I am taking a metal fabrication class at Craft Alliance in St. Louis. This is old school, not the metal clay I have been working with. I think that going back to basics will be a good learning experience for me and can only help me more with my metal clay pieces.
I haven't worked metal like this since Mr. Marshall's class at Ladue High School, but it's all coming back to me. I am really good at fine sawing, to me it's just like drawing real slow. I decided to dive right in and work with silver, you put the same amount of effort as you would with copper or brass, you might as well end up with something that doesn't make your skin turn green.
My teacher, Cindy Howenstein is really great. What I like about the class is that there are no specific projects to make. The students can explore the medium and make whatever they want, and she demos different procedures as they come up. We are making bezels, learning to solder, and learning polishing techniques. There are also advanced students in the class who are working independently, and you can learn from them just by observing.
So far I have cut out these tiny silver hydrangeas which I am going to either solder together or join them some other way so there is movement. They are going to be earrings. I'll post my progress.
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