Way More Photos of My Work
(on Picasa, which Google took over, and broke the links; I’m still trying to figure out how to link to the album collection there…)
Yes, I am sticking to the (mostly / mostly) Second Sunday schedule for February.’s Open House. That is Super Bowl Sunday, but I’ll have my studio open for you to come shopping because it’s also the last weekend before Valentine’s Day!
This is just a shopping-day! Come on over to get a little treat for someone special, or for yourself! I doubt I’ll have a chance to clear up enough space for students to work along with me, but students are still welcome to stop by with questions or requests.
Unlike most Open Houses, I won’t stick around afterwards. I’ll probably even start packing up a little before 5. If you arrive near the end, you may be looking through my storage bins, rather than seeing pieces out on display, but I do expect to stay until 5.
Please stop by on your way to (or during a break as you prepare for) your Super Bowl party (or whatever else you have planned for that Sunday)!
(Photos: Love’s Garden in Pinks necklace. Handmade focal bead (fine silver (.999) lentil bead with small pink CZs) strung with cloisonné, crystal and glass beads. Upper photo here shows the Love side of the lentil bead, with a heart-shaped texture. Lower photo shows the Garden side with a leaf-pattern texture and the necklace’s hand-made heart-shaped toggle clasp.)
Carol here! I am holding three Studio Open Houses this month (and have six other venues for your consideration too!).
Convergent Series Studio Shows (Upstairs, Room 204) Wilkins School Community Center 7604 Charleston Ave, Pitttsburgh, PA 15218 [412-244-8458]
1. Days and times that coincide with WSCC’s Holiday Market (that will be downstairs when I’ll be in my studio upstairs!) Saturday, December 2, 9 am – 5 pm Sunday, December 3, 12 Noon – 5 pm
2. Carol’s Second Chance Show, in my regular (mostly) Second (mostly) Sunday slot: Sunday, December 10, 1 – 5 pm Just come and shop then, or come back to see if you can still get something you passed on last week, or send someone who is shopping for a gift for you to pick up that piece you really wanted!
3. Other days & times by appointment! (Afternoons or early evenings tend to be best.)
I should, of course, be at all of the above myself. Here are some other places where you can find (and buy!) my creations. (These are basically listed in order. if you were to drive from south to north.)
First, note the dates on these limited-time, fairly-local, art shows and holiday markets:
North Hills Art Center Holiday Artisan Market: November 18 – December 9, 2023 3432 Babcock Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15237 [412-364-3622] Mondays thru Saturdays, 10 am – 3 pm’ Tuesday evenings, 7-9 pm
Mars Area Public Library Regional Art Show: mid-September 2023 – mid-March 2024 107 Grand Avenue, Mars, PA 16046 [724-625-9048] Mon-Thurs: 10am-7pm Friday: 10am-3pm Saturday: 9am-4pm
Cranberry Artists Network Holiday Show: November 17 – December 21, 2023 at the Bottlebrush: A Gallery for the Arts 539 Main Street, Harmony, Pa. 16037 [724.452.0539] Tue, Wed, Thu: 11 am – 4 pm Fri: 11 a m – 7 pm Sat: 11 am – 5 pm Sun: 12 noon – 4 pm
And, farther north, some shops that regularly carry my work!
Hoyt Art Center Gift Shop 124 East Leasure Ave., New Castle, PA 16101 [724-652-2882] Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday: 11 am – 8 pm Friday & Saturday: 11 am – 4 pm Closed Sunday & Monday
Glass Growers Gallery 10 E. 5th St. Erie, PA 16507 Holiday Season Hours Monday thru Saturday: 9 am – 6 pm Sunday: 11 am – 4 pm
Portage Hill Gallery 6439 South Portage Road, Westfield, NY 14787 [716-326-4478] Winter Hours Saturdays: 11 am – 5 pm other times by chance or appointment: call to check or to schedule
Whether in person or simply via this post, whether you’re actualIy shopping or simply browsing, I look forward to being able to offer you best wishes for the season and for the year to come!
I was eligible to submit up to two pieces to the Pittsburgh Society of Artists’ Annual show, so why not offer two and maybe get at least one in! So I was truly delighted when I got word that both of them had made it in. Here’s a little (perspective-distorted) panorama of the show at the 3rd Street Gallery in Carnegie, PA. You can locate (not actually see…) my two pieces, displayed in long white shadow boxes on the orange part of the wall to the left here, and then I’ll tell you a little about my entries.
I started thinking about making the pendant I’ve titled Enjoying Nature during a few local political discussions about proposed zoning variances to allow for a huge condominium building on a parcel that, while not officially in the large city park that surrounds it on three sides, is still zoned as a park area. Those who treasure the greenery and wildlife (well, except perhaps for the massive overabundance of just a few, select species…) have been trying to emphasize the value of that oasis amidst the urban neighborhoods that surround it. And I simply wanted to try to illustrate it.
Click this image to see it rotate in my hand!
I started the piece I’ve titled Circling Into Control way back last year, in 2022. But I kept debating with myself about how actually to finish up the mechanism that would allow it to hang so that the wearer would be able to spin it around if s/he wished to play with it that way. I had one main idea, and a handful of spin-offs from that. But, finally, I decided there was enough going on with the piece so I should keep the spin-mechanism under control (as shown here): I let the piece have the little black onyx trillion I’d set into it from he start, plus all its textures and loops and other embellishments. Then I just kept the top lightly decorated but otherwise as simple as possible.
All of that making and finishing happened while I was in the depths of this summer’s covid-exhaustion. I had to work in much shorter spurts than usual. I held myself together pretty well while doing that — because I like doing that kind of work — but I did simply run out of functional time for a real photography session. I did manage to catch these quick shots in the last few minutes before I had to head out the door to deliver them, set into their display boxes, for the show.
Does either of them inspire you in any way? If so, please let me know!
Now that Mitsubishi has discontinued their (wonderful!) “PMC” line of metal clays, I’ve been experimenting with some of the other brands that are available. I want to do a few more tests before I start writing about them but for now I’ll add this one quick note:
I can work just fine with any of them, myself. I think I may have identified a couple favorites for my own use. But I have yet to find one that doesn’t have some major setback or other for use in classes. (This is not a total surprise: my favorite type within the PMC-brand to use for classes was not my first choice for the one I would work with in my studio!).
But I still have a few more to test out before I make any final decision (and since I am now into peak garden-prep season, my art-time is a bit constrained…).
Still, the point of this post: I have some great new pieces out of my recent explorations with these new clays, and I’ve got them ready to send off to new homes at either of the two events I have in May (which can also be found on my Facebook Page or website for Convergent Series) are:
First Sunday, May 7, 1 to 5 pm (Moved a week earlier than in recent months to allow for shopping before Mothers Day.)
It’s the last weekend in April, so it’s Art All Night weekend again here in Pittsburgh! Participants this year had the choice of entering for the in-person show only (you have to be able to drop off and pick up at very specific times), or online only (then you needed to submit a photo with your entry), or both. I am doing both!
And here’s the story behind my entry this year: While we didn’t have severe winter weather the past few months, the wild temperature swings (high temps could be 40°F higher or lower from one day to the next!) seem to have confused so many living things. I’ve no idea how my garden will do, nor whether we’ll continue to set high temperature records all summer too (30° above normal on a winter day is one thing; 30° over on an already-hot day is quite something else!).
So, amidst the confusion, what better style of piece to enter in Art All Night this year but another creation from my Urban Flowers series (that I first introduced back in 2016)! My entry for this year is the flower pendant I’ve titled Kiss Me Twice.
