I went from sparkly little girl necklaces to a beach-combing, sustainable piece this week.
It uses nettle string through drilled bone, small turquoise beads and beach finds to make an environmentally friendly necklace.
The finds include a piece of a whistle, and a tube lid. It also has a piece of pau shell, a mother of pearl offcut and a disc from an old necklace. The copper clasp is bound to the nettle string using old electrical copper wire.
John Weiss came to assess my work at New Designers and they have sent me his assessment of my work and an invite to show in London next year. So that’s exciting and something to work towards:-
“With a well-developed exploration of casting techniques, the applicant shows a mature combination of creativity and technical resources, promising a good future as a designer maker, with an imaginative approach to serendipitous artefacts of her processes. In the light of existing and likely achievements, should soon be in a position appropriate to full membership of the Society.
Recommended to exhibit at the Mall Galleries Exhibition in 2016
Assessors Name John Weiss”
The pic is of a sound piece work in progress
I said goodbye to this wee bronze dish, patinated with sea water today. It’s off to a new home in Bothwell.
It’s going with my latest bronze bowl, which was cast in beachsand and finished at my Scottish Sculpture workshop residency.
Several people bought pewter shells for Nepal Disasters Committee https://www.paypal-donations.co.uk/pp-charity/charity.jsp?NP_ID=76070
Thank-you. I have a few of these left.
One of these wee mixed metal bowls is away too.
Lots of people popped into my garage venue – you should see it it’s like an art gallery all white and tidy – it’s worth a visit just to see how garages could be. It was great to talk to summer visitors, artists, engineers, blacksmiths, ceramicists, young people, even a few well behaved dogs. I’ll be there again today – maybe see you.
Tomorrow we decide what goes to New Designers in London from One to Watch, our degree show. Then we pack it all up; and I head off to the Scottish Sculpture Workshop for my emerging artist residency.
Did some simple pewter casts using shells from the beach and the beachsand/Crail clay mixture – raised some money for charity.
Term assessment is next week, so focus has been on that. Repousse not quite finished, but I made a leather belt and leather and copper cuff Also pieces using the weaving; and
a fold form using ideas from the Nuno textile exhibition.
Plenty of time in the workshop this week, mid term assessment on Thursday so self directed on 3 days. Teena showed us forging, I think we were too heavy handed, but it’s basically what I’ve been doing with fold forming. Tried fold forming aluminium (looks like pie trays) and made more wee houses with different materials. Experimented with soldering close to porcelain and I think it works if you heat the porcelain evenly as you go.
couldn’t resist posting this – no photoshop involved
Where do the weeks go to? Made some rivets by drawing copper wire to fit the drill bit hole and blobbing the end the with the high temp torch then cutting to length and squeezing with the pliers (thanks for tip Nuno). Used some blobbed wire to make these ‘seed heads’ Also made some ‘lathe’ turned wire, but with a hand drill. Had a bit of a breakthrough on the Vessel project, pictured top. Downloaded a book on metal folding to my kindle and bought more stakes on e-bay (must stop this) Need to try filigree and have a cheap torch for this – which can also be used for ice sculpture.
tin can, wood, aluminium, wire
Nuno (artist residence) helped me set up pitch bowl for chasing and repousse. I have a book out the library, but I think I’ll ask him to show me how next week (made a tentative start). Made a wee box with my ring to practice rivets and finished the hinged box. Riveted a wee house, melted a wire blob with the super heat torch (and melted the torch) It seems to be an oxygen hydrogen mix produced by electrolytic process with alcohol vapour (I think to make it visible) it burns super hot. Bought another stake, a wee vice and anvil on e-bay – a bit addictive.
juliacowie 
