Makers Part 6

                           

How do you adapt your creativity to life in another place? My next maker is an American now living with her Danish husband in Denmark. As a result, Lann Kolpin's  metal work is transforming into an exciting range of other creative possibilities. Her etsy shop Lann gives us a taste of this.

Can you tell me a little about your background? 
Hello, I’m Lann and I live in Aarhus, Denmark with my Danish husband. I grew up in Montana and that is where most of my family lives. I went to The Appalachian Center for Craft in Tennessee where I obtained a BFA in Metals. I have a background with working in many mediums from painting, drawing, glass, blacksmithing, metalsmithing to ceramic. I have a great difficulty sticking with only one. I also worked as a typesetter for a time and am currently teaching myself various things with digital design. Did I mention I also worked as a cake decorator? 

                                         
What do you make?
Most of my work on Etsy is bright simple jewelry using polymer clay. I also paint, draw and work with ceramic.

What attracted you to this particular medium? How did you get started?
When I first moved to Denmark, I could not bring my tools with me as many of them were large. I also had to sell a lot of my belongings to be able to come over here. I was in a new country with no studio or economy to start one so I started working with less expensive mediums. It started with painting and drawing as I had experience with them. As time went on, I worked my way over to using polymer clay. I first bought some FIMO to make small figures from the game “Star Craft” but the jewelry designer in me took over.

How long have you been making?
Since I can remember. I was raised on a cattle ranch in rural Montana with depression era grandparents so self-reliance was an essential part of life. My mother was also an artist and I remember her teaching me how to make things when I was really young.

How does your practice fit in with your everyday life? Do you have your own studio space and when do you work and where?
I create things on a daily basis although not always for my shop. My husband and I live in a two bedroom apartment and I use most of the computer room (besides my husband’s computer table) as my studio. I spend most of my time working at my computer desk as I like to switch back and forth between digital and physical mediums.

What are the best and worst aspects about working with this medium? 
With polymer clay, I really like the color and texture but I wish it was taken more seriously. 

Who or what inspires you?
Nature has always inspired me but right now colour has been a large influence. It’s not something I've focused on so intensely until recently. My past works have been very limited and even void of colour but now it has now exploded in my life. I quite like it.


Do you get creative blocks? If so, how do you deal with it?  
No, I have too many ideas and too little time and resources. 

What other mediums would you love to explore?
I wish I was better with sewing. I know the basics but I would like to be proficient enough to make some of my ideas a reality.

What do you hope to do next with your practice?
Right now I plan on adding some new work with glass and metal. I got a hold of some new materials but I don’t want to introduce them to my shop until I have everything polished out. My long term plan is to go to Design school.

 

Thank you Lann! Are you a maker or an artist? I would love to feature you! Please contact me through etsy.

Makers Part 5

                                           

Today's maker is an Australian post grad architect student at UNSW in Sydney. In her spare time, Natalie Rosin translates her eye for form into ceramic jewellery and sells through her etsy shop called TaupeKlein.

Can you tell me a little about your background? 

I live in Sydney, Australia. Currently I am studying a Masters of Architecture. During my undergraduate studies I enrolled in a ceramics course at the College of Fine Arts followed by other casual classes at local community ceramics studios. 

What do you make?

I began creating wheel thrown and slab ceramic homewares such as mugs and bowls but soon branched into ceramic jewellery design.

What attracted you to this particular medium? How did you get started?

I am passionate about architecture but was looking for something more tangible in terms of design during my studies; sometimes one can spend months on an architectural scheme and have only digital drawings and renders to show for it. I enjoy using my hands and appreciate the experimental aspect of clay and ceramics. The medium has really tested my patience and allowed me to let go and remove the sense of control and precision you would expect from other art mediums. 

                                         

How long have you been making?

I have been making ceramic pieces for just over a year and plan to develop my practice throughout my life. 

    

How does your practice fit in with your everyday life? Do you have your own studio space and when do you work and where?

My current studio space is the studio at UNSW, Kensington. It is a fantastic shared space open to both the public and students. My schedule can vary; sometimes I will be in there three full days a week and other times just a couple hours a week. 

What are the best and worst aspects about working with this medium? 

The best aspect about working with clay are its forgiving qualities. Since there are so many stages during the creating process, there are numerous opportunities to alter a form or smooth a surface. However, these multiple stages can also be frustrating and patience is very key when working with clay. Since the making process can in some cases involve waiting for weeks for one piece, at times you want to rush ahead and skip all the stages to arrive at the final product. I have learnt to overcome this by working consistently on separate projects to allow for a more constant flow of production and avoid those tedious waiting stretches. 


Who or what inspires you?
I am definitely inspired by my background in architecture. Many of my pieces follow this geometric, defined form. I am also focused on texture and tactility found both in nature and man made materials. My wood texture pieces are an example of this whereby I created a lino cut of a magnified wood texture and then pressed a clay slab into this carving, much like the steps involved in certain print making techniques. The result is a rich surface both visual and tactile. 

Do you get creative blocks? If so, how do you deal with it?

Sure, I get creative blocks. I end up just making something completely unplanned, spontaneous and intuitive. The result in either surprising, mundane, beautiful or some combination. It is definitely not the end of the world, especially having noticed that sometimes the pieces I don't particularly appreciate others seem to prefer.

What other mediums would you love to explore? 

I would love to branch off into mosaics and integrate that knowledge into my architectural practice. I really appreciate the buildings of Gaudi, a Spanish architect who explored these processes and created the most beautiful spaces I have visited to date.

