Day 9

Continuing on with the wrapped wire technique, I used more wire today to increase the size of the ring.  I think this technique has the potential to help me create much larger scale work that is lightweight, encompasses a lot of space, but still has an airy quality to it.

I plan on pushing the variation of line thickness more.  To me, even though I know there are a few varying thicknesses of line going on in this piece, it needs to be more dramatic and defined.  Imagine if there were extremely thick and heavy areas contrasted with thin, fine lines.  I think this would add interest to the piece overall.  For now, I am using all green cotton/rayon blend thread.  I foresee the addition of other materials in future pieces, but for now using one color and one texture is allowing me to experiment with movement and the wrapping technique while keeping the color minimal.  Look for more pieces in this vein as I continue to push this technique.

Day 9

Ring

Copper, Rayon/Cotton Blend Thread

March 29, 2010

Day 8

Today, I continued with the wrapping technique, this time applying it directly to wire, not wrapping in any lint or wool.  I wanted to experiment with the playfulness of drawing with wire.  This is a new approach for me, because typically if I work with wire, I solder a structure and then apply whatever surface texture I choose...felt, flocking, patina, enamel.  This process was quite freeing simply because I had no predetermined idea as to what the final product would look like.  I took a length of copper wire, folded it in half, then started wrapping, folding the ends back on themselves and just playing with the negative space.  I think this could be the start of a more sellable body of work...there's not a lot of time or materials invested in it, and the price would be quite modest...probably under $20.00.  I'm getting excited just thinking of where this new direction will take me! 

Day 8

Ring

Copper, Rayon/Cotton Blend Thread

March 28, 2010

Day 7

Still on vacation when I, in this case, chose my ring, we ended up leaving early since hail isn't the most relaxing weather when you are living in a tent.  Luckily, before the surprise hailstorm, we were able to take a 3-4 hour hike around the campground.  We were staying at the spillway beneath a dam, and though I don't know when or why, the campsite and surrounding forests are flooded at some point during the year and then the river is dammed up again, quickly lowering the water level and leaving hundreds if not thousands of small fish and animals on dry land.  On our hike through what we ended up calling "fish forest," Brandon found the skull of a small animal.  I'm not one who minds getting her hands dirty, but I definitely have a problem touching dead animals.  We saw many dead fish...most almost completely dried out, with the skin still attached.  It's what I imagine they would look like if they had been freeze dried.  I had mentioned to Brandon that part of me wished the dried fish didn't disturb me so much, because they could be an interesting material to use in my work somehow.  They were fully preserved, not rotting or anything, but I still didn't feel comfortable bagging up dozens of dried fish to take home.  

 

Brandon found this skull, and because it was completely clean and sun-bleached, I decided to us it as a found object for Day 7 of my challenge.  

The eye sockets allowed the skull to be worn in a number of ways.  It is quite disturbing to place your fingers through the holes, but for me, taking this skull and documenting it in this way commemorates the life of this animal, giving it a better resting place than the "forest of death."

Day 7

Ring

Animal Skull

March 27, 2010

Day 6

This weekend, after a change in plans, Brandon and I went camping.  It has been at least 3 years for both of us since we have taken a trip strictly with the intention of relaxing.  Granted, we have gone places, but there was always something we had to do, a conference to attend, or people we needed to see.  This time it was just us out in nature, doing whatever the hell we wanted!  It was a much needed break for both of us, and I am recharged and ready to take on the world.  I still kept up the challenge, too!  

The place we stayed was on a river and a big fishing area.  There were discarded fish everywhere, and lots of bones that had been picked clean and sun-bleached.  I found a fully intact fish spine and decided to break it apart and form it into something that could be worn on the finger.  

I broke pieces of the ribs off and inserted them into the vertebra to add directional movement as well as providing a way for the piece to be worn.  It sits atop the finger, so care must be used when wearing it.  It could easily fall off and is quite delicate.

My plan for while we were camping was to use the materials I found to create my wearable object each day.  I didn't bring anything from home to use, but instead searched out the unique materials that specifically referred to the place we stayed.  

Day 6

Ring

Fish Vertebra, Ribs

March 26, 2010

Day 5

After switching to a new material to bind the dryer lint with on Day 4, I decided to incorporate copper wire to add more stability to the form, as well as allowing it's shape to be played with.  The copper allows the wearer to move the parts of the ring and shape it into a form that fits.  The "tail" sticking up can be moved and bent and rearranged and will stay wherever it is left.  

Day 5

Ring

Dryer Lint, Waxed Cord, Copper

March 25, 2010

Day 4

Back to the dryer lint!  I decided to try using a different material to bind the lint.  This time I used a green cotton/rayon blend thread. 

