Interview with Polymer Clay artist Anne-Sophie D’Souza

French artist Anne-Sophie is known of her eye-catching polymer clay jewelry work. She has chosen this handcrafting form to work with because she finds it a flexible medium to creating something bautiful either to wear (for example, jewelry) or embellish one’s home (vases, cutlery and even light switches). “Working with polymer clay is like entering a new dimension. The possibilities of creating amazing art are so many, I could not list all of them,” she says.
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Anne-Sophie's booth at ARTE.

Anne-Sophie’s booth at ARTE.

She gains her inspiration from world leading polymer clay artists such as Donna Kato, Sara Shriver and Alice Stroppel. Hailing from Maine et Loire, France, a region known for its castles and history, she also gains inspiration from nature.  If you were to pop by Anne-Sophie’s studio, you will not only find polymer clay and liquid polymer clay but an array of other tools and materials which may be trash to others, but remain invaluable to her work. “I use alcohols to enhance my work. Apart from pasta machine, cutters and tools that are part of the polymer clay art creation process, I keep every single thing that I feel I may use in some project or another. Things like glass jars, bulbs, spoons to shape a bead. For creating impressions on the clay, you may find that I use a cap of a pen, or even a kid shoe print with flowers.” She smiles smugly and declares, “I have become a collector in my own home!”
Pretty Polymer Clay Flowers made by Anne-Sophie

Pretty Polymer Clay Flowers made by Anne-Sophie

 

Earrings that look like butterfly wings, ready to fly away!

Earrings that look like butterfly wings, ready to fly away!

Like many artists, Anne-Sophie loves working in other art forms, stitching and painting being on top of her list. “But only second and third to polymer clay,” she reminds us. While she invested in her first pack of colourful polymer clay way back in 2006, she only started to work with the technique in 2009. Eventually, this led her to participate at ARTE in early 2011.  “I love Mokume Gane technique, which involves having several layers of different colours and then impressing with tools of your choice (either stamps or sharp tools). Then you slice delicately and each slice is a different pattern with different colors. You use these slices to cover your core beads or shapes.”
Autumn and winter leaves?

Autumn and winter leaves?

Find Anne-Sophie at ARTE this Friday, Times Square.
Her website can be accessed here.
Follow her work on Facebook.
 

Cherry Blossoms anyone?

One of the most poignant parts of the ‘Mulan‘ story is when Mulan, the heroine of the story, meets her father under the Magnolia Trees. The conversation goes something like this, “Some (Magnolia) flowers take a long time to bloom, but once they do, they are the most beautiful of them all.” With this, Mulan was encouraged to find her life’s purpose and she became instrumental in saving the Kingdom of her time. Of course, the story is set in China and the cherry blossoms are not the same as the Mulan’s magnolia but for me both the trees’ blossoms stir similar emotions. (I would like to thank Lazar, one of the ARTE blog readers, for pointing out that ‘Mulan’ actually means magnolia. How fascinating).

So when Katarina Kovacevof MojePerle shared with me (Jan) her story of how she created the cherry blossoms pendant in polymer clay, I felt an immediate connection. Katrina says, “Cherry blossoms bloom in Japan during this time of the year.” Further research showed me that this is true for the main Japan cities such as Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto, though in the rural areas it may start as early as January and end in May.

As April has already descended on us, what better way to begin the month with a story on Cherry Blossoms right here in Dubai. If you are wondering, no, Katrina is not from Japan, but from Serbia. It’s so nice to see how artisans can glean inspiration from other cultures and Katrina demonstrates this perfectly.

How Katrina from MojePearl makes her Cherry Blossom polymer pendant. Photo supplied by MojePearl

How Katrina from MojePearl makes her Cherry Blossom polymer pendant. Photo supplied by MojePearl

The above photo depicts the step by step process that Katrina uses to make her cherry blossoms pendant.  Whenever she makes these pendants in polymer clay, she fondly remembers her grand mother who  loved cherry blossoms. “Sadly, she passed away last year,” she says, her eyes misting up.  I’d say, what a beautiful way to create a handmade product that helps you recollect fond memories of a loved one.

So if you fancy having a ‘cherry blossoms viewing’ or a ‘cherry blossoms picnic Japanese style’, right here in Dubai, pop by Katrina’s stall at the Times Square Centre on Friday, the 13th of April 2012 (and usually every 2nd Friday of the month), as part of the ARTE exhibition. She has other ‘garden’ treasures and roses to share with you, if you fancy these more than cherry blossoms.

Garden earrings. Photos by MojePearl

Garden earrings. Photos by MojePearl

Rose pendant with silver foil. Photo by MojePearl

Rose pendant with silver foil. Photo by MojePearl

Visit MojePerle on facebook.

We’re so Sweet for this Jewellery

Meet Sophia Mattia of Funkme Designs, who recently joined the ARTE fold with an amazing collection of quirky, fun, vibrant pieces of individually handmade jewellery.
Sophia began making jewellery in 2008 with her very first necklace made was a liquorice allsorts. What began then as a dabble into jewellery making has now developed a range of sweetie jewellery made from polymer. Each piece is individually handmade by herself. She also produces “one off” necklaces, bracelets and earrings that are different from the sweetie range using the Millefiori technique. These are pieces that cannot be produced again to an identical copy and so are completely unique.
Sophia will be returning to ARTE in May with a new look to her stand and a whole new range of products.