I have never promised my Urban Flowers to be botanically accurate… I say they come from just “a city-girl’s dreams”! So this pendant is not in any way an accurate representation of the Nigella damascena flower that is sometimes called Kiss Me Twice Before I Rise (or Love in a Mist or Devil in a Bush or any of a dozen or more other common names), but the connection here is the similarity I see in the position of the petals, and the way the blue glass in the center here, while not at all like the feathery bits in the real plant, does remind me of the blue in the real flower’s petals. Which seems like good enough reasons to use as a title something so interesting as Kiss Me Twice.
For those of you familiar with my interest in edible flowers, I will note that, while the seeds of Nigella damascena are, apparently, edible (perhaps reminiscent of nutmeg? I’ve never tried them), they are also reported to be far less flavorful than Nigella sativa, aka black cumin, black caraway, kalonji, charnushka, … Those little, black N. sativa seeds are among my favorites to add to my home-made breads, both loaf-style ones and flatbreads. I should get off my computer and get baking!
But not from 4 pm this Saturday, April 29, through 2 pm on Sunday, April 30! My plan is to do a volunteer shift on Saturday (then go to at least one of several other conflicting art shows and a music concert), try to sleep a little, and then get back over to actually see the show on Sunday morning. If you can’t get there in person during that timeframe, you can still see some of the entries at Art All Night’s virtual show. (I’m assuming it’ll show up there, on the event’s website. If not, you might try the Facebook page of Art All Night: Pittsburgh. There are lots of little, informative posts there too.)
I’ve been reorganizing a lot of “behind the scenes” parts of my studio, which doesn’t seem to lend itself to interesting blog posts. But I’ve got work in three shows, so I ought to at least let folks know that much. I’ve included the address for each location, plus a link to a web page where you can verify the current information on hours.
Plumes and Celtic / Waves -plus- Dahlia / Fern and Paisleys North Hills Art Center Traveling Gallery Show Northland Public Library, 300 Cumberland Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15237 January 6 – April 7, 2023
If you go up the stairs and turn right towards the non-fiction section, then go to the far wall and you’ll find my four pieces in two shadow boxes at the far-right of the show that wraps around two whole walls. Each piece is a reversible fine silver pendant (with a cubic zirconia on one side), hung on an 18″ sterling silver chain.
The first box, at the very start of the show, includes Plumes and Celtic / Waves. The second box is a mere two spaces over to the left, and holds Dahlia / Fern and Paisleys. An interesting fact about the second display box (shown here) is that the North Hills Art Center folks hung it just above an entry by LarryBrandstetter.
Larry and I are scheduled to have “solo” shows in adjoining locations in October, up in the Cranberry Township Municipal Center. He’ll have works in the Back Hall Gallery at the same time as I’ll have some in the central Glass Case. I am delighted to be paired with him: I think his doodles and my textures complement each other well. Stay tuned for news of at least one public event (and maybe even more) that we’ll hold together during that month!
Flower Play and Fern Botany Cranberry Artists Network Simply Spring Show Cranberry Township Municipal Center. 2525 Rochester Road , Cranberry Township, PA 16066 March 3 – April 20, 2023 Opening Reception: 6 to 8 pm on Wednesday, March 8
My pieces are among those in the big glass case in the lobby of the building, across from the library. The building hours don’t seem to be listed anywhere, but they match those of the library.
Fern Botany (both sides)
Each of my entries is a reversible, fine silver pendant (hung on an 18″ sterling silver chain). Because, in a display case, you can see only one of each piece’s two sides, I’ve displayed a QR code on the stands to an image showing both sides of each piece. (I’m not including that here because, while it now contains information specific to this show, I reuse it in different ways for different shows. Instead, I’ve just duplicated one of the images here!)
River Rocks, At a Bend in the River, and Ribbon Candy Community Art Show Mars Area Public Library 107 Grand Avenue, Mars, PA 16046 (approximate dates) March 15 – September 15, 2023
(I’ll try to update this with more specifics on dates and location once I get back up to see the whole show myself. But this library is much smaller than Northland, so I’m sure you can find them easily enough!)
River Rocks
River Rocks (shown) is a pendant with three fine silver hollow “rock” shapes hung between small snowflake obsidian beads (using Argentium silver wire, and then suspended from an 18″ sterling silver chain). There is no front or back to this piece: instead, all of the elements can rotate around the wire that connects them to the chain.
At a Bend in the River is a yellow bronze pendant with a green cubic zirconia on one side, and a simple texture on the other (hung on an 18″ brass chain).
Ribbon Candy is a reversible, iron bronze pendant with a brilliant bronze embellishment on one of its sides (hung on an 18″ steel chain).
Update, April 10: As two of these shows close, I finally found time to replace here a couple of my first-pass images (used just to get the post up at all) with at least slightly better ones. While doing that, I also added a “tag” to the post itself to include Larry Brandstetter, because the in-line one I’d tried the first time didn’t seem to be working…
I’m hoping to get up to Mars so I can confirm more about that show shortly, but no promises as to when…
Happy New Year! With the holiday on a weekend, the way Facebook seems to suck up blog-posting energy, and my getting out of the routine during the pandemic, somehow I didn’t manage a blog-anniversary post this year. But I do have a little bit of news to share here!
As I’ve mentioned, I’m continuing to test out holding my (mostly) monthly Studio Session / Open House sessions on Sundays. The times will mostly be 1 to 5 pm but, as ever, I may have to make occasional adjustments to that plan. Also, though I’d like to have them on the afternoon of the second Sunday (making that easy to remember) this year’s calendar seems to be calling for a number of different tweaks…
Here’s my tentative schedule for the next few months. Anything that’s off the “normal” will be noted be noted in bold.
Sunday, January 15, 1 – 5 pm (This is the second non-holiday Sunday of the month..,.)
Sunday, February 12, 1-5 pm (The schedule I’d like to have all the time! In addition to being just a few hours before the Super Bowl, it falls just in time to shop for Valentine’s Day!)
Sunday, March 12, 2-5 pm (Note the slightly later start: Have you ever though of joining the Pittsburgh Society of Artists?! Consider signing up for their new member screening that will be held down on the lowest level of WSCC that day. I’ll head back upstairs as soon as that (and the post-screening board meeting) are finished.)
Sunday, April 2, 1-5 pm (I’m sorry about doing it on Palm Sunday, but there just happen to be many different holidays celebrated this month.)
Sunday, May 7, 1-5 pm (Well, the second Sunday, the 14th, is Mothers Day. I guess I could try to open up that day, but it seems better to let folks do down-to-the-last-week shopping on the 7th! I also plan to set aside a few specific evening times later the week of the 7th in case you come shopping, see something you’d like to request, and want to send someone over to get it for you…)
Sunday, June 11, 1-5 pm, tentative! (I think the others are likely to stick as stated here. Well, I may have to change one of them, but hoping not. But right now I’m just guessing about June, and will confirm that date and time once (a) the Three Rivers Arts Festival schedule has come out and (b) I sort out with several friends when we’ll jointly celebrate a number of Gemini birthdays!)
I will try to remember to update this post if/when I have to change any of those. But the latest information should always be available as an event on my public Facebook page. In the meantime, here’s a photo of one of the pieces I’ll have available at least through my January event. It’s just so cute, and the cubic zirconia in the middle adds a lovely little bit of sparkle!
Shoppers: Just show up at any time in the given range!
Students: I’m not yet announcing specific come-and-work-with-me schedules on these days (as I’d been doing pre-Covid…). But I’d love to have some of you come back to work on your own projects on my “spare” worktable during these sessions. If you’ve been looking forward to having those return, please just contact me directly and we’ll work something out!!!
