to be Impressed or not be Impressed...That tis the question

Found this video, looks kinda neat but then I'm not super sure how it rates other coloring techniques.

http://www.riogrande.com/Product/Digital-60-Volt-Rectifier-for-Kliar-E-Coating/335303?pos=1&utm_campaign=289334&utm_content=709441482&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Emailvision#Video

Coming to an end

This semester i feel that I really grew creatively. Last semester I was still figuring out how things worked and what was expected of me. Now I know and I feel free to explore ideas and new processes. This semester I learned:

Forging techniques
Colored pencil on metal tenchniques
Sandblasting
More advanced hydrolic dieforming
embossing
glass cabachon making
multiple chain tenchniques (loop in loop, chainmail and woven/crocheted)
marriage of metals

I really clicked with forging and would like to do more of it. The whole expeince of learning to raise in metalsmithing and now understanding how to "move" metal makes me feel really empowered in the studio. I feel like I have full control over the metal i'm working with. However, when the metal cracks, its sooo frustrating. I felt like I was constantly filing away metal. Maybe as I practice more, this will start to happen less.

Spoooon

heres the last picture I took of just the sppon part, before I attached it to the cast piece.

We had  crtitique today, went pretty well. I'm really glad the semester is over, the projects due in metalsmithing were really starting to stress me out. Theres more I want to do to my projects from that class before I call them officially done. It is quite the process when you have to raise a vessel and adorn it. phew. I want to raise a couple 4'' bowls. I'm thinking as part of my summer research on enameling I might want to try my hand at enameling on a vessel.

Final pictures coming soon

Exhibition at the Burchfield Penny

I entered my first piece from this semester in the upcoming exhibition at the Burchfield Penny titled, The Artists Among Us


The opening reception is this Friday May 11 from 6:30-9:30PM

Heres the link to see what its about:
http://www.burchfieldpenney.org/exhibitions/exhibition:05-11-2012-08-26-2012-the-artist-among-us-ii/

Forging Issues

My spoon is almost where i want it but its keeps getting small cracks on the sides. Each time before I forge it again, Im filing or cutting out the cracks but it seems like i'm wasting material. Its starting to get some cracks in the middle, definitely think its time to stop pushing it before it splits down the middle! Here is what it looks like so far:

Chris Irick Workshop

Day one of the workshop was today. I learned a lot of really cool things, I'm very glad she was able to come present to us. She mentioned some books in her lecture that I want to check out. I've been inspired to make some rolling plates to texture silver and such. They're definitely a nice way to get texture without etching on that specific piece of metal. I'm really interested in creating a good body of work to sell at the student sale so maybe I'll design a few plexi molds to use for some production work. I love the technique she showed us to get a more frame like puffed shape. Also how we can use things like scrape book tools to get texture. Also, that you can do multi layer hydraulic die forms. Seems decently obvious now that i've heard it but I hadn't thought about it before. Cant wait to keep playing around with what I've learned.

O and don't forget to use tape as a handle when sanding small pieces! I also totally didn't think of this

Spoon progress

The casting of the stick went well, just have to clean it up and all that good stuff. The bird casting didn't work at all, and not only did it not work, the metal went MIA. I have no idea where it went. I don't understand how it disappears but apparently i guess thats what it managed to do this time. I guess i get to re-carve the birds. I'm really running out of time to do this, and I am at a 0% energy level left so I'm not sure when this is going to happen, but hopefully it will.

Pre-Casting Stage

Spoon elements ready to be invested:

A curvy stick that will end up becoming the handle of the spoon

Small Cartoon bird that will sit on the spoon handle

Starting to take shape!

Spoon progress so far:

I really like forging!

Spoon Project

I'm really excited to forge a spoon. I've learned so much about moving metal in metalsmithing this year. The cold forging techniques are really valuable to know and I find them really fun to do. (we'll see if I still say that after the project :P) My idea for the spoon is to have little cartoon-esque birds sitting on the handle. I want it to be more of a whimsical piece rather than realistic. I have this very cool piece of a stick that has a lot of movement that I want to cast for the handle and then attach my forged spoon ladle to it. Hopefully everything works out. I bought laquer to prepare the stick for casting and I'm currently working on carving the birds. So much to do, so little time!

