Page 19 - the NOISE May 2014

The “Calla” series from Judith Skinner is among the notable works of craft & art at the Gallery In Williams.
am curious in life, so in art.” Ms. Lopez del Prado also sells her jewelry at the Artists’ Gallery in Flagstaff and on Etsy.com.
Potter Leona Zegar refers to the old Bud- dhist adage, “Haul Water, Chop Wood,” to sum up her experience of living off the grid at 6250 feet, more than 25 miles outside of Seligman. Because she and her husband live in a heavily treed, old growth forest, she fires her work in a small electric kiln powered by propane and a generator, forcing her to be highly selective, fire very full kilns, and gen- erally make smaller pieces.
Ms. Zegar’s fine, functional (which she takes to mean “a teapot that pours well”) por- celain pottery is exquisite. Some pieces are extremely feminine, some earthy and others with a distinctly Zen feel. Some suggest un- furling petals, others birds. “Porcelain is ‘rare earth,’ says the artist. “And I treat it with rever- ence and awe. You have to enter a dialogue with it. It can never be a struggle, or fight.” Quite different is her figurative work, small archetypal figures and symbols that draw from her work as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, and ongoing interest in the hu- man psyche, spirit, and soul. “To paraphrase Jung, ‘art is process; so is therapy,’” she says.
Another especially intriguing display at The Gallery in Williams is the jewelry of co-op member Judith Skinner, who is something of a celebrity in the polymer clay community. She has two lines — earrings and pins with geometric quilt patterns and brightly irides- cent, three dimensional pieces reminiscent of calla lilies.
Ms. Skinner’s first career was in computer programming — and not only does her background lend to her jewelry making but reveals itself in the highly systemized lists she provides in response to my questions.
“Computer systems are created by a) stating the requirements, b) identifying known pro- cesses and problems, c) designing a new pro- cess (which always includes a lot of the old),
d) developing the new system, e) training users, and f) enhancing the system design,” explains Ms. Skinner.
“Most of this can simply be stated as orga- nized problem solving — defining the goal (a new system or a new jewelry design) and working out the solution, step by step. I think my goal in jewelry has always been to create a lovely piece of jewelry that can be sold for a reasonable price,” she adds.
From childhood, Ms. Skinner has made things with her hands, usually out of fabric or fiber. When she discovered polymer clay, a new world opened up for her, and she even- tually left the high-tech industry and moved to Prescott to pursue her art fulltime.
Polymer clay is a synthetic modeling ma- terial that is malleable at room temperature and can be hardened into lightweight ob- jects with heat. “It can be sculpted, carved, extruded, stamped and molded,” says the artist. “It can also be draped like cloth, a tech- nique I use in most of my work.” And indeed, her earrings and pendants, though solid, contains waves and folds that give the illu- sion of rippling fabric.
Ms. Skinner purchases the polymer clay in blocks of solid color, and rolls slices through a pasta machine to condition the clay and to mix new colors. Early in her work with poly- mer, Ms. Skinner created a simple process to produce a color gradation, now known as the “Skinner Blend,” which is taught in begin- ning polymer clay workshops, and included in how-to books and magazines.
The polymer she uses for her more color- ful, iridescent pieces contains mica pow- ders which give the finished pieces a subtle sheen. Small pieces are cut from the sheets, hand formed into individual shapes, hard- ened, then assembled into jewelry.
“When I look at artwork, I am drawn to ab- stract, organic shapes,” she says. “The names of my pieces come from the shapes — calla lilies, leaves, poppies, flutters, shells. Flowers
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thenoise.us • the NOISE arts & news • MAY 2014 • 19