Robin

New work (I should do this more often, I know, you don't have to tell me)

Wed, 12 Dec 2007 22:22:39 GMT

I have some new work to post. This was done for the Still Life Challenge on EBSQ, held last month. This is done in copper using the technique of repousse`. Repousse` is the manipulation of a flat sheet of metal into a three dimensional form using a series of punches and a pitch bowl.

The idea was to reference a favorite artist in some fashion. I chose to reference van Gogh. The title of the piece is "Apples and Brushes van Gogh" and more detail and explanation can be found in my portfolio here. http://www.ebsqart.com/Artists/cmd_10041_profile_portfolio__4_4_G.htm

This piece is curently up for auction on eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=220183128908&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=01

New work

Wed, 31 Oct 2007 00:47:41 GMT

Insufficient Substitution

Tis is my submission for the Think Pink show online at EBSQ.
The link is: http://www.ebsqart.com/ArtShows/sh_148.htm
Come and see the show. There is a lot of good work submitted.

Statement:
Media: metal
Dimensions: 2 3/8" x 3 3/4"
Date of Work: Oct. 2007

My mother Died from breast cancer 18 years ago. She was 60 when she was diagnosed with the disease. I remember talking to her not long before and she had told me how she was looking forward to my dad’s retirement so they could spend the years together traveling to all the places that they had talked about and never visited.

After we found out, there was the first operation, the mastectomy, and then the tests. Invasion of the lymph nodes, but the doctor said that he was hopeful that a round of chemo would take care of that. He was partly right. Devastating as the chemo was, she dealt with it unflinchingly, although it appeared that she had aged 10 years those first few months. I never heard a complaint.

My dad retired early and they made some travel plans for when she was recovered enough from the chemo. Even though the cancer appeared to be in remission, there was still an air of immediacy surrounding my parents’ lives. Schedules were altered, visits from the children and grandchildren doubled then tripled, all of us wondering if the monster that was taking our mother had been beaten or just driven off for a time. At the three year mark, we began to feel some sense of relief, that maybe we could look past the present and forward to the years passing, with my mom enjoying the grandchildren and the well deserved years of being together with my father in his retirement. They took a trip to Europe, something that they had looked forward to for a very long time.

Four years had passed since The Day. That was how we referred to it - The Day. Another Day arrived. Blood tests revealed the cancer cells had reappeared and that cancer had been found in her other breast. She had a second mastectomy and another round of chemo. Good, that bought some time. As soon as she was well enough (well being a relative term here) they left on a road trip. Around the country they went, zig-zagging up to New England, across to Washington State, down to California and across the South. The unspoken thought was that there was little time left. They would see what they could. I was living in Louisiana at the time. When I saw my mom on the final leg of their trip (fateful words), I was shocked that this vital person had become this frail woman with the cane. Still, I recognized the smile and welcomed her with open arms. My mom fought a long, hard battle for 5 years but in the end, we lost her. I was there in the hospital when she died. I was the last person that she talked to. She said “I love you, Robin.” That was the day before she died. The last thing she said just before dying was “Mom?” in the tone that she used for her own mother. We were all there.

My mother died of breast cancer, not because she didn’t get the tests, but because the films had been read incorrectly for 3 years before she was diagnosed. The technology has changed so much in the last two decades that what happened to her doesn’t have to happen to anyone anymore.

Do your self breast exams. Get your mammograms when you should. If you do get cancer, get second opinions. Get all of your follow-up tests, and have the results double checked. This piece is repousse copper, fine silver and pink quartz. It is mounted on a sheet of glass in a black frame. What this piece is about the obvious, that a replacement breast is second best to say the least, and more subtle, that you can never be replaced to those who love you. Please take care of yourself, and do the right things.

New Work

Fri, 12 Oct 2007 01:14:50 GMT

OMG, has it been 18 weeks since I posted here?? Sorry about that. I actually have been doing lots of work. I did a second show after that other one that I did in Michigan. That one was in Pembroke, MA and was quite an experience. I doubled my sales from the first one. Well, that still doesn't amount to that much.
One of the things that I have finished is another comet pin. The title of this pin is Red Rocket. it is 3 1/2" long and is made of fine and sterling silver, 24 kt. gold (Keum Boo) and has a dichroic glass stone. It functions either as a pin or a pendant. The design is a collaboration between me and Donna Gill Colestock. I did the construction.

