A Master of Color and Canework

Orange Flower Cane
Originally uploaded by Ronit golan

Israel's Ronit Golan is an amazing artist. Her use of color and pattern combine to make her work identifiable and incredibly special. The wonderful relationship she has with color helps to guide her creative process. She says that "Color is everything. When working with color I feel it by breathing it unconsciously. When I combine some colors together I feel my breathing, if it smooth - then the colors are balanced, if it stops - then there is no balance."

I love this idea she had for wrapping one of her flower canes. By dividing the background color , she ended up with two beautiful canes that are related yet still very different due to the cool blue and the warmer green colors she used to pack the cane with.

Ronit's Flickr site is full of hundreds of beautiful and inspiring photos of her work. It's easy to get lost in all the magic so give yourself some time to savor it all.

She says that, for her, the "creation process is like a romantic comedy movie - it always has a happy ending." And, I'm sure you'll agree, a beautiful one, as well!

Stuff to do!

I'll try to get back here by Friday, or Monday at the latest. I've got lots of things I need to clear off my work table and I've been putting it off for way too long. In the meantime, here are a few links to check out.

If you want to create a masterpiece like this one, check out Mr. Picasso Head. Silly, but fun!

This poptart from Mossy Owls looks good enough to eat! Michael is doing some lovely work and I really enjoy her blog posts as well. You can find her work for sale on Etsy.

Molly McMahan from Molymer Clay (what a fantastic name!) has turned me on to On My Desk. I have no idea why I'm interested in what's on the desk of total strangers, whether they're creative or not, but I've been enjoying it nonetheless.

And then there's Monkee Maker. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I loved monkeys a lot. The funny lady behind Monkee Maker knits adorable monkeys and takes them on hysterical little mini adventures which she photographs along the way. She's got a great sense of humor! Thanks to Marla Frankenberg for another wonderful monkey link to add to my collection.

How to waste an afternoon and learn more about yourself than you ever wanted to know!

I've discovered the mecca of blogthings. There are literally hundreds of quizzes here. Some totally bizarre, some interesting, and some hysterically funny. Rather than drag this out over weeks or months, I thought I would share it all at once so you'd have a better idea of exactly how I wasted yesterday afternoon. And hopefully, this will encourage you to waste a bit of your valuable time, as well. I do enjoy being an enabler. The first one I tried was "what color crayon are you?".

You Are a Purple Crayon

Your world is colored in dreamy, divine, and classy colors. You hold yourself to a sky high standard, and you are always graceful. People envy, idolize, and copy you without realizing it. You are an icon for those who know you. And while it is hard to be a perfectionist, rest assured it's paying off! Your color wheel opposite is yellow. While yellow people may be wise, they lack the manners and class needed to impress you.

If this is true, then I must actually be Angelina Jolie. If only someone would have told me this before now. And honestly, I've always known there was something strange about yellow crayons. They just seem to have very little substance.

Not being able to resist the color quizzes, I went for "what color do you need?" next.

You Need Some Green in Your Life
Green will make you feel alive, renewed, and balanced. And with a little green, you will project an aura of peacefulness and harmony. If you want stability, you've got to get a little green in your life! For extra punch: Combine green with blue or purple. The downside of green: It can promote jealousy in yourself or others. The consequences of more green in your life: You will be drawn to a new life path. You will feel free to pursue new ideas and interests, no matter how strange. You will be released from the demands and concerns of others.

I'm sure they must be talking about money here. I can't think of anything else that's green and can do all these things for me.

This one was probably my favorite. It's called "inside the room of your soul" and it asks you about things you see when you walk in a room. I really liked the questions although my results were a little freaky.

You are quite expressive and thoughtful. You see the world in a way that others are blind to. You are a grounded person, but you also leave room for imagination and dreams. You feet may be on the ground, but your head is in the clouds. You see yourself with pretty objective eyes. How you view yourself is almost exactly how other people view you. Your near future is all about change, but in very small steps. The end of the journey looks far, but it's much closer than you realize. For you, love is all about caring and comfort. You couldn't fall in love with someone you didn't trust.

I really prefer that other people see me in a more generous light than I see myself so it's a little scary to realize I'm not fooling anyone. And what about the end of the journey being closer than I realize? Yikes!

I initially skipped over this one but curiosity got the best of me so I had to try "who is your celebrity boob twin?" Thankfully, there was only one question to answer.