Merry Christmas to you, or Happy whatever-other Holidays you may be celebrating this season! I’ve shifted to Second Sunday events this year, and it’s finally time for my Second Sunday Holiday Open House!
If you’re looking to shop for some art jewelry or other small adornments this month, whether to give as gifts or as a treat for yourself, come on over to my studio this Sunday, December 11, from 1 to 5 pm.
If you’re not one of my studio regulars, know that you can come find me upstairs, over the front door, at the Wilkins School Community Center (in Regent Square), 7604 Charleston Avenue, 15218.
Even farther “behind” that usual as I write this on Thursday, I haven’t even begun to turn my workspace into a sales venue, but somehow I’ll get that done by this Sunday…
If your schedule is crazy too now, and you can’t get there on Sunday afternoon, reach out to discuss what days / times after that would work for you. Alternatively, I’ve still got pieces in my usual retail shops: find those (with addresses and open hours) on my website.
For now, here’s a little peek at one of the many pieces I’ll have available in my studio. (This is the “other side” of the piece that was in the recent Pittsburgh Society of Artists Show.)
I am honored that two of my pieces are included in the Cranberry Artists Network’s annual Holiday Show, Give a Gift of Art, that runs from November 15 through December 15, 2022!
Flower Party Fine Silver Pendant (with cubic zirconia) on Sterling Silver Chain
Stream Shield Fine Silver Pendant (with lab-created pink sapphire) on Sterling Silver Chain
As with most CAN shows, it’s in the Cranberry Township Municipal Building at 2525 Rochester Road in Cranberry Township, PA.
There will be an Opening Reception on Tuesday, November 15, from 7-9 pm. (Correction! The time apparently is 6-8 pm, so I’m not sure I’ll make it to that. The application had said it’d be 7-9, and I’d thought I could get there by 7:30 or so and it’d still be ok. But since it’s 6-8, folks will be leaving by 7:30. With an almost two hour round trip for me, that drive gets hard to justify. I’m sorry I’ll miss the people! I hope you can still go!)
Update: Thanks to CAN member Jim Tobin, I found this photo of the glass case with the 3D entries, including my two, on black stands, third and second from the bottom right, respectively. There are many, many more 2D entries down the hallway: you’ll just have to go to see those yourself.
I’m delighted that my reversible, silver “lentil bead” necklace, Acanthus, was selected to be included in the Pittsburgh Society of Artists Guild‘s 56th Annual Exhibit!
What was most stunning to me was that, of the 71 artists who submitted pieces, I was one of only 22 whose work was selected, and this was the only 3D piece chosen! What an honor!
Oh, and if you know me, you probably expect that piece to be reversible … and it is! The other side is a similar sort of leaf design, with a somewhat subtle difference: more of an “outie” than this “innie” pattern in the center. I had originally made them separately, intending to do two different things with their respective “other” sides. But once these components were ready, they just sort of told me that they belonged together instead!
In addition to the two receptions for this show that are noted in the “postcard” photo, above, there are two additional events related to this show that seem worth mentioning:
Saturday evening, October 28, an Ekphrastic Reading. Free and open to the public. (I’ve been holding off making this post, awaiting time and other details (poet, artistic inspiration) for this event, but so far only the evening date has been made available. Do let me know if you want to attend that evening but don’t see details anywhere else and I forget to update this.)
Friday, November 4, from 4 to 8 pm. This is the shift during which I will be staffing the gallery! (It’d sure be great to have some folks I know stop by to see the show and visit with me a bit during that.)
And, since I’m writing, I just realized that while I mentioned this earlier event on Convergent Series’ Facebook page, I didn’t note here that I’d had two pieces accepted in July for the Cranberry Artists Network‘s annual Martinis with Monet show, that one of them (shown on the left in this picture) had won an award, and that both of them were purchased by one of my collectors!
What with all that from Martinis with Monet, my solo “glass-case” show for the month of September, and now getting into the PSA annual show, it really feels great to have hit the ground running (and not falling!) again, at last. (Though I still have to remember about posting such things!)
Here’s hoping that we all have a great autumn. And, as noted in my last post, I have two classes scheduled and filling (as I write this, a few seats do still remain) at Artsmiths soon too: might I see you there?
It’s the last (full) weekend in April, so once again it’s time for Art All Night! And this is number 25 — can it really have been going on that long?! And they’re returning to an in-person show, but keeping the option of entering online or in person or both! I look forward to seeing how many folks enter the various different ways: I chose both!
Never before have I even considered entering a piece a second time, but this year I chose to (re-title and) submit the same one I had completed shortly before the 2020 show. Remember what things were like that year? The long-planned in-person show had to be cancelled at almost the last minute, though it was magically reinstated as a virtual show just a few weeks later. Wow! That was a superb effort, but I really have no clue how many people may have (or not) seen this piece in the 22-hour virtual show: and it really did take so much longer to get through the pieces online than it does in the various huge halls of the live show. This piece contains so many ‘burgh-specific elements, I figure I’d make sure locals had an opportunity to see it live and perhaps be among those who consider buying it.
Find Strength Together (Three Rivers of Steel)
Upper Right: Rivers of Steel in a Field of Bronze. Does the Ohio split into two smaller parts? No, the Allegheny & Monongahela join to form a bigger, stronger river!
Lower Left: A bronze “Steelers Star” creates waves in a River of Steel. Yet they find ways to complement the strengths of each other.
[A technical point about the “star” (that is, should you be one of the mere handful of people who happen to have any interest in the mathematics / geometry of it all): the three “stars” in the Steelmark / Steelers logos are a form of astroid called hypocycloid, a very special, multi-symmetrical shape formed by rotating a circle within another circle.
The design on the river waves side of this piece is a little bit shorter and wider than that; it looks more like an astroid that is the evolute of an ellipse rather than a circle.
But the whole piece is oval (almost) elliptical so that shape seemed a better fit, visually, while still linking to Pittsburgh’s steel heritage.
Yes, strength can come from compromise too!]
I hope you’ll find some time to explore the 22-hour show! It’s open from 4 pm on April 23 through 2 pm on April 24. You can find information at the Art All Night website or their specific Facebook Event!
One entry per artist. No Fee. No Jury. No Censorship. (Less family-friendly aisles are noted.) A wonderful Celebration of Community Art!!!!!
Last minute notice, yet again, but for reasons not worth going into, I only got tentative confirmation a couple days ago that I was in, and final confirmation of my display space on Friday morning … for a show on Saturday! But it should be a great event: 30+ artists exhibiting at 30+ different venues up and down the main street.
So I then packed up several boxes of goodies on Friday night and headed out to Coraopolis, PA. I set up my art jewelry displays amidst the Pure Brilliance show of the Pittsburgh Pastel Artists League at the Gilberti Fine Art Studio & Gallery. Here’s a directory and map, but you can also pick up copies at various venues along the route.
And here’s a little peek inside the front window. Two of my pieces are on display there, but the biggest part of my show is, from this angle, hidden behind the plant. If you’re in the area, you’ll just have to stop by in person to see all these pieces! And more!
Join me at WSCC’s Open House! Sunday, July 25, 2 to 5 pm
I’d been thinking I’d just go to WSCC’s party. But at the last minute I decided to host a little art-jewelry Christmas in July show and invite folks to come over for either or both too.
If you don’t already get updates from WSCC, I’m sorry for the last-minute notice: this was a spur of the moment decision for me!
Their event, with Alloy pgh Artist in Residence Bradford Mumpower: Grab a drink and a sweet snack while checking out the work in progress for Bradford’s artwork, a larger than life replica of the “greens” jacket worn by steelworkers at the Carrie Furnace (to be installed there in August). Ask questions, discuss the project and if interested find out ways you can help work on this art project.
