.JPG)
I have been working on a new style of mask. I am remembering how difficult this creative process can be. First is the visualizing, building a vague idea of what I think I can invent. Then comes planning, and actually figuring out how to make it happen. Shows are often the impetus to try a new direction, and I do have one coming up in June.
Anything new and different is incredibly challenging, mentally, physically, and yes, emotionally. Here I am starting out with a fuzzy concept that I want to make into a reality. As the vision gets stronger, it gives me a clearer road to follow.
But let's be real. I am dealing with materials that also have a mind of their own. Often the clay, the horsehair, or any of the numerous elements I am putting together will not always do what I want them to. The nerve of them!
Days have passed as I assemble; undo; go to a store to buy a missing product; reassemble. This morning I found I had messed up the way it hangs, so I had to start over and correct my mistake. It has to be right.
Finally there is the time to just stop. Completion.
Now please, let there someone out there who thinks they must own this new creation of mine!
This is the jewelry I wore in the gallery today. It is made of high fire porcelain beads that I make individually.This color I call Moss Green. I also make these styles in Denim Blue and a brown hue I call
Earth Brown .Since it is spring, I put on my green pants and top, and of course, my matching jewelry. I like to wear shades of one color. Less confusing. Today seemed like a good green day.
Being a clay artist, I like the thought of making my own adornment.
People often ask me, what is it made of? Bone, they will sometimes think. Wearing it shows off my line and can often help the client envision what it looks like on themselves. Plus it pleases my own sense of style.
Each one is made from the white porcelain, impressed with a design. The clay must be rolled out very thin. A heavy or rough surface doesn't fit my skin or my aesthetic sensibility.Cleaning each one with a sponge is necessary.
I began by selling wholesale to beads shop. I didn't get very much. I started having ideas about how I would create with them. I like a long necklace and dangling earrings. The pieces of cut crystal give a light and translucent feeling. The decorative stones add color and texture. So began my adventure of making my own ceramic jewelry.
It is a beautiful day here in Sedona. I peer between the evergreen branches at the awesome red rock vista ahead of me. I have lived here a long time, but I never cease to feel a sense of awe at my natural surroundings.
For me, where I am is important to my sense of creativity. Nature is my truest mentor . Being here seems like living in a national park. It never gets boring.
Certainly people produce great art in gritty surroundings. Essentially, we must look inside our own sense of imagination for the creative process. It just seems easier here, more inspiring.
I lived near the ocean before I landed in this small Arizona town, some thirty years ago. I resided in an area full of people doing creative things, along with the bizarre. That was OK. I think Sedona has an element of the unusual in some of its residents. And why not? Sometimes going far out brings us closer to our inventive side.
But always, there is the humbling reality of those beautiful mountain vistas all around us. It shows up in my ceramics, my calligraphy, my sense of being.
Inspiration is all around us here in Sedona, Arizona.
It is springtime again. The Iris are blooming. Here in Sedona, we wait all year for these few weeks where the display of purples, and other exotic hues, finally wake up. This is appropriate, for in Greek mythology, Iris was the goddess of the rainbow, attendant to Zeus and Hera. It is a time when my desire to create something new and different emerges.
I planted these bulbs many years ago. Like old friends, they go away in the heat, but wake up when the last breath of wintertime is emerging into a new season.
A few days ago was the equinox, on March 21st. This is the time when the sun's center crosses the equator and day and night are equal. From now on the days will start to be longer. There is a restlessness in nature, and in the human nature, I think.
I am going back to my studio now. Just wanted to share my pleasure in nature's mysteries. How does springtime affect your creative mood? Would you share with me in your comments?
Tucson tango festival is where I just spent a glorious few days taking lessons and dancing with perfect strangers.This photo was taken there.
I am always struck by what an art form this particular dance is. All the subtle nuances; movement techniques; the refinement of one's existing style. I have been a dancer my whole life, but this one is humbling. Something resembling " the more you learn, the more there is to learn" syndrome.
That is a lot like the creative process in art, I believe. I remember how much I thought I knew when I was first starting out. Perhaps our confidence is needed to get over the obstacles and keep on creating, especially at first if we are not selling too much. "Ignorance is bliss " may have some real advantages.
Now, years later, I realize all there still is ahead of me: to learn; to grow, and to refine what I am currently making . I think art is essentially a solitary path. The person we want to please first is ourselves, and hope to find the appreciators of our creations. Tango is done with a partner, but ultimately we are the masters of our own style.
This ceramic piece, entitled "Half Moon Abstraction" hangs on the wall like a canvas, some fourteen inches long . It does have a foot to stand on as well.
Taking the basic round shape of many clay creations, my decision was to consider another dimension, or perspective I could construct from this basic shape. Carving away part of the round form would add yet another facet of abstraction.
Looking up the word abstraction in the dictionary, I read this definition: ..." a concrete object or organic figure which is transformed by the artist into a nonrepresentational design, with recognizable elements, irregular curved lines, graded tones etc.." Boldly, I set forth to add the elements of design to this surface.
I like angles; sharp lines; non representational forms.It is harder to sell here in the southwest, so I do it to feed my creative soul, and hope some kindred spirit identifies.
I have to carve out each shape. I want to play off the straight lines and the curves; the triangles and the circles. Then comes the hard work , as I go back and fill in the colors. I must paint within the lines!
I use low fire glazes to get the red,the metallic bronze, and the celadon green of the plate. It takes many coats to get the depth of color I desire. First firing to make it strong. Second, primitive firing, to add the crackle and patina I desired. Always the element of risk in ceramics; art; life...
Behold, it came out just the way I envisioned. That is the real success for me.
I just sold this porcelain bowl, which is decorated with real bits of Arizona turquoise. I like the color of the glaze next to the stones, creating a bit of interest and dimension.Grateful for a sale, non the less, I have to say good bye to my little friend.
I believe there is a bit of the artists' spirit in each individual creation that comes forth from our hands; our minds; the invisible influence of "who knows where?" I think of clay as a living entity. Mostly it is playful and cooperative.Sometimes it is not going to follow my intention. Clay will crack, or the glaze will misbehave, even if I am doing things as always.
Is it my spirit or these elements which are not cooperating that day? Who can say? I do feel that if you own a piece that I have created, my spirit is within.