Angelina Jolie

No big surprise there!

And then, because I'm still trying to decide, I took "what should you be when you grow up?"

You Should Be an Artist
You are incredibly creative, spontaneous, and unique. No one can guess what you're going to do next, but it's usually something amazing. You can't deal with routine, rules, or structure. You're easily bored. As long as you are able to innovate and break the rules, you are extremely successful. You do best when you can work by yourself and can express your personality in your work. You would also be a good journalist or actor.

So maybe they know what they're talking about. I am definitely unique, along with everyone else in the world. I do work best alone and here's that Angelina/actor connection happening again.

I only took this next one because my children have accused me of it many times. I think there were a few trick questions in "are you anal retentive?"

You Are Totally Anal Retentive
Yup, you're so uptight - people definitely have called you "anal." You're the type of person who's so OCD you organize your M&Ms before eating them. You have so many rules and rituals, it's hard for you to let loose and enjoy life. So go ahead and mix up your alphabetized CD collection. Live a little!

For the record, I do not organize my M&Ms before eating them and my CD collection is arranged by musical style, NOT alphabetically.

I thought this one, "are you rock, paper, or scissors?" sounded like a lot of fun but the results made me think I should probably take "are you a sociopath?" next.

You Are Scissors
Sharp and brilliant, you can solve almost any problem with that big brain of yours. People fear your cutting comments - and your wit is famous for being both funny and cruel. Deep down, you tend to be in the middle of an emotional storm. Your own complexity disturbs you. You are too smart for your own good. Slow down a little or you're likely to hurt yourself. You can cut a paper person down to pieces. The only person who can ruin you is a rock person. When you fight, you find your enemy's weak point and exploit it. If someone makes you mad, you'll do everything you can to destroy their life.

After reading this, you can see why I checked on the sociopath thing. Good news!

You Are 4% Sociopath
You're empathetic, loyal, and introspective. In other words, there's no way you're a sociopath... but you can spot one pretty easily!

So, please don't be nervous about asking me to come and teach a workshop for your guild. I'm actually harmless and I'll even be more than happy to identify any of your guild members who are sociopaths at no additional charge.

And finally, after spending so much time on foolishness and nonsense, I just had to know, "am I a weirdo?"

You Are 12% Weirdo
Your thinking is so in line with the mainstream, it's pretty freaky. Have you ever considered running for political office? You're so normal, people can't help but feel comfortable with you!

Hey, I can live with 12%!

Runs With Clay Blade!

According to my good friend Webster, a rule is an "authoritative direction or statement which regulates the method of doing something." It may just be the mention of authority and the thrill of challenging it that tempts so many of us to break the rules at every opportunity. However, using that old excuse, "rules are made to be broken" doesn't really give any of us a free pass, certainly not in society and to a lesser extent, in our art. And the last time I checked, pleading ignorance doesn't get you too far either.

So how is it that some of the most successful and admired artists are the ones who consistently break the rules? I think it's because they understand the rules better than the rest of us. Breaking the rules for the sake of being labeled a rebel probably won't do much to improve your art. But, breaking or bending the rules in order to enhance your artwork is totally acceptable.

Polymer clay, as a medium, doesn't come with a huge set of rules to follow beyond the obvious safety and baking concerns, which, btw, are on the back of EVERY package of clay. (I only stress that because I find it amazing that so many people think it's fine to bake at a lower temperature for a longer period of time, or to cure clay in a sunny window, or boil and/or microwave it.) However, if you want your artwork to be taken seriously and you want to succeed in doing what you love, there are a lot of rules to learn when it comes to art and design aesthetics. Most of us don't instinctively know these things. We have to learn them. And only through lots and lots of practice and study do we begin to understand what happens when we break these design rules and how to use those results to our advantage. We must understand the reasons behind these rules before we throw them out the window. Personally, I would much rather see a simple piece of artwork done well and by the rules than an elaborate piece with no regard given to design concepts or finishing techniques. Read everything you can find about art and design, take classes when possible, study work from artists you admire, practice until these things become second-nature. Begin where you are! Don't be in a hurry to break the rules. Before you run with your clay blade, you need to walk.

Personification Personified

Remember having to memorize all of those figures of speech in your English classes? The easiest one to remember was personification, giving human qualities to things that are not human. I'm not sure why, but, as a child, I always felt as if trees had human qualities. They just looked and seemed so "alive" to me and they still do. I've spent my whole life surrounded by trees and mountains and I can't imagine not seeing trees when I look out a window. Next to rocks, they're my favorite thing in nature.