My event: This photo shows one of my Steel Rivers pendants that I will have available for you:
I will of course also have a selection of my regular silver, steel, bronze, enamel, and other pieces!
I’m not yet keeping regular hours at my studio, but the building is beginning to open back up. I’d be happy to meet you at another time by appointment! I am so looking forward to seeing more people again, and I hope you are too!
This is my own neighborhood but, given the last-minute notice I had about it and the drizzly weather forecast, I’m not setting up a display for this.
But I do plan to wander around and meet other artists (all within walking distance for me!), plus chat with others I encounter along the way. I’ll wear a fly fishing vest with lots of pockets, and plan to stuff them with samples of my art-jewelry (and, while I’m at it, a credit card reader too!).
Let me know if I should be looking for you too!
Chautauqua – Lake Erie Art Trail: Hub Crawl, Saturday, May 29 and Sunday, May 30, 10 am – 5 pm each day.
I sure wish I could just zip up for this tour too! If you’re too far north to make it down to my area for the Art Walk, above, then consider heading up for the Art Trail. If you stop at Hub 2, the Portage Hill Art Gallery, please tell artist-owner Audrey that I pointed you to this event (and ask to see some of my pieces that are available there).
And, wherever you may find yourself, have a memorable Memorial Day weekend!
The Wilkins School Community Center in Regent Square, where I have my studio, is still closed to the public. But the big paved area in front is open, outside, and this Saturday, May 15, from 8 am to around 1 pm, will be the site of WSCC’s annual Plant Sale and more! No book sale inside, and I can’t do a show up in my studio, but I will set up a simple sales spot outside among the gardeners and various information tables. I think they’re putting me on the driveway side, but can’t be sure until we set up.
Also at the same time is the annual Regent Square Community Yard Sale. If you’re not familiar with that, it’s typically a big event, with folks coming in from all over to stroll around the whole lovely neighborhood on that special morning seeking good deals. Street parking is first come first served, and please watch out for pedestrians!
Because yard-sale customers don’t come expecting to buy high-end jewelry, my spread this time will feature a lot of my most affordable pieces. Because I don’t do the thing where I mark my pieces up just so I can offer big sale-price discounts, the best I can do (for this show only) is to offer a bit of a deal for multiple purchases: 10% off second and subsequent items (after the first, highest price, one). If you want something I haven’t brought down, at the end of the show (once I’ve taken things back inside), I’ll be happy stay a bit longer so I can bring out some of my very special pieces for your consideration. (I sure look forward to the day when I can welcome visitors inside my studio again!)
Students, fellow artists, and others: If I have something of yours and we haven’t been able to connect while the building has been closed, do let me know. I have sone fired pieces, books, a stool, and more that I’ve saved for various folks! It’s probably worth letting me know in advance, so I can be sure to pull it out of whatever corner I stashed it into and set it someplace where it will be easy to grab and bring downstairs.
One final note: I rarely do outdoor shows, just indoor ones. I don’t have all the regular display materials and such for outdoors, so if the weather turns windy or rainy, I’ll have to bail out and haul everything back inside as fast as I can. Cool is fine, just not a lot of wind and/or rain! But predictions are for a lovely spring day, so I’m sure hoping that holds…
It’s the last weekend in April, so once again it’s time for Art All Night!
Here’s what I posted on Facebook about it:
I just found the specific page for my entry. Both that, and the show itself, should be visible for a mere 22 hours. Then, poof!, the only way to see my entry again will be through one of my posts. (Of course, the piece is for sale … should you wish to look at it any time you want!)
I am really hoping that the show will be able to return to an in-person event next year!
ADDENDUM: Congratulations to Debra for your winning bid on this piece! I hope you’ll enjoy it for many years to come!
So here we are at the first Wednesday in April of 2021 and this evening I’m not going to be able to meet with other members of the Penn State Master Gardener of Allegheny County at the first regular Wednesday work-night at the lovely Edible Teaching Garden, and not because I’ll be at the opening of always-interesting Quantum Theatre‘s latest story-walk, 10 for 21 (10: based on the Decameron; 21: another year, still in pandemic…)
At the same time, instead, I’ll be at the (virtual) opening of the Cranberry Artists Network‘s spring show, Reawaken, Rejoin, Rejoice, where two of my pieces have been accepted for display!
Yes, while the reception will be virtual, this will be my first, actual, in-person show in a year!
Exit from the Vault is a fine silver (.999) pendant (hung on a sterling silver chain, not shown here) from my Doorways series. What can I say: I just hope it’s an appropriate metaphor for much of the world right now…
Leaves and Tendrils–As Spring Returns! is a fine silver (.999) reversible hollow bead (the other side has a similar but less-deep texture) suspended from Argentium silver (.930) round and square wire “tendrils,” with all of that hung on a sterling silver (.925) chain. This one just seemed highly appropriate for the season.
The reception tonight is from 6-8 pm. You can view the show at the Cranberry Township Municipal Center, 2525 Rochester Road, Cranberry Township, PA 16066. It runs during regular Municipal Center hours through May 6, 2021.
~~~~~~~~ If you would like to purchase any of my pieces but are unable to get to the show itself, please just let me know and I’ll be happy to review your (all very easy!) options.
Like so many of us over the last year, I have missed getting together in person with a lot of my usual people although, except for the worst of winter, I have been able to share outside activities with many of the local ones. In another way though, I have missed even more all the different, random people I would interact with at the Wilkins School Community Center (WSCC) where I have my studio.
Still, I am very happy to have two pieces in WSCC’s current exhibit, Artists Choice IV, even though is yet another virtual show. It looks as though I have the only 3D entries in this one! There are two pendants and, once again, I was able to make both of them reversible!
I Will Always Hold a Piece of Your Heart in Mine has two golden-bronze (“brilliant bronze”) hearts, one nestled inside the other, and hangs on a gold-plated chain. It is fully reversible: you can wear it with the pairing facing forward, or you can turn the chain around to keep the little one snuggled in, closer to your own heart. To me, the difference in the size of the hearts indicates a visual illusion, a sort of perspective, where the smaller one represents the heart of someone at a distance, for the moment at least, but the two are still firmly anchored together.
What do you see in it?
Spring is Peeking Out at Last! is another reversible bead, this time a hollow one made from fine silver (.999). One side is textured with an array of cute little spring blossoms. The other side shows a different flower eagerly peeking out through an opening in the ground. Like so many of us, all of the flowers are ready to get out into the sunshine and to get on with their lives!
What are your plans for this spring, and beyond?!
~~~~~~~~ Both pieces are available for purchase, so do let us know if you’re interested! There’s info on the show page, or you can simply get in touch with me directly and I can process it for you.
So … I haven’t posted here in a while, have I? Then let me start with a question: How “creative” have you been during the pandemic?
Background
Back when I retired from working full time at a university (plus taking on a range of consulting gigs), I was so thrilled to have more time for creative adventures. I could keep all my other “outside of work” activities going, still do a bit of consulting and/or tutoring, but start using what had been my regular work-time for new projects. Wonderful!!!
Though I had done some things like art-jewelry and gardening when working full time, I really appreciated having more time for those in particular and, through them (as I’d had as a faculty member), more outlets for continuing to meet and interact with new people. So when so much shut down, instead of seeing it as an opportunity for more creative activities, for me at least it felt more like it shut down so many of the reasons I had expanded those areas. I didn’t drop those balls completely, of course, just some. But I went sort of back to the pace of when I’d been working full-time-plus.
