and a window is on my right. The PMC station is on the opposite side of the table and I sit facing the wall with the window on my left. The sewing and stringing stations are on the opposite side of the room.

What’s one drawback of your studio/artistic space? Having a space so small I need to split up the finishing (basement) and photo studio areas. I’d LOVE to have a larger room with space for everything in it. I am happy with what I have for now.

Do you have any studio mascots (pets, mannequin whatever)? Yes, I have a Betta fish and my dog Nero is ever present wherever I am.

Do you have an idea wall or inspiration board? Yeah, there’s a bulletin board above my head as I sit at the sewing station… I see it clearly from my main PC station.

Do you listen to music in your studio? Yep! What kind? Eclectic.

Do you display your own work in your studio? Yeah, there’s pieces around the room.

Other artists’ work? A few.

What’s one quirk or unusual feature of your studio? There’s a door with no actual door on hinges that leads into our bedroom. I’ve placed a cabinet right in the doorway and my wire wrap station is in the cabinet as well as some storage, there’s a small TV on top of the cabinet which can be spun around so we can watch TV in bed if we like… more often than not though the TV is on HGTV as I work. i LOVE that network!

Tagged as: polymer clay artist, Studio Snapshot

{ 0 comments }

The Southern Connecticut Polymer Clay Guild will be hosting a workshop with color guru Lindly Haunani on October 24-25.  Lindly is the co-author with Maggie Maggio of the fantastic new book, Polymer Clay Inspirations.

The workshop will be “Dancing with the Rainbow”.

Here is Lindly’s description of the workshop (from her blog):

Dancing with the Rainbow- two day Workshop

Learn how to create blazing, simmering or evocative color schemes. This multi-sensory approach makes learning about color fun! Define your color preferences, learn how to recipe/replicate colors and increase your color confidence. This workshop is ideal for anyone desiring to enhance the color impact in their work- whether you work with watercolors, colored pencils, collage, fibers or polymer clay.

Understanding how to utilize the three properties of color: hue, value and saturation, to your advantage add cohesion and impact to your work. Learn why the “rules” as they are outlined in many color reference books, rarely provide satisfactory results. We will begin with exploring your color likes and dislikes and de-mystifying the vocabulary of color design. During the afternoon session we will explore custom mixing pigment primaries using polymer clay and how to mix to match colors. The second day will include exercises to explore color harmonies and how proportion and simultaneity can magically change the look of your color schemes as you construct a series of colorful polymer clay fabrics to be fashioned into a “crazy-quilt” mirror frame. Come with an open heart and mind and prepare to be amazed.

Date:  October 24 & 25, 2009

Location:  St Paul’s Church, Wallingford, CT

Workshop fee:  $150 ($140 for SCPCG or NYPCG members)

Supply fee: $25 /person includes frame, color handout and polymer clay

Note:  This workshop centers around developing a personalized palette and is best suited for experienced polymer clay artists- as the emphasis is on “seeing” color rather than learning new polymer clay techniques.

I took this workshop in the fall of 2007 and loved it.  The pair of photos above show the collage and mirror I made.  I’m looking forward to doing it again.  Although I am a bit more confidant in mixing custom color palettes for myself these days, I still struggle with combining colors.  The workshop will be a great opportunity to immerse myself in color.

Please contact me (you can use the Contact button at the top of my blog) if you are interested in coming to the workshop.

Space is limited.

{ 0 comments }

Recently, my husband and I drove up to Brockton, Massachusetts for the opening reception of the polymer clay exhibit “Sculpting Color” curated by Kathleen Dustin at the Fuller Craft Museum.  Here are a few of my impressions along with links to other blogs with much better pictures than I’ve got.  Polymer Clay Daily has a nice write up of the exhibit.

Suffice it to say, the exhibit is well worth a visit.  The museum is a gem in and of itself.  (It’s bigger than I expected) The exhibit is wonderful, and more varied than it first appears when you glance down the relatively small gallery space it occupies.  With sculptural pieces, furniture with polymer clay veneers, jewelry, teapots, wall art and more, the exhibit really showcases the versatility of the medium.

Jeff Dever’s “Edensong Reverie” is an amazing piece.  I couldn’t get a good picture of it, but click the link for a very cool video of the installation.

Along with the opening reception, the museum hosted a panel discussion with several of the contributing artists.  There’s an excellent article about the discussion on Polymer Art Archive.  Listening to the artists, I was especially struck with the impressive progress Elise Winters has made in getting important polymer pieces placed at museums around the country.

It was a lovely afternoon.  In addition to the exhibit and panel discussion, I really enjoyed catching up with friends.  It was fun to introduce my husband to several friends he’s heard about over the years, but never had an opportunity to meet. And it’s always fun to spend time immersing myself in the colorful possibilities of polymer clay.

In the same vein, Lindly Haunani and Maggie Maggio’s new book Polymer Clay Color Inspirations just arrived on my doorstop.

I’ve been anxiously awaiting this book and it didn’t disappoint.  It’s a wonderful book.  The gallery sections, called “Artist Spotlights” are wonderful and showcase stunning polymer work you’ve haven’t necessarily seen in all the other books.  But it’s the real content of the book, the color approaches, the exercises and the projects that are the true value of the book.

I have taken classes from both Lindly and Maggie and I find the book feels like the perfect workbook.  I am really looking forward to playing around with it.

Tagged as: craft books, exhibits, polymer clay

{ 5 comments }