Maybe that's why I was so deeply moved when I saw the work of Rachael Direnna of Pittsburgh. Rachael is a self-taught sculptor who works primarily in paper mache (I know there's an accent mark missing but I have no clue how to get it to float over that "e"), which she makes herself from shredded "junk" paper. She credits the thought of making "something from nothing" and being able to recycle paper as reasons why she chose to create with paper clay.

Her subject matter ranges from animals to people to what she calls "nature spirits" or "tree goddesses". I see immense sadness, strength, elegance and grace when I look at her work. Maybe the sadness it invokes in me comes from the bare branches or maybe it's something more than that.

Part of the beauty of art is that it's such a personal thing for everyone. I see wonderful and well-made things just about every day but I'm rarely moved the way I am when I look at Rachael's sculptures. To see lots more of her amazing work, check out her Flickr site. She also has a shop on Etsy where she sells note cards and prints of her work, in addition to the sculptures. Be kind to your trees this weekend!

Croc-Eating Schnauzers and A Plea for Your Help

Let's talk about choices. The kind of choices that we often take for granted. Just a few short months ago, I was starting each day with a choice. It wasn't a difficult decision, really more like freedom of choice combined with a bit of guilty pleasure. I was choosing what color of Crocs I would wear throughout my day. Just to clarify, I'm fully aware that Crocs are unfashionable but, at this point in my life, my feet scream much louder than my inner fashionista and I've made a conscious decision to listen to them. It was a bit of an indulgence to purchase three pairs but, I really love these Mary Jane Crocs and they're just about all I wear. Then, the schnauzers moved in.These are the culprits: Jackson and Baxter. For the first couple of months, they were too small to go up and down the stairs on their own so life continued on in a fairly normal way. Then, they grew. I would realize they were no longer nipping at my heels and after a somewhat frantic search, I would find them upstairs in one of the bedrooms busily sorting through the trash can they had knocked over. So, I made a rule that the bedroom doors must be kept shut at all times during the day. As with all rules, certain people (you know who you are!) love to break them. I walked into the TV room last month to find one of my olive green Crocs sitting on the table and my husband wearing a guilty look. I was pretty sure that the guilty look wasn't because he had chewed through the strap of the shoe and, after a short interrogation, he admitted to having left the bedroom door open. Of course, I didn't take it well. The olive green Crocs were my favorite! But, I still had two pairs left and I was sure I would survive. Then yesterday, my survival was threatened once again.
Caught in the act! Notice the guilty expressions and their unsuccessful attempts to appear well-behaved even in this obviously staged photo. My second-favorite khaki Crocs chewed beyond repair! The choice that I enjoyed making each morning was snatched away in a matter of moments. My life is now reduced to one pair of size 8, burgundy Mary Janes. Or, as I'm beginning to realize, divided into the pre-schnauzer and post-schnauzer eras. There is hope, however. Luckily, the schnauzers left me with both a left and a right shoe still intact.

Something is wrong with this photo, beyond the obvious color difference. If I could just find a way to add some continuity between these shoes, perhaps I could get away with wearing them to take out the trash or to the mailbox at the end of the driveway.
Nope, not even lime green rhinestones, which normally can overcome ANY fashion crisis, can make these shoes more presentable. So this is where you, an innocent bystander reading this blog, can be of great help to me.

Last night I was laying in bed and mourning the loss of the Crocs and I started to think about all the wayward shoes out there. You've seen them. One lone shoe on the side of the road and no mate in sight. How does that happen? Does one shoe come to life and jump out of a moving car when the window is rolled down and no one is looking? Does someone stick their foot out the window, lose a shoe, and decide to leave it where it falls because they have lots of others at home? In more than 40 years, I have never abandoned a shoe by the side of the road so I can't fathom how this happens. It's one of the great mysteries of life which may never be solved. In any case, should you happen to pass by an abandoned Croc as you're driving down the highway, pull over, stop your car, get out, and have a look. Just remember to use caution and your emergency flashers when pulling off to the shoulder. I'd hate to discover that you were injured by a passing motorist while trying to help me out. Or, perhaps you have a friend whose home has been invaded by schnauzers and one of her Mary Jane Crocs, in khaki or olive, size 8, was also eaten. Maybe we can arrange some sort of Croc swap or a support group for schnauzer owners. All I ask is that you keep your eyes open for a mate for my single Crocs. I would be forever grateful for your help. And don't worry about the lone burgundy survivors, they will be locked in a steel box on a shelf in the top of my closet when they're not on my feet, which will be pretty much all the time since they are now my ONLY choice.