What do you hope to do next with your practice? 

Currently I have an Etsy store and I wholesale to a local pop-up shop named Merge Contemporary Art Space. Recently Etsy Australia included me in their Melbourne Fashion Week exhibition at Federation Square. I hope to increase the wholesale portion of my sales, continue to exhibit my pieces and constantly design and create new necklaces and possibly other forms of jewellery in the future. Online Store, Merge Contemporary Art Space

Thank you Natalie! Are you a maker or an artist? - I would love to feature you - particularly if you make something that is unusual - its painless and gives your work exposure - it is so inspirational to hear about other creatives, as everyone's story is interesting. Contact me today.

Makers Part 4

My next maker in this series is visual artist Kylie Fogarty, who lives in Canberra, Australia.  Kylie is a country girl at heart and draws inspiration from her environment. As well as selling her work directly on etsy and her web site Kylie also exhibits regularly.

Can you tell me a little about your background? 
My name is Kylie Fogarty, I am a full time, visual artist enjoying my art practice in Canberra, A.C.T.
Art has always been a part of my life, drawing from the time I could hold a pencil, which has been the basis for my art practice in all avenues. I enjoy participating in as many art workshops as I am able to attend as this really works within my time frames. I have had the pleasure of attending many workshops such as Portraiture and Life Drawing workshops with Archibald Finalist Sue Taylor. I grew up in Regional Australia, being inspired by my surrounding landscape and all within it, which remains my inspiration today.

                                 
What do you make?
My art practice includes a large spectrum of 2D Visual Artworks, ranging from line drawings in pen, intricate drawings in graphite, to landscape, botanical and portraiture paintings along with abstract mixed media works. 
I enjoy being versatile with my work, often clients have a particular interest in one genre and its nice being able to offer a range for clients to choose from. I love the range of mediums available to artists today and enjoy spending time in my practice using the various mediums in their traditional methods as well as testing their boundaries. 
Often when experimenting in the combination of mediums you find the most unexpected results, which then takes my artworks to a new horizon, I love it. Recently I have started to offer Reproduction prints and Archival Giclee Prints of my works as well as cards for all occasions. The past year has brought a new fascination with miniatures, specifically ACEOS – (Artist Cards, Editions and Originals ) which are tiny works that must be 2.5 x 3.5”. 

What attracted you to this particular medium? How did you get started?
My fascination for Miniatures is that I often hear from clients that they do not have a huge space to fill or a large budget to allow them the ability to purchase large scale art. These Miniatures are a great way to start investing in Original Artworks, they have a great following and are highly collectible. 

Although I do create larger scale works as well, it’s the miniatures that I find myself grabbing when I have a spare half hour to continue on the artwork that has already been started. One could say that I have trouble focusing on one particular art medium or materials, however, I like to be able to use various types for differing genres.

I really enjoy the process and relationship of the medium to the artwork that is being created, particularly in my more abstract paintings, having the time to allow the medium to evolve is a large part of my artistic process. I also create a lot of line art and archival pen drawings which I enjoy immensely as it is an easy art form to set up, you only need to take out a pen and an art pad, you can find me drawing in at any given moment when I have five minutes spare.

How long have you been making?
I have been creating my entire life; however, I have been more prolific since moving to Canberra in 2008.

How does your practice fit in with your everyday life? Do you have your own studio space and when do you work and where?
My practice fits around my very hectic family life, which is a juggle at times but I wouldn’t have it any other way. On days where the inspiration takes over I paint well into the night in my small but friendly studio here in Canberra.
My work has been exhibited in Art Galleries throughout Australia, is held in the shop section of the Strathnairn Arts Gallery and I have an online shop (www.KylieFogartyFineArt.etsy.com) alongside my website (www.kyliefogarty.com) to enable clients to purchase online without needing to be in Canberra. 

What are the best and worst aspects about working with this medium? 

The best aspect of working in so many mediums is the variety of choice, the worst aspect is that this choice can be problematic when choosing which medium to use, although that isn’t always the case.

Who or what inspires you?
I get inspired from all aspects of everyday life, be it a colour in an object, something in the landscape or even a memory or experience, moment or inspirational person. Capturing a moment in time is a delight for me, which is an aspect of portraiture I really enjoy, often these candid moments are the ones that grab my artistic attention the most.

Do you get creative blocks? If so, how do you deal with it?
I do get creative blocks, and it’s at these times that I return to drawing the most, as it is the basis for all of my artworks and I love to allow the lines to flow and see what evolves from them.  In these times I get very frustrated so it’s my drawing that relaxes me and this generally gives my mind the space to contemplate what subject matter I would like to focus on next.

                                                  

What other mediums would you love to explore? 
I have been attending some workshops with local Printmaker Jo Hollier (www.johollier.com) learning how to do etching and intaglio prints. This has been so interesting and I am hoping to continue with more workshops in the near future. I really enjoyed copperplate etching and have recently purchased some Gelliplates to experiment with in my studio – it’s a real bonus to not to have to have a personal press to be able to use these plates.


                                         


What do you hope to do next with your practice?
I am currently preparing and creating for my upcoming joint exhibition with Photographer, Cindy Wilkins from Worldscape Imagery in July, Canberra at the Strathnairn Homestead Gallery, called “Two Views” – which will be an interpretation of Australian Landscape, Flora and Fauna.

Thank you Kylie! Are you a maker or an artist? - I would love to feature you - particularly if you make something that is unusual - its painless and gives your work exposure - it is so inspirational to hear about other creatives, as everyone's story is interesting. Contact me today!