The polyclay strain! I love polymer clay, I love that I make my own pieces from nothing, but it's LABOR intensive. I have friends who design beautiful pieces from purchased beads, they're very successful and deserve to be so, but it makes me wonder, what am i doing wrong? I sell my pieces for the same prices as they do, and yes, they sell, but I may have put 3 hours into that piece. Each bead needed to be created from nothing, fired, sanded forever,and THEN i get to incorporate it into the piece. Other pieces, after that initial time and labor, require another 3 days for resin. Wouldnt it be easier to just buy the freaking things and then assemble? Perhaps what I see in my head, i just can't buy, or maybe I'm a stubborn jerk.
Ive got a show a month the next three months. I'm doign freaking comiccon in September and thats a huge weight on my shoulders, there WILL be not-polyclay pieces! there will be odd Steampunk respirators, goggles are a possibility, there will be simple brass accessories...but I can't leave it at that, i can't just put a brass charm on a finding, I have to patina each piece, alter it in some way... 'cause I'm a stubborn jerk.
I've set myself up to be a starving artist, unable or unwilling to admit defeat. As my house crumbles around me, as bills pile up, I find myself justifying why I do what I do, I just suck at it.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
How strange I get...
Posted by Adria at 10:46 AM
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3 comments:
you don't suck at it, nor are you a stubborn jerk...you are an Artist. Someone that just puts bought generic components together is a Beader, but you are a Bead and Poly Artist. I think there is a difference. Your pieces are one of a kind. A strictly beaded piece with metal components...anybody can do that! Adding poly clay involves a whole other skill. I know what you mean about pricing though and there is such a thing as 'what the market will bear' and I'm in the same place. We spend so much more time on our work but don't benefit in greater way, other than with the satisfaction and knowing that we are different. I find it helps me to balance poly clay items with beaded or wired items. Yes, I still spend more time on it, but overall it makes items look less generic. Maybe try and find a balance between that.
Youre the best, Tina. I'm thrilled to know people get it. Sometimes I feel like an elitest snob, but I need to remember the differences between designers, artisans, artists, and remember that none of those titles need to be offensive.
I know how you feel Adria. some days you wonder why you try so hard and how can the next person at the show call their work hand-made when all they've done is buy beads from china, strung them on a string and call it the same as yours. I too make most of my beads from polymer clay and then add other mediums to complement. My pieces are unique, never reproduced. This is an ongoing discussion with many artists and beaders. It can be frustrating to see someone else sell their wares for a price you can't compete with in terms of charging for the time spent. One thing I have found though is that the more I charge, the more it stops being about the money for customers and more about the piece they want. from the few pieces I've see, I think they would make great stories, how you made them, what inspired you, stuff like that.
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