Get Your Freak On

Today's a busy day but I wanted to at least share some cool and freaky Halloween dudes with you. Frankie is from Linda Weeks of It's Jest'er Clay. She's quite a talented lady who makes wonderful and whimsical sculptures and manages to make it all look so easy. She's a natural!

And check out the adorably freakish Skippy from Leslie Levings' Cabinet of Curiosities. She's doing some delightful work. You can find her "beastlies"on Etsy, as well.

Last, but certainly not least, is Brad the Bugboy from Loopy Boopy. She's a big fan of Halloween and it shows in her work. I really enjoyed browsing through her store.

Have a treat-filled and freakish Halloween!

Fish Bladders Can Be Beautiful!

I'd like to talk about shape today. Of course, when someone thrusts beautiful pendants like these, by Bettina Welker of Beadworx and Betsy Baker of Stonehouse Studio, into your line of vision, it's a little hard to concentrate on fish bladders. No, it's not a typo, I really did mean to type "fish bladders." Just trust me and try to focus. We'll come back to the pendants soon.

The shape that these talented ladies have used is one I've always referred to as a "marquis" or "football" and, it's one of my favorite shapes for jewelry. In order not to make a total idiot of myself, I decided to do a little googling about this shape before I sat down to type my post. Thank goodness I did because even after 4 long and grueling years of Latin, I never knew that the proper name for this shape is vesica piscis, which translates to "bladder of the fish". When two circles of the same radius intersect so that the the center of each circle lies on the circumference of the other, it forms what's called a fish bladder. If you think I'm making this up, click here! Throughout history, this shape has had lots of mystical and religious significance. However, I'm pretty sure that most of you don't want or need to hear any more about fish bladders so, on to the pendants.

What caught my eye and made me fall in love with these pieces was the fact that both Bettina and Betsy put a bit of a spin on the more traditional shape. Bettina used Louise Fischer Cozzi's (she's got her technique available on DVD if you can't wait to take her class) method of etching and coloring the clay and then added a contrasting color shard on top which mimics the curve of the "fish bladder" shape. I found it really modern and fresh and don't hate me for this, but it's mine (sorry, Judy), all mine! The next time you see me, I'll be wearing it and looking all fresh and modern in spite of myself. Betsy screened this cool image on her piece, set it in a silver bezel, and turned it sideways for a totally different, yet equally wonderful, look. It's so refreshing to see artists treat a traditional shape in such a modern way. Both of these talented ladies are selling their beautiful work on their websites, as well as on Etsy. You'll find Bettina here and Betsy here.

One final thought. In addition to all the Latin, I spent a few semesters with Shakespeare, as well, and there's a quote from Romeo and Juliet that keeps coming to mind: "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet." So call them what you will, but these "fish bladders" are some pretty sweet pendants!

Picture Perfect!

This focal bead from Bianca van den Berg of the Netherlands is just exquisite. And, I can't say enough about her photography skills which make me pea green with envy. I'm not a huge fan of photos that use a lot of cheesy props. I've seen some in books and magazines that caused me to have to really search for the artwork amidst all the clutter. But, this photo is total perfection! Her choice of the starfish was excellent and serves more as a background than a prop. The radiating arms pull your eyes right to this glorious bead which just jumps straight out at you and screams, "You know you want me so get out your credit card and head to Etsy!" What better way to start the week than with perfection?

Help, there's an octopus on my head!

Just joking! I'm sea creature-free but Natalie may be in trouble. She's one of the talented ladies from PCAGOE and she looks lovely even with an octopus on her head. I've seen lots of cool masks from this group lately. Could it be that they have a mask challenge going on? I love this tree branch mask from Michelle who seems to have a fondness for birds and trees. It's great that she's taken these related themes and used them throughout most of her work.
This beautiful mask from Julie looks very fresh and Spring-like. I love how the subtle antiquing brings out all the details she's added. And while we're on the subject of masks, Sarajane Helm is looking for images of polymer clay masks for an upcoming book. You can get all the details here.

I'm relieved to know . . .