I have found that the dryer lint, because it is basically just dirt and leftover fibers and hair, has no structural stability within itself.  It must be bound tightly or it will simply fall apart.  This ring is wrapped along it's entire length, with a puff of lint left unbound at the top.  This part of the ring easily pulls apart, and sheds sometimes too.  I am interested in the idea of a ring or wearable object that leaves a trail wherever it goes.  

Playing around with how a piece should be worn has always been an interest of mine.  I like for my work to be wearable in more than one way, leaving it up to the wearer to decide how to wear each piece.  

Day 4

Ring

Dryer Lint, Cotton/Rayon Blend Thread

March 24, 2010

Day 3

Day three of my challenge!  I went back to a material I use a lot in my work...wool felt.   As with most artists, I have a stash of unfinished parts waiting around to be put to use.  The yellow felt was one of those parts.  I had wet felted it into a long snake-like form and had set it aside.  For this ring I altered it's original form and added some needle felted detail, as well as bound it together with a waxed cord.

I have found that by doing this challenge, I am free to experiment with materials I am familiar with, but in new and different ways.  Because there is little time invested, I don't dwell on each step and I worry less about preserving the material.  I think too much about what I want to do and how I am going to go about doing it, but with this challenge I am freed in my thoughts to just "make." 

Day 3
Ring
Handmade wool felt, waxed cord
March 23, 2010

Recently, I have begun a new body of work collaborating with my wonderful boyfriend, Brandon.  He does these fantastic cartoon character drawings, and has notebooks full of them.  Ever since the first time I saw them, I wanted to utilize his drawing technique in my artwork.  I can draw, but not like he can.  He draws figures with so much linear detail and and individual characteristics that each face he draws looks like they could have been drawn by different people.  I feel that this is a very unique gift that he has.  I know that all my drawings definitely look like they were drawn by me.  Maybe I've developed my own "style," but I also know that it is very difficult for me to draw in any other way...all my drawings have the same look to them.  I'll keep posting images of his drawings that I am translating into wearable objects so that you can see this variation.  

I have embroidered the drawings Brandon sketched on linen and stretched them over wooden frames.

After I get the stitched drawings mounted, I am creating fabricated frames out of copper to emphasize and highlight the embroidered image.  This photo is definitely in progress...it's the rough frame without patina or any details added.  

The combination of cartoon drawings, which are so easily reproduced typically through comic books and other printed material, and embroidery, a stereotypically feminine task that requires great time investment, is quite exciting to me.  In a way, it seems like a contradiction to take easily reproducible imagery and translate it into time-intensive handiwork and highlight the comic nature by creating a large-scale brooch.  I plan on creating elaborate frames for the pieces, this first one is just a test to work out the technical details.  I am excited about this new body of work, and will continue to post photos as the pieces develop!

Day 2

Day 2 Ring is done!  I decided to continue with the dryer lint, test its limits and see what I can make it do.  Today I added multiple pieces of the lint together to add color contrast as well as textural contrast.  The photos don't do it justice, but the tan lint has a lot more long fibers...probably from a towel.  Of course, both colors are pretty much impregnated with animal fur and human hair.  I believe most of this lint came from my mother, and as anyone who has animals knows, pet hair gets everywhere!  I am looking forward to finding my other stash of lint....from the first wash of bright blue towels.  I can't wait to start experimenting with this material further.   

Day 2

Ring

Dryer Lint, Cotton Cord

March 22, 2010

Where I Work

Welcome to my world! This is where I work, play, eat, and create. I was lucky enough to get an Adjunct Teaching position at the same school where I received my MFA, and got to keep my studio. I don't know where I would have put it all if I didn't get to stay! So I've had this studio for almost 4 years now, and this is one of the more clean days. Like I mentioned in an earlier post, I am messy, to put it nicely.

I figured not too many people may have ever visited a metalsmithing studio, so here's a tour of mine!

The bench!

My bench and table...lots of things stashed in every nook and cranny.

Movin' on up.

Remnants from the soldering demo I gave last Tuesday in class.

Bird's eye view...this is where the magic happens...the catch drawer is typically so full of junk that even if I do drop something in it, I may never find it again.

This is my favorite file.  I've had it since undergrad and even though it is extremely coarse and not very well taken care of, I love it.  It's not the typical nice German file, more like a cheap-o file that I've grown to love.

And here's a shot of me for good measure.