Inget

I poured my first Inget!!!!!!!!! at first I was really scared. It seemed like it was so easy to mess up and I gotta admit  find molten metal a little scary. But after pouring it, I realized its so exhilarating. An added plus was that it came out successful! Here she is:

I honestly cant wait to pour more. It was really fun and challenging.

Now on to planishing!

The final Product

Picture coming soon

Pre-Crit

During pre-crit the main points brought up were to work on the transition from the chased piece to the bezel and to incorporate a more cohesive language between the chain and the rest of the piece. I was kinda bummed to realize that the chain doesn't correlate to the piece. In my thought process that was the main point of making the links triangular rather than circular or any other shape. I do see that there is a bit of disconnect. The disconnect may be due to te fact that the triangles in the piece are isosceles and my chain link triangles are equilateral. I set off to change the links but when I started making isosceles triangles, the links fall very linear which took away from their triangular shape. I'm not sure quite yet how to increase the cohesion. I'm thinking of bringing the texture from the piece into parts of the chain. I put a few isosceles triangles int he chain and maybe I will draw the attention to these links by

Progress

Here is the drawing I have decided to go with:


The chased piece near completion

 Soldered wire onto a thin piece of copper to act as the bezel. It soldered very successfully. I'm very happy with the craftsmanship of this part.

Eye-Wear

My inspiration for this project is eagles. Here are some of the photographs I have been looking at:

I am most interested in the very strong line of their brow. they look really fierce and intimidating. I want to capture those elements in my piece. I am learning toward a monocle. I was also toying with a mascarade mask and a more typical glasses shape but I keep coming back to the monocle.

Clasp As Focal Point Finished Piece

Here it is:

I really enjoyed making the chain and I love how it looks, the only thing is holding the small coils and cutting them with the jewelers saw really hurt my fingers after a while. Now they're all calloused. I want to continue to explore coloring metal with Prisma colors, i think I might incorporate it somewhere on my next project as well. The clasp isn't shown in the picture but its a sister clasp. Its a small one so its hidden. I really like the look, feel and ease of that kind of clasp. Its a bit more complex but still relatively easy to make and super versatile.

Alas for Problems

sooo like in every project, you always run into some issues. I planned on making the "idiots delight" chain with 18 guage wire. Well what I didn't know is that finding a 5/32 dowel is close to impossible. I checked several hardware and craft stores. Once I couldn't find it in the store, I decided to modify a bigger dowel to the right size but sanding it down was waaaay too difficult to keep the width consistent. I ended up deciding to order new wire in a different guage that I already had the correct dowel size for. I couldn't find the color I wanted in 16 guage so I went for 20. Who knew I had to buy the dowel, then the wire. I'm glad I could make it work and didn't have to settle for a less tight chain or change what type of chain i was making.

Project one sketches

Here are my final sketches for project one: 

The bottom sketch is the one I have chose to go with. It is based on the tail and body of a parrot. I am going to use color pencil on the bottom piece to incorporate the coloring of the parrot.

Etruscan Chain- double loop in loop

I absolutely loved making this chain. I found fusing really fun and I want to try making other kinds of chains. My first project doesn't call for an etruscan chain so I'm waiting for a use to arise for it. I am going to make a byzantine chain also called idiots delight chain for my project. It is going to use silver and blue colored wire. After completing a six inch double loop in loop Etruscan Chain I made a single loop in loop with the extra links. I still have to draw the single loop in loop through the draw plate. I'm hoping that will help it look more uniform. If it doesn't then I definitely prefer the double loop in loop. I tried to take some pictures but my camera cant see the detail in the chain.

Spring 2012 Theme

I've decided to use birds as my theme for this semester. I plan on focusing on one specific bird for each piece. I am thinking that I want to use an eagle for the second project and focus on their impeccably good vision by setting a magnifying glass. I'm not sure whether I want to go off from the idea of binoculars or a monocle. I keep think of designs for a monocle but I'm not sure how that relates to an eagle. I am still toying with what bird to use for the first project. The shape of the body and the delicate detail in their wings is really interesting to me. Here are a couple pictures i've been looking at. 

Also the repetition of their flight patterns might be a good design element to etch or play with when designing.