Final: Chicken-Bird Ornament

This semester of studying American Studio Crafts expanded my previous knowledge and judgements about artists specializing in these fields.  As we studied the line between art and craft blurred--part of that was how the artists progressively blurred the line themselves in their work, but also partly in how I left behind my teachers' and studio professors' own judgements on "craft" and formed my own valuing of craft and art.  

As we moved through the decades of American craftwork, several artists and/or concepts stuck firmly in my mind.  I chose to work these pieces into my final piece; I suppose it is an homage in assemblage to the jewelry artists of the 40s-60s.

The first element in my final art piece is a cast iron chicken bird influenced by Sam Kramer's Roc Pendant.  When I came across this piece in our readings it immediately appealed to me.  I knew I had to bring this quirky bird back to life in another form.  Sam Kramer's pendant was finely worked in sheet metal and stones, whereas my bird reflects more of my hand--gestural and messily textured.  The bird was sculpted in wax and then dipped in ceramic shell.  After burning out the wax and racking up the shell, the bird was cast in iron.  The clean up process was fairly long, as I don't currently have access to a sandblaster.  Once the bird was cast and cleaned, I then moved into the second stage of my project.

When we encountered the jewelry artists of the 60s that created enormous, difficult or cumbersome to wear pieces, I wanted to bring that feel into my final project.  Arline Fisch's Body Ornament extends dramatically down the body, pushing the concept of necklace.  I was intrigued by who would wear such heavy, intrusive body art.  I also wanted to take it to the extreme in wearable-art--art that would almost impede the wearer's movement to the point the art couldn't become a background experience, ornamentation that can be subconsciously enjoyed.  I decided on clay slabs to support the iron chicken bird; I knew that woven surfaces wouldn't be able to support the weight of the cast iron.  I threw the slabs of low-fire white clay and then textured and draped them on my own body.  I wanted to allow the clay to at least dry to leatherhard on my body, however my desire for large, cumbersome art meant I wouldn't be able to go about my normal teaching routine with clay slabs drying on my body.  So I set up lumpy piles of fabric that hopefully allowed the clay to maintain the angles from my body.  The clay was then fired to cone 05.  I created and fired multiple slabs, as I had to deal with cracking and also the shrinkage of clay in comparison to the holes where the iron bird needed to connect.  The slab that made it through all the steps isn't as large or freeform as I would like, but it does portray the feel of "shield" and weigh heavily on the chest of the wearer.  A curved edge clings to the shoulder of the wearer and the lower portion rests heavily on the chest.

In bringing the bird and clay together into one piece, I knew that I wanted to bring in the brightly painted surfaces of Ken Price's ceramic work into my final piece.  He and other ceramic artists, like Jun Kaneko, have amazingly appealing surfaces--bright colors with pops of contrast and smooth, sensitive surfaces.  My clay work again brings in my preference for highly textured surfaces; I selected a color palate that would almost jolt the viewer, creating a strong aesthetic reaction.  As if the chicken itself wasn't enough.  Mostly an analogous palate on the ceramic piece contrasted with a complement on the bird.  I did decide to paint the iron, although I left parts of the iron exposed to reveal the material. 

The completed piece is most certainly an ornament object that cannot be ignored.  It is so far from any jewelry I would ever wear, yet I love how it amplifies the concept as jewelry as a statement.  In the post-war craft movements in the 40s through 60s (and 70s) I feel the artists pushed the extremes of what was "comfortable" and what was craft.  I hope to have pushed those boundaries as well.