A Salute to Richard Salley - Mixed Media Artist and PhotographerBoundless admiration for the skills and visual language of Richard Salley.
On his website he has very generously provided a detailed and photographically beautiful tutorial on making a pendant.
As a long-time admirer of his work and skill, have also a deep impression of his generosity in sharing what he knows. His work is distinctive and is instantly recognizable, showing the importance of finding one's voice and visual style.
Learning the techniques is a study for a growing artist. To find and express the message and the ideas of one's own experiences, heart and mind sometimes even more difficult.
Thinking back and remembering a few years ago when simply learning good wire wrapping techniques was the focus. Following that was the use of cold connections such as rivets and prongs, using the jewelry saw to cut sheet metal. At present the learning curve seems to be etching brass and soldering fine silver links. The bar seems to raise ever higher, the skills grown more intensive and complex with time.
Ultimately the technique is not the most important thing, but just a way of successfully making the statement. Whether the solder joints are perfected and the glass fused perfectly may not be as important as whether the piece speaks to the wearer and to the viewer, both visually and in the mind and emotions, did the story reach the listener.
On his website he has very generously provided a detailed and photographically beautiful tutorial on making a pendant.
As a long-time admirer of his work and skill, have also a deep impression of his generosity in sharing what he knows. His work is distinctive and is instantly recognizable, showing the importance of finding one's voice and visual style.
Learning the techniques is a study for a growing artist. To find and express the message and the ideas of one's own experiences, heart and mind sometimes even more difficult.
Thinking back and remembering a few years ago when simply learning good wire wrapping techniques was the focus. Following that was the use of cold connections such as rivets and prongs, using the jewelry saw to cut sheet metal. At present the learning curve seems to be etching brass and soldering fine silver links. The bar seems to raise ever higher, the skills grown more intensive and complex with time.
Ultimately the technique is not the most important thing, but just a way of successfully making the statement. Whether the solder joints are perfected and the glass fused perfectly may not be as important as whether the piece speaks to the wearer and to the viewer, both visually and in the mind and emotions, did the story reach the listener.
A salute to Richard Salley. Cheers.
2 comments:
I totally agree! Richard is not only an amazing teacher and talent but an outstanding person as well!
Would love to have the chance to take a workshop with him sometime, I've never met him in person, just admired his work (and website) from afar. I can tell by his generosity with his talent that he is a great person, and your opinion means a lot, too.
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