. . . that I'm in my right mind! At least I am 85% of the time. The remaining 15% I'm probably in a galaxy, far, far away which may explain some of my blog posts. And how did I happen to come upon this valuable information? I took a little quiz to find out. I've always been intrigued by the concept of right brain/left brain dominance and how this influences our creative lives. I was under the misguided impression (I'll figure out who to blame later!) that because I was left-handed, the right side of my brain had to be dominant. Apparently, that's a misconception. Not all right-brained people are left-handed and not all artists are right-brained. However, the percentage of artists who are left-handed is more than what would be suggested by the percentage of left-handed people who are out there walking around. Some very interesting facts about how our brains process information!

Here's a new pendant I made during my guild meeting last week. It was blessed with a slice from one of Marla Frankenberg's dotty canes that I blogged about a few weeks ago. I've decided I'm tired of whining and bitching about my crappy photos (my shiny pieces always have a hideous glare and altered color) so I'm adding one of those portable fold-up photo tents to the top of my Christmas list. And yes, I know I can make one from a plastic container, a shower curtain, and the toenail trimmings from a virgin but my clumsy left-handed self would be tripping over it when my messy right-brained self leaves it spread out in the middle of my studio floor.

oooo oooo Witchy Woman

Can someone please explain to me how this beautiful Halloween fairy is able to get away with wearing horizontal stripes and still look long and lean? I guess I should check with Joanna Waite of Enchanted Whimsies, who is the creator of this fabulous doll and lots of other cool creatures. How can you help but fall in love with Swifty the snail? What a face! I'm the lucky owner of one of her mushroom sculptures and I can tell you from firsthand experience, her work is simply wonderful. Her Witchy Halloween Fairy is still available on ebay if you hurry!

An ACRE of opportunity

I couldn't be more impressed with all the exciting things that the NPCG has been putting together during the past few months. I recently talked to Judy Dunn about an incredible opportunity that three members of the NPCG will soon get to take advantage of, the ACRE show. This is a wholesale show held in Las Vegas which just made its very successful debut last year. All of the information you need about the application process and the show can be found on the NPCG site. If you think you're ready to enter the world of wholesale, this is an opportunity you shouldn't miss. You only have until the end of October to apply.

Judy is a wealth of information on wholesale shows and on selling your work. If you're not sure what wholesaling entails, I highly recommend you do a little exploring on her blog. And while you're there, be sure and check out her fabulous artwork, as well. This incredible pear is my absolute favorite thing on her site. The colors and the composition are just calling my name. Beautiful!

The Synergy conference, which is coming up in February 2008, is going to be an amazing event. And, if you plan on registering, there's just a few days left to take advantage of the special deal they're offering until the end of October. I'll be there!

Dahlia is eating her peas . . .

. . . and the world is a much better place because of it! I'm in awe of the amazing sculptures from Jodi and Richard Creager. They address every detail in every doll they create. Somehow, I don't think this piece would have the same impact if Dahlia were eating french fries instead of peas. And, her high chair is wonderful, as is her dog, Scruff.

Jodi and Richard have been working together in their Arizona studio for almost 30 years. They combine their artistic visions to create just 20-25 art dolls every year. Of their process, Richard says, "As the character develops we become emotionally involved in the life and story we have created for each piece. Knowing the character inside and out helps to breathe life into the Doll."

I'm mesmerized by every piece I've seen but I'm particularly fond of the more edgy and unusual ones like "Githa RenRaven and her newfangled Gob-o-Lux vacuum". I'd run the sweeper every day if I had one like that. And "Frank's little sister" Freida is hysterical. Her shoes, her skirt, the dog's leash, and the dog - it's all just about as perfect as it could be.

Whatever you do, you need to set aside some time to go to their website and marvel at the incredible characters they've created. Their talent and their vision are simply extraordinary.

What I had for dinner last night . . .

Grilled cheese and tomato soup, a tasty, yet uninspiring meal. Don't worry, I haven't run out of things to write about just yet.

I took a little road trip this weekend and told my traveling partner that one of my favorite things to do is to make up connections between unrelated things. Sometimes I attempt to do that with art, sometimes just in my head, and sometimes I like to use words or some silly story to connect things. I decided to give myself a little challenge today. My self-imposed rule was no more than an hour online to find an interesting polymer clay image that I could immediately relate to something that I did this weekend and turn it into a blog entry.

