New Insights, New Series...Treasure

Mobile / Stabile 5

Last July I lost a brother whose courage and brilliance have inspired my entire life. Our conversations had often been about art, building things, and sailing. For a time in my grief I had absolutely no interest in creating anything.

One afternoon in August, while I was viewing a recent video of us discussing art and creativity, I had a breakthrough experience as I imagined making a linear sculpture that expressed our dialogue. Continuing in my current direction with sculptural forms, it was the beginning of a new series that I call "Kites", concerned with the concepts of soaring, sailing, overcoming.

Mobile / Stabile 5, another view

This is the thing that I have created that I treasure most. It is my first "Kite". Because of the experience that guided my work, I've gained fresh insights into the creative process. On a personal level, the piece symbolizes a connection that is alive in me now, just as it always has been.

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Learn what other artists in the Snow Leopard Network have created that they treasure most: Andes Cruz, Jewelry by Natsuko, Alice Istanbul, Bill Martin, Rosy Revolver,Thomasin Durgin.

A Winter Day in the Maine Woods

                                                      A Winter Day in the Maine Woods

What do you do on a winter day in the Maine woods? If you're lucky you work on a custom Etsy order.

The client has a very small wrist (the same size as mine), 5.75 inches measured over the wrist bone. So I'll make a 6.5 inch bangle.

The first step is to cut about 11 inches of wire. I'll use Argentium sterling since it rarely needs polishing. And I'll use 10 gauge wire, the heaviest I can work freehand.

The second step is to file, sand, steel-wool, and polish the ends.

Tools with Bangle in Process

The last step is to form the bangle. Be careful. You only get one chance. A bend cannot be undone without showing---it's like footsteps in the snow. 
                                                                                                                                                                                            

Finished Asymmetric Bangle 

A New Direction

After 18 years of making bangles, how do you come up with something new? Not just a new design, but a fundamentally new direction.

The answer came to me while working on a series of mobiles / stabiles. The overlapping and elaboration of geometric triangles in my Hanging Sculpture 2, (the mobile below)  gave me an idea.

                                                            

The result, after loosening up the idea, is a collapse bracelet. Instead of a rigid bangle, the geometric elements stand or collapse with wrist movement, creating a wristpiece that has a life of its own, that changes personality when it interacts with the wearer.

                                                           Collapse Bracelet 2 

 

Photography

Asymmetric-Organic Bangle, 9

For the past 20 years, the only pictures I have taken of my jewelry are for occasional juried shows or a snapshot to help me remember a favorite piece. But now with an Etsy store and this blog, it seems like I do nothing but take pictures of my work.

It hasn't been easy.

I started with incandescent light, then moved to sunlight, and now use full-spectrum fluorescent lamps. Here's the setup I used to shoot the bangle above:

                                                                Photo setup

I shoot freehand with a Nikon E4300 point-and-shoot digital camera. A tripod feels too clumsy given the short working distance of my lens in macro mode.

A year from now, I hope to look back at my setup and smile at my novice ways.