(I’ve always done a lot of “creative cooking” and for the past year I have done a lot of very “creatively inefficient” cooking! That is, instead of cooking “in bulk” to make food for dinner parties and several meals at once, I was making just enough for each meal. I set the table each time too, with nice glasses and dishes, my good flatware and fabric napkins, etc. (I did often use my smallest plates so it would feel simpler to not over-eat!) I tried new recipes and re-worked older ones (especially early on, when we were contending with various shortages) which I found to be easy when I didn’t have to worry about timing … beyond all those zoom-calls!)
One Fun, New Creationf
Ah, but other types of artistry… With this post, I include a photo of one of the jewelry pieces I did make this past year, yet another in my “doorway” series, this one in brilliant bronze. It was a combination gift for a friend “out west” when she: retired from her (self-employed) job; celebrated a decade-turning birthday; and, by coincidence, had just completed her 2-jab covid-vaccine sequence!
When looking at a different doorway pendant I’d made on commission a while ago, she had asked for one (rather insistently, I might note) and it did seem a good choice now as she was stepping out into the next phase of her life.
We don’t normally exchange gifts at the price-level of what I’d’ve normally charged for one of these. Until now, I’ve always made these in silver. During the pandemic, the price of silver has gone up even more … sigh. The relatively few sales I have managed to make were fine for covering fixed costs like rent but didn’t leave enough extra to splurge on more up-priced silver…. But I was happy to see this as a chance for me to explore what it’d take to make doorways in this lovely golden bronze color. Bronze does take more time than silver at several points in the process so, after balancing the cost across both materials and time, the final retail price would still be close to that of a silver one. But in this case, I had plenty of time to spend on a gift for a dear friend while both saving myself the cost of more silver and testing for any issues in trying to make these in a base metal alloy. I’m happy with this result, and she seems to be too!
Have you tried anything new, or modified any previous interests, during the shutdowns?
My studio is still open by appointment only, but I’m delighted that two of the venues that carry my work are reopening (with new safety policies) next week!
Portage Hill Art Gallery (Westfield, NY, on the road to Mayville / Chautauqua) will reopen on Tuesday, June 2 (primary election day here in PA!) at 11 am, and
the Gift Shop at the Hoyt Art Center (in New Castle, PA), on Wednesday, June 3, at 11 am.
I’m sure a lot of folks will be in no position to buy higher-end pieces, but both of those do carry items from my “black & gold” gifts series — affordable, reversible, golden-bronze pendants on black chains (and earrings on black wires):
Let me know if you have any questions! And, please, be safe and help keep others safe too.
Sometimes when I make a piece I have an idea, a theme, a story in mind, from the very beginning. Other times, I make a design, a geometry, and then let it tell me what it’s saying. Early this year, in January, BCO (see note 1, below), I had an idea for the piece I wanted to make for this year’s Art All Night event, a reversible pendant in steel and bronze. Then the pandemic struck and, DCO, it took me a while to get started on it. And the Art All Night show that’s usually held in late April was, first, postponed until the fall and, later, rescheduled yet again as an online event in mid-May. The piece discusse here is what I ended up making. It still exhibits my original idea, but is it now saying what I’d first been thinking, or something else … or both?
Let’s consider this side first. What might it represent?
Many people local to me here in the Pittsburgh area (2), and beyond, will read it from right to left, seeing the design as a confluence: where two major rivers flow along until they join together to make one that’s even stronger.
Please note that while one can hope that together+stronger means better, that is hope talking, and we should act accordingly!
But others (from here or elsewhere) will read it from left to right! In that case, it could represent a path that reaches a fork, where you must make a choice, or pick a side, and go with that. In some cases, the decision can be between right and wrong, while in others, simply a divergence where each one is neither is better nor worse, even though it will yield a very different outcome in the long run.
From this vantage point, at this scale, and as so often happens, it feels impossible to be sure where either path leads…
Now, consider the other side:
For a very special Pittsburgh event, this sort of art deco design could be an homage to many of our lovely older downtown (3) buldings built during that era, with the golden-bronze element in the center of the steel design reminiscent of the logos of US Steel and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
It could also represent the light at the end of the tunnel (4).
In general terms, a brilliant star in the swirling darkness could be there to help us see our way forward, whether we are traveling downriver amidst strong currents, or standing at a crossroads trying to make the right decision for ourselves and for all those we care about.
Alternatively, it could be the light of an explosion hurtling towards us, potentially signaling our destruction if we don’t muster adequate defenses.
For me, one good thing about Art All Night going online this year is that it suddenly become easy to display both sides of my piece together! Here is the collage I created for my entry this year:
What do you see in these images? Do you see what I’ve seen here? Do you see a confluence or a crossroads? Do you see yourself uniting with others to make something stronger, or choosing a path that could go beyond the point of reconciliation? Do you see the star as a beacon of light to help guide you forward, or as an explosion signaling potential destruction speeding towards you? And … what might you do with that understanding … of yourself, or of your reaction to others being faced with the same choices? Or do you see something else?!
And … what might you do with that understanding … of yourself, or of your reaction to others being faced with the same choices?
It’d be great to read your thoughts on this: Please respond in the comment section below!
~~~~~~~~~~ Endnotes:
BCO –> Before Covic-19 Outbreak; DCO –> During Covid-19 Outbreak.
Here, specifically, the confluence is when the Allegheny, down from the north, and the Monongahela, up from the south, flow together to form the Ohio, which later joins the Mississippi River that flows the whole way to the Gulf of Mexico.
Locally pronounced dahntahn, of course!
Though the shapes don’t match, one interpretation of that note is another local reference: traffic congestion in both directions on the interstate at either end of dahntahn Pittsburgh is common since many drivers slow down as they approach the (Squirrel Hill or Fort Pitt) tunnels, and seem only to get back up to speed when they can see the light at the end….
I was delighted to have two of my pieces accepted for the Cranberry Artists Network‘s Spring Show, Seeing in a New Light, that will be on display in the Cranberry Township Municipal Center at 2525 Rochester Road in Cranberry Twp, PA 16066 from March 4 through April 15, 2019.
The photo with this post shows CAN’s postcard announcing this show, annotated with little images of my two pieces:
Left: Seeing the Spirit in a Cube.Could a flat-sided cube hold the spirit of a few curves deep in its heart?!! This 18 x 22 x 23 mm sterling silver pendant with “puffy cube” black onyx bead (displayed here and in the show on an 18″ sterling silver snake chain) was made in August, 2016.
I’ll have to dig back through unfinished drafts: I really thought I’d at least started a post about it at the time, but can’t find it right now. I faced a number of serious challenges with that piece! If I can’t find a draft post to finish and publish here, I’ll try to recreate that story from my archived “troubleshooting notes” so I can tell that story here … eventually.
I did exhibit this Cube in one other show, the 2017 Annual Exhibition of the Pittsburgh Society of Artists. It did not find a new home at that show, and has been tucked away for safe-keeping ever since. And that’s not right: this cube with it’s puffy little center bead deserves to be out and about, decorating a new owner!
Right: What Is Behind Door #3 ?!!The answer to the question, shown in this little snapshot, is that you can find a moonstone back there, and it will be the owner’s choice whether to keep or to reveal that little secret when it’s worn! This 26 x 27 x 8 mm fine silver pendant with a 6 mm white moonstone cabochon (displayed in the show on an 18″ sterling silver rolo chain) was made in February, 2019, specifically to submit to be considered for this show.
