Potential images for etching.

Here are two different images I've been working on for possible etchings to be used on various projects during the semester. These have been manipulated from either advertising copy and a self portrait I took with a broken flat bed scanner a few years ago. These images have been distilled to pure black and white images to work with PNP paper, probably one of my favorite resists for etching.

Tool making!

Rocking out some chasing and repousse tools for the semester.

First project: base image for photo eching.

Copyright Robin Connell, 2013.

This photograph was taken with a near broken flat bed scanner, The slow speed of the scanner scanning at a very high resolution (and the fact it was barely working) created some interesting distortions in the image. For photo etching I need to work with a completely black and white image, so I will need to manipulate it to make it black and white. Once manipulated I will be able to print it out on PNP paper and then etch the image into copper. The final result will be enameled in the champleve technique.

First project, enamel and chased mask, mechanical concerns.

The mask will be two layers, one a photo etching with champleve enamel so I need to make sure that the movement of the second layer doesn't put an undue stress on the enamel layer. Instead of having a spring or hinge mechanism my professor came up with a great idea to have the layers slide, using slots like a stereoscope viewing device. The best part of having this versus a hinge will allow the mask and narrative to be expanded on later.



As you can see in this image there are two wire slots on the viewer that hold stereoscope cards. The mask itself will use a similar idea but be solid tabs.

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Another example of a stereoscope machine showing how the card is held.

New semester!

It's hard to believe that's already the fourth week of the semester but things are starting to really kick into gear. First project out is a chasing/repousse project, while this semester has no theme we still have to choose a narrative for our first project. I'm settling on less of a direct narrative (i.e. a written story) than exploring personality disorders and existential crises. My plan is to make a multilayerd mask that uses both chasing and repousse techniques and incorporates my studies into champleve enameling over the summer. Stay tuned as I will be posting references and sketches soon!

End of semester zaniness...

Another semester down, still need to put some finishing touches on my last project but hopefully soon there will be pictures up. Even though this semester was frustrating and a bit crazy, I learned a ton. My favorite project was the silver eyebrows that I made. There was something really satisfying about making some smaller pieces that were quite whimsical in their function and somewhat impractical. It also gave me a chance to really explore adding texture to sheet metal and creating a work that while fabricated feels a bit more like a wax cast piece.

Here is another very low-res image of the eyebrow:

Some exciting things coming down the pipeline. I was awarded an Undergraduate Summer Research Fellowship to explore the link between propaganda and enameling from late may through mid-august. Whether it was for religious propaganda in the Middle Ages to die stamped Soviet pins and medals in the 20th century, the ability to add bold color to metal provides an interesting way to disseminate ideas via jewelry and other precious objects.

While I may need to set up a separate blog to document the work I'll be doing over the summer I thought I would take some time to post some references here. The references run the gamut from actual enamel examples to outsider artists that influence me.

Considering that the term Propaganda stems from the Catholic Church it should be no surprise that enamels were frequently applied to religious relics. Enamels used this way functioned similarly to the stained glass windows found in churches throughout Europe, on one level helping to teach biblical stories to illiterate masses and on  another level to provide a sense of mystical awe.

Also here are some great examples of how bold color with emotionally loaded imagery can present propaganda in a insidious, oddly subtle way. By wearing a medals such as these the wearer is not just indicating an achievement but is transmitting notions of the greatness of the state.

15th century religious triptych. 

St. Gregory the Great. Enamel plaque, Jacques I Laudin.

Order of Victory, Soviet Union.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_Victory

The only Soviet Medal to be made by a jeweler and not manufactured in a factory.  

Order of the Badge of Honour, Soviet Union.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Badge_of_Honor

Let's Fulfill the Plan of Great Works, Gustav Klutsis.

Postcard for the All Union Spartikiada Sporting Event, Gustav Klutsis.

Pamiati Pogibshikh Vozhdei, Gustav Klutsis.