metal is clay

Currently editing short “making of” videos for “Fire In The Belly”, the metal and clay sculpture I collaborated on with ceramic artist  Robin DuPont . The piece is on show at the Alberta Craft Council gallery in Edmonton as part of the Craft Collaborations fund-raising auction —40 artists have collaborated on one of a kind pieces. See more images on the @albertacraftcouncil instagram feed , or visit  www.albertacraft.ab.ca I’m always curious about how other people engage with all the delicious digital documentation that we have available to us—what impact does it have? How do other people use documentation for their own design process, and is it even necessary to them? I take a lot of video and stills as I work, for 2 key reasons: so that I can share more of the studio process, and because I find I learn a lot by looking through the camera. I think framing images on a small screen helps me to see shapes and character differently, and it has become an important design tool alon...

  Fire In The Belly. Wood-fired porcelain jar with sculptural metal crown, by Robin DuPont and Christine Pedersen. Height: 40 cm. “Fire In The Belly” —introducing @robindupontceramics and my piece for the Alberta Craft Council “Craft Collaborations” fund-raising auction. The auction is now open, with 38 artists presenting 31 unique new pieces 🎉 . I’ve been really looking forward to seeing what everyone else has been making—you can find the auction catalogue here . Robin’s wood-fired ceramic jar is coiled and pinched porcelain, with natural ash-glaze from pine, fir, oak, and black poplar ash. My sculptural metal crown is recycled brass and bronze, made by hammer-forming, raising, and repoussé, with hand-chased line-work. The metal is finished with oxidizing patina, heat patina, and wax.   Each piece in the auction has an artist statement, it’s really informative to hear other people’s experiences as they challenged themselves to develop a new idea, and use their skills to deve...

The Beaux Arts exhibition, curated by Angela Clarke at Il Centro Art Gallery, Vancouver, was developed with the Vancouver Metal Arts Association . The work of nineteen artists is included, and I am very honoured to be one of them. Huge thanks and kudos to the volunteer members of VMAA who have managed to organize and install a professional show under the current incredibly difficult conditions. To quote from Il Centro’s web-site : As the first exhibition in our Charles Marega 150 celebrations series Il Museo at Il Centro presents Beaux Arts: An Exhibition with the Vancouver Metal Arts Association. This exhibition features the sculptural metal art form both large and small. Entitled Beaux Arts in honour of the artist style of which Charles Marega was an interpreter, this juried show integrates traditional metal work with non-traditional styles and elements, true to the Beaux Arts form. Throughout the exhibition space there is a continuous juxtaposition of traditional and non- traditiona...