This is yet another piece in my Doorways series, which I‘ve mentioned before. I made this one out of PMC Flex which in some ways is not the ideal silver metal clay formula to use for this specific layered construction. But I wanted to make a couple more of these, I had some “Flex” I’d opened for another project, and the amount left seemed like just about the right amount, so I went with it! And with a lot of wet-finishing, supplemented by some heat-fixing so the Flex would harden up enough to do just a bit of sanding in a few places, I’m happy with how it turned out.
Adding the moonstone on the back was not part of my original design but, as I worked on it, propping its little door open, the question “and what is behind that door?” kept popping into my head. I may have to explore other ways to “answer” that question in my next few Doorway pieces. But whoever ends up taking this one home will have the piece that sparked that exploration!
This Saturday, February 2, brings us the opening reception and awards celebration for the 2019 Mid-Winter Hues show at the North Hills Art Center from 7 to 9 pm. The show runs through March 1 and, after the opening night, can be viewed on weekdays (M-F) from 10 am to 3 pm, plus Monday evenings from 7 to 9 pm.
The juror for this show was Katie Koenig, a local artist (and very new mom!) whose realistic acrylic paintings of everyday objects I just love! So I’m particularly interested to hear what she’ll have to say at the opening / awards event about various pieces in the show.
Apparently there are a total of 106 entries (wow!), and I’m delighted to report that the two pieces shown in this post, both of which I made late last winter, will be among them!
Spring Thoughts on a Gray Day is an enamel-on-steel pendant. Mid-winter days here in this “rust-belt steel-town” are often rather gray…. We remember that brightly colored skies, hillsides, gardens, and more will return. Cars will have snow and salt washed off them, and those with bright colors will reappear. People will take off their heavy, dark coats and again sport bright colors. But in the cold, dark, gray of mid-winter, pastel tones may be the brightest colors imaginable on some days….
But then there are days when the sun does come out and various bits of sparkle do brighten things up for a while. I tried to capture that idea via the lavender cubic zirconia and selective polishing in the reversible sterling (.960) silver pendant I’ve titled Serendipity Wave, while the textures on each side of this piece remind me of various kinds of tracks in the snow … or perhaps dreams of tracks in the sand dunes of an escape to warmer climates!
I’ve seen some preview pictures of a couple walls of paintings (probably about a third of the total Mid-Winter Hues show) and the thing that impressed me was how many seemed to be attempting to banish the grays of winter with bright colors! So I’m looking forward to seeing the whole collection on Saturday. And to seeing some friendly faces at the opening. Oh, and after having spent that afternoon in my studio, to suddenly trying to fit in a little stop at the Mt. Nebo Pat Catan’s (did you see my last post?!) on my way there.
There is absolutely nothing special about the enamel work on this piece but it is a proof-of-concept for an idea I’ve had for ages:
save a bit of left-over (negative space!) bronze metal clay from a piece cut with one of my Silhouette machines;
fire that onto a piece of copper to sinter it; then
enamel onto the copper around the bronze!
I figured it should work, and I’m happy to finally confirm for myself that it does.
So the big question now is: when can I find time to make another batch of bronze pieces so I’ll have more “scraps” to play with!
And I ask myself, what was I waiting for?!! I’ve wanted to do this with bronze and copper since I first started using bronze clays! When did Hadar release her first “Quick Fire” bronze? 2010? If that’s right, since then! But I waited what seems forever before taking even the next step (though, to be fair, I was playing around with a lot of other ideas in the meantime).
I remember how it felt the obvious thing to do when cutting clays with one of my Silhouette cutters (in this case, my Portrait). Though I’d had that thought for a while, I remember firing that particular “drop” of cut-out clay onto a copper oval during my initial trials of “one fire brilliant bronze.” (That was the last of Hadar’s “one fire” clays that I tried, and I struggled with it a bit through several rounds of testing … but it is now a favorite when I want to work in bronze!) I came across the “blank” last week as I was firing a few steel pieces with enamel: it was the last piece I fired before cleaning everything up so I could use that work-table for an Open House this weekend.
Looking back for when I’d made this piece to test with, I realized that it had been sitting in a corner of my studio waiting for me to stop and enamel it for over 3 years! At the time, I did make three more such “blanks” to play with, but now I know I’ll spend even more time designing pieces for additional possibilities from both their positive and negative space components…
O, yes, that’s why I waited! On top of that, even the test-piece shown here has a simple “separation enamel” flower on its other side! Simple in case this side should have failed for some reason, but there because …. that’s just what I try to do!
And now I ask myself: why couldn’t I have just been satisfied with making pieces that are reversible?f But I know the answer: while there’s a big part of me that really likes, and strives for relatively “simple” designs, there is another part that just has to add some little “twist” while I’m at it…
Are you drawn more to minimalist or complex designs? (Not just mine: anyone’s!?) Leave a comment!
Several years ago, I made a small series of “doorway” pendants. I have no clue why I don’t seem to have stopped to photograph and write about them: I must have been busy with something else at the same time and devoted my social media time to that instead.
Digging back through photos now, the only one I can find is a rather blurry snapshot of the last one from that series. But the funny thing is how that piece, Ancient Doorway, is the basis for this post!
Ancient Doorway had been bought by one of my regular customers. She comes by at least once a year, usually with her mother and/or occasionally with a sister, often with children and/or spouses in tow too, and they entertain me for a while as they explore my offerings, provide interesting critiques, and debate which to buy for themselves or each other. They are very enthusiastic, and thus a lot fun to have as customers. And I remember the time she bought that piece because, as she walked in the door her eyes landed on that one first and sparkled! She headed straight to it, picked it up, turned it over, checked the price, set it back down, looked at several other pendants, came back to it and made a few comments, looked around some more, returned to it again and held it up in front of a mirror, looked at some earrings, and finally declared something to the effect that it was definitely her favorite of all the new pieces I had that day.
The funny thing about that is this: I knew from the moment she first headed for it that it was the last piece left from that older series, adapted from a project in one of Hadar Jacobson’s great books (and being the last one is probably why I got at least a quick shot of it). And she had to have been shopping at least two previous times when it was there. So I stood there trying to remember if she’d expressed interest in it earlier, and didn’t think she had. But she was definitely intrigued that day. I was happy to have the sale, but I was also very happy that it made her happy even if that had taken a while.
Except when she came in earlier this summer, she was sad. I could have a few of the details wrong here, but I remember her saying that she usually doesn’t take jewelry with her when she goes on vacation with her family, but she liked that one so much she wanted to have it with her when they took the kids to DisneyWorld. She clearly remembered seeing it on the bathroom counter the last morning when she went to take a shower, but realized on the trip home that she wasn’t wearing it, and didn’t remember putting it back on as they rushed to get everyone out the door that morning. As soon as possible, they called the hotel to ask if it had been found, and were told no. She was disappointed in herself for having lost it: could I make another one?
Of course I said, “Of course. Yes!” I did add that I’d never be able to recreate it exactly, but was it OK if I made something similar. Sure. I said that I was in the middle of some other projects, so it wouldn’t be right away. Was that OK, or did she want it asap? She said that as long as she knew it’d be coming, that was fine. I said that what I’d do would be to make several, give her first choice, and then just put the rest up for sale to others. She liked that idea.
Through the Arches || Into the Vault
So I started out by making two more, shown above. With the old series I remember trying to make them two different ways, and I couldn’t remember which way I’d ended up preferring So, for those first two, I made one each way:
starting from the back and working towards the front, and
starting at the front and working backwards.
The techniques to make it work are a bit different and, in some ways, I now think that “easiness” may be a toss-up. It is far easier to control the design with the approach I used with the former (Through the Arches), but far easier to get great, smooth side-edges using the techniques I applied to the latter (Into the Vault). So I guess I’ll just have to make a couple more!