The next image shows Red Rocket on a cable necklace:

I'm very pleased with the way that this one turned out.

ACEO more and more

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 21:20:17 GMT

Finally the last of the lines are added and the metal has been patinaed with an oxidant, liver of sulfur. I came back over the top of it with a mildly abrasive pad to take the oxide off the top surface leaving it in the lines. You might notice some dry point lines added in for fine detail.

And there you have it.

ACEO more more

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 21:12:16 GMT

I need to add some texture to use for value so I begin doing that.

ACEO more

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 21:08:59 GMT

Next I want to use punches and chisels to chase the design into the surface. here is the ACEO in an intermediate step.

More ACEO

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 21:06:10 GMT

I have let the work outstrip my posting again. Actually that's not that bad a thing. I need to get more work done.
Anyway, here is an update or two on the ACEO that I was working on.

I have transferred the idea to the metal using indelible marker.

new WIP ACEO Fireworks

Tue, 05 Jun 2007 16:21:27 GMT

HI there! I am going to be a participant in a Craft Fair at the end of the month, The Stars and Stripes Fest, 6/29/07 - 7/1/07, to be held in downtown Mount Clemens, Michigan

http://www.starsandstripesfest.com/

There is a link directly above. Maybe mine is the only display that doesn't show it?

This will be my first Craft Fair and I look forward to it with a mix of anticipation and panic. I'm sure that I'm not the first or last person to feel that way.

Ok, on to the thing that I am currently working on. Because this is a fireworks fest, I am doing a few ACEOs to offer using the theme of the fireworks over the city skyline. (ACEO stands for Art Card Edition and Original. they are 2 1/2" x 3 !/2" and there is no restriction other than that I think.) Granted, a generic skyline. Here is the sketch that the first one is based on:

I may not transfer it exactly but it's a start. I mean to do a chasing on a sheet of copper. Chasing is using punches and various other tools to incise lines into the surface of the metal.

New work

Wed, 16 May 2007 02:58:12 GMT

I have made new work and have reopened my Etsy store. The Etsy store can be found at Robin47.etsy.com.
I have been making a lot of earrings and a few other things. here is one of the pairs of earrings that I have recently completed:

I will be loading others in the near future.

Well, I did finish it...Oh, the comet pin, yes.

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 18:14:51 GMT

Here it is!! And here is a link to my portfolio entry where you can find all the particulars about it:

http://www.ebsqart.com/Artists/cmd_10041_profile_portfolio__1_1_G.htm

Now I will have to start something new.

intermission

Wed, 21 Mar 2007 17:07:29 GMT

Well, so I didn't finish that comet pin yet. Lots of things got in the way, like a week in Ireland studying Celtic Chasing. I will post some examples of that later.
Meanwhile, I want to post a picture of the ACEO that i have for auction on eBay for Nibblefest:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=220094710450&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=012

It is Sterling Silver with 24 kt. Gold foil applied using the technique of Keum Boo, fusing the foil to the surface using heat and pressure. In addition, the Phoenix is chased into the surface with small chisels and punches. For a more complete description, visit the auction listing.

Comet 5, step 5

Mon, 22 Jan 2007 00:32:37 GMT

I have been working on the repousse in the pitch bowl, adding detail and shape to the form. here is a picture of it with the stone sitting on the flattened out spot where it will go after I make the bezel, one of the next things to be done. I tried to add a lot of varied sizes of punch marks to create some variety and contrast.

comet 5, step 4

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 02:39:48 GMT

Now that the outer edge has been defined pretty well, it's time to move on to the body of the piece, to define the inner set of flames and start working in the final shape of things. Things are going fairly well so far. The part near the head of the comet still has to be flattened and made ready for the bezel setting holding the glass piece that we saw in the original sketch.

Comet 5, step 3

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 02:27:31 GMT

Ok, we have switched to the front now. We are starting to work around the edges here and define the shape a lot more, as is evident in the picture. At some point the body of the piece will be cut loose from the surounding flange which is needed in the process to help the metal stretch.

comet 5, step 2

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 02:18:59 GMT

Here we go with the repousse part. I have cut a piece of fine silver and placed it in the pitch bowl. First we work from the back side and push the general shape into the metal. We're not trying for detail here, we just need some hight for the piece to be three dimensional. The little tongues of fire can come later.