Over the past 4 years this has become a home away from home for me.  I have spent countless hours in this space and experienced every possible emotion here.  There were times when I hated coming here during grad school, and times I couldn't stand to leave, and I would not trade it for anything.  Knowing that my Adjunct Faculty appointment is coming to an end in a couple short months, I am beginning to dread having to pack everything up and find some way to set up a studio in my 20'x20' house.  It'll be a tight fit with me, Brandon, and Cinderella (my rockin' cat), but until we find a bigger place, or relocate for jobs, it will work.  I've got a desk and really bad lighting...and that's enough for me.  

Day 1

Here's my first piece of what will be 365 wearable objects between today and March of next year!

I have been collecting dryer lint on on and off again for about 4 years.  I don't know why, and I've never used it in any of my pieces, but I still collect it all the same.  I knew I had a stash of lint in a drawer, so for day one I've finally put it to use!  It's wrapped together with a waxed cord, probably cotton. 

I've used wrapping techniques in my work before, but using the dryer lint was a bit more difficult than I imagined it.  It falls apart easily, and has left my desk covered in a fine layer of dust. 

I need to get a better setup for photography at home.  I am the photographer (as well as adjunct faculty) for the Metals department at Southern Illinois University and have quite the setup there.  The head of the department, Paulette Myers, has generously given up her office and changed it into a photo booth.  I know I will not have time to shoot each new piece in the booth at the university, so I need to figure something out at home.  

Day 1

Ring

Dryer Lint, Waxed Cord

March 21, 2010

Ring a Day....my way

Recently I have learned of a challenge thought up by Nina Dinoff.  Every day in 2010 she, along with countless other artists/jewelers/metalsmiths/makers/etc.., will make one ring.  No material is off limits, and there is no requirement as to time invested, techniques used, or permanence of the final product.  I see this as a test of personal dedication and a great opportunity to try out new materials and techniques quickly.

I am going to take up this challenge but am not going to limit myself to rings.  I am going to make one wearable object a day, starting now.  I may not post every day, but at least once a week I will upload photos of the pieces I have made.   Seeing that it is March 21, I am already 79 rings short.  Rather than try and quickly make 79 rings to catch up with the ongoing challenge, I am going to start today, and continue until March 20, 2011.  I feel that rushing to make 79 rings simply to catch up to today would defeat the purpose of the challenge.  For me, it is a chance to work out ideas already in my head and to find new and exciting surprises during the making process.  My life (as well as my house, my studio, my head) is pretty disjointed and unorganized, and I'm hoping that adding this little bit of regularity will become a personal ritual with the added bonus of discovering new forms and materials for my wearable artwork.

Let the making commence!

Snails and Slugs

During the summer, when other children were playing sports and other games, I would sit outside my house and play with slugs. I would pick them up, move them around, letting them crawl all over me, much to my mothers chagrin. My hands and arms would be covered with slug slime when I came inside in the evening and my mother would have to clean me off with fingernail polish remover and a rag. She undoubtedly threw away dozens of slime-covered dishtowels. Slugs were fascinating creatures to me even then. I was always attracted to the slimy, overlooked creatures to which nobody else paid any attention. My interest in slugs and snails didn’t end there; it continued on into elementary school.

Living Snails Interacting with "Fake" Snails

2008

When I was in second grade we moved from Monett, Missouri to Springfield, Missouri. Recess was a hard time for me because I was very shy. I knew no one at this school and because I had a hard time talking to new people even then, I entertained myself during recess rather than playing with the other kids. I would save my milk box from snack time, rinse it out, and take it out to the far side of the playground near the fence. There I would sit down, dig in the dirt, and make a home for the tiny land snails I found. I made sure to give them dirt, leaves, and water, and tried to recreate their environment inside my milk box before the whistle blew and recess was over. The snail’s new milk box home would sit on the corner of my desk until the end of the school day when I would take it outside and empty it, putting the snail back where I found it.

Looking back, it seems only natural that snails, or the idea of a snail, would emerge in my work. I have a history of playing with snails as a child and now as an adult I create wearable pieces inspired by the snails I find on the sidewalk at my home.

Snail Trail Drawing

2008

Trailing Anguispira

Brooch

Steel, Copper, Enamel, Wool

2008

I create wearable pieces based on the snail trails as a subconscious connection to when I was a child, physically wearing the slime trails all over my hands and arms.

A New Beginning

Welcome! 
 I'm hoping this blog will become a daily ritual of sorts:  An outlet for me to put down my thoughts and share my artwork with a wider audience.  A lesson in perseverance I suppose.  I completed my MFA in Metalsmithing in May 2009 and since then have continued to work, while also trying to keep a roof over my head.  At times, that has been a difficult task, and I hope that through this blog I can share some of my experiences, offer insight into my artwork, and basically share what's on my mind. 

Experience Let Go

Brooch

Steel, Copper, Enamel, Wool

2008