Just as I finished those two, I looked at my calendar and realized that I needed several entries for two upcoming art shows, so each of the new doorways went to one of those!
Through the Arches (left) will be on display (and available for purchase) at the North Hills Art Center in Ross Twp, PA, from September 8 through October 5, (along with a second piece, a quilt-design piece with a cubic zirconia).
Into the Vault (right) will be on display (and available for purchase) at the Arts on the Riverwalk art competition, sponsored by the Hoyt Art Center at the Confluence Cafe in New Castle, PA, from September 8 through November 1 (along with a second piece, a shamrock design that incorporates dichroic glass).
And I’m delighted to report that I just learned this great news:Into the Vault
has earned a Merit Award … and was the only 3-D piece to win an award!
You may notice that both of those shows open on September 8. In order to get to both of them (and accept the award in New Castle), I’m moving my usually-Second and usually-Saturday Studio Session & Open House one week later, to September 15. I hope I’ll see some familiar faces at the shows this weekend, and in my studio next weekend … though of course I also look forward to meeting new folks too!
One of the questions on the evaluations I ask participants in my workshops to fill out is, “Please describe one of the best things about this class.” And one of the most common responses to that goes something like, “I could use your samples for inspiration but then, with your help, I was encouraged to make whatever I wanted!”
The photo with this post shows four pieces related to a class I taught last month. The three to the left of the pencil (included to indicate size) show three of the samples I brought with me. The piece to the far right was made by one of the students.
The “nest” piece to the far left is the one that was included in the venue’s printed and online catalogs. But the description said that the techniques could be used to make other designs; participants would not be limited to that exact nest design. And I took several dozen others, showing lots of different ways to apply the techniques.
Reading left to right in this photo, the next piece shows one of those variations. It was a quick sample (done in a previous version of this class) as a demonstration of how to work “balls” (aka dots) into an existing design, how to create a spiral, and how to nestle that up against a dot-filled design. (In-class comment: Had I made that in my studio, instead of in a quick demonstration, I’m sure I would have domed the disk first before adding the embellishments. The flat disk is fine, and was quick to make for the demo, but in the design part of my workshops, I do bring pieces, like the one to the far left, to illustrate how even a little bit of dimensionality adds so much to a final product!)
The third piece was my smallest sample, showing how to fill a little nest inside a cut-out opening (rather than inside a nest from coils). It may be the second-smallest pendant-piece I’d ever made at that point. (I do make smaller pieces, but typically use those as earring components or as elements in larger designs, rather than on their own as pendants.)
I didn’t have time to set up a tripod and fiddle with camera settings, so I don’t have a decent photo of what everyone made (and even the bits farthest to the side on this one are slightly out of focus). But here’s what surprised me about the class: seven out of the total of fourteen pieces that students made in that class were smaller than my smallest sample! And the one in the photo I include here was the biggest of those!
Clearly, the students made what they wanted! I hope they were as happy with their pieces as I was with teaching them.
And I can go with the flow: one of the new workshops I’m now designing for the fall is tentatively called Tiny Is In!
Here’s hoping for a big turn-out for a making-tiny-pieces class! Full details should be available later in August.
While I work in both precious metals (silver, gold) and base metals (steel, bronze, copper), my classes tend to feature silver. In response to requests for more base metal lessons, I have two bronze workshops coming up at the end of this month.
Reversible Draped Bronze
(pendant or earrings)
Friday, July 27, Noon to 4 pm
at the North Hills Art Center more information register here
Reversible Domed Bronze
(pendant or earrings)
Sunday, July 29, 1 to 4 pm
at The Artsmiths of Pittsburgh more information register here
Knowing the local lore of how hesitant some ‘burghers are to cross rivers, I thought I was being clever when I scheduled both of them for basically the same weekend. One north, t’other south. The thing that happened is that some people have signed up for each and, between the two, there are enough people to run a class …. but not quite enough yet to run each of them individually!
If you really want to take one in particular, please sign up for it now! (If it’s cancelled, you’ll get a full refund.) BUT, if you could take the other one, please let either me or your second-choice venue know. My understanding is that registration for each of them will close on Monday (July 23): at 10 am (firm!) for North Hills and a few hours later for Artsmiths. If your first choice is cancelled but there are enough to make the other one run, we’ll let you know that and accept your registration there after the “official” deadline. (That’s why there are deadlines: so we have time to scramble if necessary to keep as many people happy as possible, and still give me time to organize (and, if necessary order) all the tools and materials we’ll need!)
After that weekend, I’ll be back to offering workshops in silver for the next few months. (And using silver, steel, bronze, and/or copper in the pieces I make for (lots of) fun and (a tiny bit of) profit.) If you want to learn about any of those metals, of course, in addition to my pre-scheduled small-group classes, I’m always happy to schedule a private lesson with you in my studio!
~~~~~~~~~~
Update: Good news and bad. The bad first: the Friday class at NHAC was cancelled. The good (yay!): The Sunday one at Artsmiths is running! Since most venues (including these) don’t share participant names in advance (just the count: I get the surprise of seeing who shows up at the start of class!), I don’t know (yet) if that’s because new people signed up after I posted this, or whether some NHAC folks did decide to go to a class on the other side of some rivers from their site. Either way, though, I’m delighted to be looking forward to a great class this weekend!
If you haven’t been over to The Arsmiths of Pittsburgh to see their great Instructors Show yet, you still have two more chances, this Saturday or Sunday (July 7 or 8). Not only does the show include a range of different styles from the various artists who teach there, but Artsmith’s proceeds from this show will be targeted specifically to support their great education programs!
If you’d like to talk with me in person, I’ll be over later in the afternoon on Sunday. (I should get there at or very soon after 2 pm, and I’ll stay until the closing, at 4.)
Whether or not we manage to connect in person this weekend, we’ll have another chance next weekend! You’ll be able to shop some of my creations and / or talk with me about any of my upcoming classes (at four separate venues), when I’ll hold another Second Saturday Open House session in my studio. That’ll be Saturday, July 14, and I should be there from about 1 to 5 pm. Stop by any time!
Next weekend’s bonus for one or two of my students: If you’d like to come over and use the tools & equipment in my studio during the Open House, I can have part of one table set up for that on the 14th too. Because I’ll have a few of my own projects going too, for students it’s really best if you reach out in advance to be sure I’ll have a spot for you.
(Since I’m still getting questions about these sessions, let me repeat that they are not the same as my private lessons or small group classes: I’m not saying I won’t speak to you at all, because I’ll help as I can. But they’re meant as an opportunity for students, working pretty much on their own, to continue or follow up on projects they’ve already learned how to do … but without having to invest in the great range of tools and supplies I bring to my workshops!)
There was an announcement for a Quilt Show at a local venue. (Which one may slip out elsewhere but, for the purposes of this post, I don’t intend to name it… Though I had a few moments of frustration, this is not meant as a rant against them; it is simply intended to describe some aspects of the life of a working artist…)
Here’s something you need to know about that Quilt Show from the start: it was announced as being non-juried opportunity! Entries would be juried for awards, but not to get into the show in the first place. The call for artists said that they’d accept entries all day each day for a week, as long as they still had room to exhibit them.
So I started to design a quilt to enter. My “medium” these days is more often metal than fabric, and my “scale” is typically jewelry-size. I decided to make a quilt-pendant out of fine silver, using the process of sintering powdered metal (aka “metal clay”). I would “piece” samples from a selection of different textures for one side. The other side would be textured with a floral pattern that I would accent by setting a small, yellow CZ into the center of one of the flowers. The pendant would hang by the use of an integral bail: a sort of woven-fiber pattern shaped into a “tube” much as could be used for a fabric quilt displayed as a wall hanging. And, yes, all those elements were deliberately designed as a nod to more traditional quilting!