Comet No. 5

Fri, 19 Jan 2007 02:12:47 GMT

Well, it's time to get going on the next comet (which I have been doing) and I'm going to WIP this one here. This comet is going to be a little different from it's predecessors in that it will have some repousse in the main body where the previous ones used flat outlines. Here is the drawing I decided to use:

There will be keum boo in this one too but I am going to try and plan the placement of the gold foil around the piece instead of the piece around the keum boo.

The Fourth Comet Pin: Blue Streak

Thu, 18 Jan 2007 02:13:09 GMT

I can't believe that I haven't managed to post this in my lj! Here is the #4 comet pin I finished a few days ago called Blue Streak.
It is made from fine and sterling silver, 24 kt. gold foil, reticulation silver and has a dichromatic glass stone as the centerpiece, a yellow CZ and 2 uncut diamond beads. Dimensions: 1 3/4" x 2 1/2"

Continued Lying (about the steps, that is)

Thu, 11 Jan 2007 17:11:23 GMT

The third piece in the Comet Series is a pin titled "Gaia's Tears". This one also has a centerpiece of dichromatic glass mounted in a gallery wire bezel. This piece contains a combination of sterling and fine silver. The upper section is Keum Boo (see description in the previous post) and the lower drops ar a garnet cabachon in the middle flanked by 2 uncut diamond beads. There is a catch and pin back on it and the pieces are articulated in their connections. Size 3 3/8 inches by 1 1/8 inches.

Still Lying. Descending Comet Revisited, More work

Thu, 11 Jan 2007 17:04:30 GMT

More news!! Descending Comet won Members Choice in the December Jewelry Show at EBSQ art! I am sooo pleased!! And it sold on eBay!
So this is the first in a series of pins related to comet imagery. the second and third are done.
The second in the series is titled "Great Ball of Fire". It has dichromatic glass as its centerpiece set in a gallery wire bezel. There is Keum Boo (24 kt. gold foil applied to fine silver) on the top section which also has chasing (lines done with a small chisel) and an ebony drop at the bottom. The pieces are articulated in their connections and there is a catch and pin back. Size 3 inches by 1 inch.

I lied. Step 7

Sun, 31 Dec 2006 07:05:45 GMT

Here is the finished piece. It is 3 1/4" tall and 2" wide. the materials are fine silver, sterling silver, 24 kt. gold foil, dichromatic glass and ebony.

Enjoy!!

step 3,4,5,6, heck, lets do them all

Sun, 31 Dec 2006 06:40:40 GMT

Ok, so I'm a little behind on the lj. Step 3 is a closeup of the chased lines on the Keum boo piece.

Step 4 is the keum boo piece cut out and in position.

step 5 is an outline of the prospective cutout of the middle piece.

Step 6 is the middle piece cut outand the piece of ebony in place.

Fire Pin, step 2

Sun, 31 Dec 2006 04:25:40 GMT

In this shot, I have soldered on the bezel made from something called gallery wire which is very ornate. Things are placed in position relative to their hopefully final placings. The outline of the piece holding the stone has to be cut out. That will happen soon. You can see that I have added some chased lines to the top piece adding to the flame motif.

New work

Sun, 31 Dec 2006 02:17:34 GMT

Yeah, it's been a while since I posted anything here. The holiday season has been very distracting this year.
I am finally working on something new! I wanted to do some more things with Keum Boo (gold foil on silver) and so I started this little project. Here is the first picture of the series. In it, you see the piece of Keum Boo and the stone that I am using, a bit of dichromatic glass.

10, the Kris Project

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 03:02:08 GMT

All right! I added some dry point in an attempt to give the work some midtone values. I think it worked. here is the completed work. I am stopping here because I think that if i continue to mess with it, I stand a good chance of screwing up what I already have. The Law of Diminishing Returns. Well, here she is! Hope you like it, Kris Jean.

9, the Kris Project

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 02:54:11 GMT

Big jump here, added some more detail like the eyelashes. (Thanks for the suggestion, Donna!) part of the question here is that midtones are hard to develop.