Moora Fine Arts Winter School - Silver Metal Clay Weekend Workshop

The students arrived eagerly to start their workshop before nine a.m. I was ready and like them raring to go. None of the students had used metal clay before but one of them, Patsy was a silversmith, having worked with sterling silver. We had a discussion about metal clay and I showed them the various products of Precious Metal Clay (PMC3) and many samples of jewellery that I had brought to show them.
It was great to have a couple of guys in the class.
   
The students explored textures and shapes and came up with some good designs.
  

Dean’s Pendant – before firing          …………….after firing

  

                 Patsy’s Hinge House and Brooch
  
                        Yvonne’s Brooch and Pendant
  
                      Tanya’s pendant and bracelet
  
                Richard’s Flat Band ring and filigree pendant before firing
  
                                    Wendy’s Brooch and Pendant (before firing)
You can see that the students did really well and made some good pieces. I enjoyed my couple of days in Moora. Graham’s fantastic soups at lunchtime were a hit amongst us all.

Moora Fine Arts Winter School 2011

When ever I go away to teach is always a bit stressful in that you have to take EVERYTHING, all the necessary tools and equipment needed for a weekend workshop. I worry that I’ll forget that essential something. Also, taking the kiln is always an effort. For a start it weighs 37kilos. It has to lifted off the bench in my studio, placed onto my sack trolley, wheeled to the boot of the car and lifted into it. At the venue I have to get it out of the car and into the classroom, do they have a trolley or shall I take mine? I decided to leave taking the sack trolley as I was pretty sure that Moora had on and it takes up so much room in the car.
I was waiting on a delivery of the silver metal clay to be sure I had enough for the weekend and the courier came an hour before I was due to leave home. Good job! Enough supplies.  Something else not to worry about.
I had nice drive to Moora. This time of the year everything is so green, reminds me of the green grass of where I lived in Cornwall, UK. The wattle trees are just coming into bloom. As I was driving I spotted a beaut rainbow, I just had to pullover and take a photo.

I arrived at the gallery, was met and had help to unload. The Moora Fine Arts Gallery has accommodation for artists in residence at the rear of the gallery. Its not flash but adequate for short stay. There’s a bathroom, kitchen and a couple of bedrooms. Luckily there’s a cafe next door for food. While I waited for my chicken burger to be cook I found a DVD to hire. I brought my laptop computer with me, so I was able to watch Johnny Depp and Angela Jolie in “The Tourist”.

Two Rocks Sea Rescue – training day

 
             Coming into Mindarie Keys Marina                           Cray pots
  
We went to investigate an empty dingy that was off a reef near the Alkimos wreck. The boat was anchored, there were no diving flags flying and no people around. Then beyond the reef we spotted a couple of guys surfing. So all good.
  
Guardian One on the floating pen. Air is pumped into the floats to bring her out of the water. For launching, snorkels are lowered into the water that fill the pontoons and the boat is lowered into the water.
As we came back from Mindarie the wind was quiet strong and a storm front came over the coast later in the afternoon. These are photos taken from my balcony at sunset as the storm came in.
  

Silver Metal Clay Workshop

These are some pics from this Tuesday’s class. 
                                                                  Leaf – before firing
     Leaf – after firing

Visitor from Bali

I had a lady who lives in Bali, come to learn about Metal and Polymer Clays. She designs jewellery for an Indonesian fashion designer. She took to the mediums very well could see the possibilities of using the clays with her designs.
  
  
  

Silver Imprint Jewellery Workshop

Just finished a two day workshop teaching how to transfer fingerprints, a handprint, footprint or child's drawing and onto a piece of Pure Silver Jewellery. We make a photo polymer plate to stamp into the clay, and after the firing process the pieces were oxidised for an antique look.
  
Samara working in the studio           Samara using the computer   
  
The photopolymer plate                 A pendant drying before firing
   
Oxidising the pendants
   
The pendants

Electroforming

Here are few more samples of electroforming that I have experimenting with in the studio.
  Hakea Nuts
This is a photo of a Hakea nut split in half and electroformed. I added two copper wire eyelets that were incorporated in the electroforming.
     

Dolphins in the marina

                   

There were a couple of dolphins, fishing in the marina this morning. It was good to be able to get so close to them.

  

Electro Forming Workshop

Today I had a private workshop with one student who was eager to try electro forming. She brought along some semi precious stones, a rose quartz crystal and some  silver pendants.
We first organised some copper texture to add to her doughnut and triangle pendants.
    
Then we worked on a fine silver pendant. We added a fractured rose quartz crystal that fitted a cut out portion of the silver pendant. Although electroforming over a pure silver pendant was a bit strange but, as the copper layer over the silver would be very thin we decided that we could remove the copper layer in some areas.


This is the result. The copper layer over the silver was removed with a dremel. The silver and copper were oxidised with Liver of Sulphur. The high spots of the copper were burnished. I think it looks neat.
  
  
This was a pretty ordinary turquoise foil glass bead. it was transformed by adding the copper electroforming and adding the other portion of the fractured crystal.