I hoped that a quilter, or quilt-lover, or quilter-lover would appreciate it during the show and decide to buy it… I also wanted to make a piece that, while it did incorporate a number of elements, wouldn’t be an exceptionally complicated piece to make: I didn’t have a lot of spare time to work on it but, even more importantly, I wanted to keep it to something that could be sold at an “affordable” price! I started it several weeks before the entry-week but, with one thing and another going on, hadn’t finished it as the deadline approached. With a lot of other things on my schedule for every day leading up to the opening of the drop-off time, my only option was to use the one and only day I’d been holding open as a “day to play” for at least a few hours. Instead, I spent all of that time, and more, playing with ways to complete the creation of my quilt piece, then firing it, polishing it, adding a patina, finding a chain that I thought would work well with it, taking a couple photographs, deciding how best to display it, giving it a name, filling out the entry-paperwork, etc. It ended up being a rather long day.
But, eventually, my Yellow Flower Birthday Quilt pendant was finished and ready to go on display!
First thing the next morning I packed it into a carrier bag and drove off to the Quilt Show venue. I looked around for a couple minutes, taking in pieces from the previous show that were coming down and noting that already a few entries were there for the new one. When the person handling all that was ready for me, she greeted me with a cheerful, “Oh, I didn’t know you made quilts too!”
I pulled the quilt-pendant out of my bag, smiled, and said, “I know this isn’t a traditional quilt, but I read the prospectus carefully, and it does not specify fabric. I hope you’ll take this silver quilt.”
“What? It doesn’t say anything?! That’s a lovely pendant, but please hold on.” She went to get a copy of the prospectus, and came back saying, “You’re right. We never thought to specify fiber as the medium because I don’t think we ever imagined anyone would enter any other kind of quilt.”
“Well,” I replied, “when you’re dealing with creative people, don’t you expect to be surprised? She laughed, with “Personally, I’d be happy to have it in the show, but I think I’d better check.”
The person she went off to check with wasn’t available. She sighed and said, “If you’re willing, you could just leave it with me, and I’ll let you know the final decision as soon as I can.” I said that was fine, we chatted for a moment about logisitics, and then she got a call. No, they wouldn’t accept my quilt. She was sorry but wanted to assure me that before they presented another quilt show, they’d take care to be more specific about their requirements…
The show is now on. Because I’m not naming them, I can’t promote it for them either. In this case, I figure that’s fair enough. I’ve been back, have seen the show, and am impressed with a number of the entries. I did also note that the showroom still has in place several of their usual display pedestals–empty–where it would have been easy to exhibit my quilt-piece on any one of them. But that’s all water under the bridge, as it were.
But … the story doesn’t end there!
This past Sunday was drop-off day for this summer’s Artists Choice show by the Pittsburgh Society of Artists (PSA). Technically, that is a non-juried show too, but one big difference is that this one is not open to everyone, just to artists who have already been juried into the PSA Guild in the first place. It’s always an interesting show. Entries may be from highly prolific artists who are always looking for show possibilities to those who only make a few pieces and seldom enter any shows other than this one. They may be new, experimental works that an artist is just putting out there to see the reaction, or pieces that just did not fit into the “guidelines” for some other show. Now do you see where this is going?!
Yes, my Quilt Show piece has been renamed as Help Me Get Over the Quilt Show Rejection “because It’s Silver, not Fiber”! and entered in the PSA show at the Brew House Association (at the corner of 21st and Mary Streets in Pittsburgh’s South Side flats area). That one runs from July 6 through August 3, 2018.
And I’m still hoping that a quilter, or quilt-lover, or quilter-lover will find it there and want to take it home!
If you’re in the area, please join me at the Opening Reception from 6 to 9 pm on Friday, July 6. (At this point, I’m also hoping to head over to the Closing Reception, same time & place, on August 3, but who knows what may change in my schedule over the next month!)
Regardless of where you’re reading this from, feel free to comment: Do you enter art shows? Why or why not? How do you handle it when a piece doesn’t get accepted? Or gets accepted but doesn’t sell there (especially if you let the announced theme of that show serve as a part of your inspiration for the piece!)?
“Nests” are a workshop-project that I teach every now and then. It’s scheduled again for next Friday, June 29, at the North Hills Art Center. Online registration is available. If you’re interested, please sign up asap: the last day you can register is this Friday, June 22. There are two sessions listed, for afternoon OR evening. Sign up for your preferred time, but please let someone (me or NHAC) know whether or not you’d be able to participate in the other one (in case one or the other ends up over- or under-subscribed).
Having gotten the “promo” stuff out of the way, I’ll get down to the reason I decided to write a whole blog post on it: I’ll use that workshop to talk a bit about how an instructor builds up the ideas for a class. Different teachers may look at theirs in different ways, but this is the approach I favor.
Some “consumer arts & crafts” classes are designed so that participants all make exactly the piece illustrated. Others use the image as a starting point to explore a process or technique. I tend to teach the latter, simply because those are the classes I enjoy taking the most. Of course, participants are always welcome to make something very close to the illustration; it’s just that I encourage exploration, experimentation, and creative variations too.
Unless noted otherwise, I try to design each workshop so it will be great for beginners with metal clay, serve as a refresher for those with limited experience, and offer specific techniques so you can continue to build both your repertoire and your local metal clay community with each new class.
We start with the basics of rolling and texturing clay, cutting it into an interesting shape, giving it some dimension, deciding how to hang it, and more. Students are welcome to make a pendant and / or a pair of earrings.
What varies across my classes is what else we do each time. In this one, we explore ways to hand-decorate those creations with silver strings and balls. So I call the class Lovely Silver Nests because it’s really easy, and fun, to shape those into an interesting “nest” design, as shown in the first photo with this post, my usual illustration for this class.
But once you know the process, you are free to arrange the strings and balls in various other patterns, instead of or in addition to nests! We also consider several ways to decorate the other side of each piece: with more strings and balls, by using more complex textures, by adding layered embellishments, and more. My goal is to help you create a unique piece of silver art that is reversible.
As usual, those with some previous experience with metal clay are welcome in this class too. My target audience here is not folks who’ve mastered the medium and seek advanced challenges (those, more advanced, sessions are usually just held with a small group in my studio); here, it is people who are curious and interested in learning more about manipulating metal clays in their creations. They may work right along with the beginners, perhaps finding time to create a more complex bail for hanging their piece, or they may add this style of decoration to a more complex project they’ve already mastered. I’m often surprised when folks tell me how hesitant they’ve been to try these specific techniques before this class, and I’m delighted when I see the designs they come up with as soon as they’ve learned how to follow a few specific steps to make this work.
So, while I call the class Lovely Silver Nests, it’s not a nest-project class. It’s a strings and balls techniques class. They can be used in so many ways: on some of the simplest pieces, on many very elaborate designs, and even for pieces constructed solely using them!
That’s why I’m also including in this post a quick snapshot with (a) one pair of basic earrings, and then (b) the back sides (or as I tend to think of them: the simpler, other sides) of three pendants. Even if you only know it as the “back” you can still know that there’s another little piece of art hidden back there!
Hmmm, I wonder if I should call this workshop Dots & Lines then, or leave it as Lovely Silver Nests? I’d love to see photos (or even just links to photos) of what other folks have done with their own dots & lines!
Artsmiths of Pittsburgh
Hoyt Center for the Arts, New Castle, PA
Portage Hill Gallery, Westfield, NY
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Convergent Series 