Within a matter of minutes I came across this incredibly realistic grilled cheese sandwich from Jeanine Haddad of Tiny Cravings, which, by the way, looks much better and even more realistic than the one I ate last night. I immediately googled "polymer clay tomato soup" and found these earrings by Wanda Eash of Two Crafty Mules. Even the brand is the same. And Wanda, if you're reading this, Campbell's has some limited edition pink ribbon soup cans out right now which would make fantastic transfers for earrings.

So, what's the point of all this? Well, it started as just one of the many strange ideas in my head, but then the message became clear to me. It's about finding inspiration to make cool art even in things normally thought of as uninspiring, like a grilled cheese sandwich or a can of tomato soup. Inspiration may come from the ordinary but what you take away from it and the art you create with it can be special and wonderful!

Rock On!

I'm humming Louis Armstrong right now. The amazing Renato has done it again! Look closely at this photo. Can you see a woman's face to the right on the rock at the top? And her reddish-brown hair? Check out that Skinner blend sky! I have to go to Italy and learn rock balancing or my life will not be complete. What a wonderful world . . .

Well, I've never been to Spain . . .

but I kinda like the music. Say the ladies are insane there, and they sure know how to use it . . .

Nothing like a little Three Dog Night to start the day! The insanely talented Cynthia Gordillo is from Spain and she sure knows how to use polymer clay. I believe she's taken a workshop recently with Dan Cormier, aka Captain Amazing, and I love to see how she's applying his methods to her own work. The softer and more feminine colors give her pieces a whole different look. Cynthia also has a shop on Etsy, although the last time I checked, she had nothing listed.

RE: your DVD

Dear Judy,

After watching your new DVD from Page Sage, Millefiori Story, I have just one word to say - FABULOUS! Knowing me the way you do, you won't be surprised if I continue to blabber on though. Anyone working with polymer clay who's been intimidated by making canes is going to love this. You've made it so easy for them and even given them step-by-step projects so they can't say, "But what do I do with these canes after I've made them?" You might as well have just gone to their house and given them private instruction!

The 26 different canes are wonderful and I love the variety. You've even managed to include mica shift and a "dreaded" face cane. The gallery, of course, is incredibly lovely and I loved the bloopers, especially the fact that you actually belched on camera. Have you no shame?

As usual, Page Sage's sound quality, lighting, and camera angles, are of the highest caliber. A lot of hard work went into these 141 minutes and it certainly shows. I'm so excited for you and I know it's going to be a big success. I'll be recommending it to all my students.

Okay, enough gushing! Please deliver the lime green clock with the orange hands that I saw in the DVD to my house at your earliest convenience. It would look smashing in my studio!

See you soon,

Kim

Really, that's all I want . . .

It's been a bit of a dramatic year in the Cavender household.

After spending a long evening in the ER with my baby (in reality he's 6'1" and 14 years old) we're off to have a cast put on the hand he broke during his soccer game yesterday.

It may be a couple of days before I have time to write another entry, which will be a totally unbiased review of my good friend Judy Belcher's new DVD, Millefiori Story.

In the meantime, I will be visualizing myself in a tropical setting drinking an extra large frozen pina colada with a shot of frangelica floating gently on the top and a lovely paper umbrella

nestled beside my straw.

Care to join me?

Dye Jobs

Last week's post about china markers and Pebeo markers and paints stayed on my mind this weekend. There are countless ways to alter the color of clay and I thought it would be interesting to share a few others.

The book, Clay Techniques to Dye For, which I worked on with Judy Belcher, Leslie Blackord, Donna Kato, and Debbie Tlach is full of projects using inks, paints, and powders from Ranger.

This bracelet project from the book is a fun example of how you can turn black and white canes into ones with an unlimited color palette. Judy applied Ranger's archival re-inkers onto one side of the unbaked clay discs and left the original black and white colors on the other side to make this great reversible bracelet. According to Judy, this technique works best using pure colors of black and white. The grey tones that result from a black and white Skinner blend tend to muddy the colors of the inks.

I recently had the opportunity to meet the immensely talented Jeanne Rhea who's been doing some amazing work with inks. I could write a whole blog on this incredible lady but since she already has one of her own, I guess I'll settle for an occasional post. She has tons of information about her process so be sure to check her archives.

And finally, Ponsawan Sila has been "painting on clay" recently and has made some lovely cabs. You can check out some other examples of new work on her site.