Art Bead Scene April Challenge Frida

Every month Art Bead Scene posts a painting as inspiration and asks readers to join in, and use at least ONE art bead and create a piece inspired by the art.

I used to enter this all the time, but as the years go by, and my business is more business....I have less time for play.  However, when I saw this painting, I knew I had to play along.

I just watched the movie Frida the other week, and I was amazed at what a strong and creative woman she was.  I love the rich symbolism she put into her pieces, and she painted her life, and her emotions in such a beautiful, yet real and raw way.  She much adversity in her life, and all of it comes through in her work.

Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird, 1940

You can read about Aprils challenge here

http://artbeadscene.blogspot.com/2015/04/april-monthly-challenge.html

I really wanted to capture the nature of this painting.  Her white dress, the thorn necklace, the brilliant leaves of life, behind her.  So I started sketching, and then got out the polymer clay.

This is the piece I made.

I chose to do the thorns in white, to represent her white dress.  I wasn't going to carve them, but I felt that since it is MY representation, that it needed to have my signature on it, so carved them I did!  I also hung a polymer hummingbird skull from the thorns.

I used some balled up wire beads and annealed steel wire work to further give the feel of tangled thorn branches and add contrast to the white.

I felt that this painting, really shows the washed out (white) hurting (thorns) present, with the life filled leaves and color behind her, in the past.  So I definitely wanted to use color for the back.  What better way to do that then to use Sari silk and batik fabric.  I added some more embellishments to make it truly my own style as well.  I am over the moon happy with how it turned out. 

Here they are side by side.

Here it is on me

I think doing challenges like this are plain old good for the soul.  I like to push my limits and think outside the box to keep things fresh. If you haven't participated in one, do it.  It is so fun and you won't regret it.  There are no "winners" or "losers" (there are prizes but they are picked at random)....it is simply a place to show off your design.  There is no wrong or right!

Thanks for checking it out!

If you are interested, I recently did a tutorial over at Love my Art Jewelry, on how I do my fabric in necklaces.  You can read that here if you want to try it out too.

http://www.lovemyartjewelry.blogspot.com/2015/04/tutorial-silk-and-fabric-necklace.html

batik fabric sold by Starry Road Studio

New Ancient Things

Just a quick post about a couple of new necklaces I made.  I need to make some samples of jewlery with my new beads so I can wear and display them at the Berks Bead Bazaar.

 

So I couldn't wait another minute to make some jewelry with these trilobite pendants.  I will only have a few at the show, and each one is totally unique. 

 

First I made this one for a display piece.....it will be for sale.  I LOVED how deep and orange the bronze piece got!!!

 

It features a trilobite, a spiral connector and a rolled bronze center drilled stick bead- all will be for sale at Berks.  It also has stick pearls, an antique brass bell, a genuine ammonite fossil, a connector by Starry Road Studio in a great rusty colo, amber and turquoise.

 

 

So, I usually make myself something to wear at the show, and I loved how this first piece turned out so.  So I made one for myself- but a bit chunkier, since that is how I roll.

 

I will probably never take it off.  It has a large trilobite, rolled beads, turquoise donuts, labradorite chunk, ammonite fossil, brass bell, more tuquoise, rutilated quartz, a raku bead, agate, and recycled sari silk mixed with a great strand from Marsha Neal Studio.

 

 

See, it's totally my style!  I love how ancient everything is on them, even though they are new, they feel like they have thousands of years built into them.

 

Now I am off to finish an article and sand and seal some more beads.

 

Happy Friday Everyone!!!