Many, many hours of planning and organizing the Synergy2 Gallery with Mary Fassler and Judy Belcher along with short, sleepless nights in Baltimore made me feel all this week that I needed to be doing something related to the conference. It took me a few days to realize that it’s time to get back to whatever it was I was doing pre-Synergy2…art show applications, gallery replenishment, and, hopefully, some actual time in my studio followed by photography, blogging, website updating. Yikes, better get cracking!!!

A conference with so many components creates a slightly different experience for each attendee. Although I spent the majority of my Synergy2 time tending to the Gallery I was able to attend portions of a few presentations, the opening night Ford/Forlano talk, and the closing night banquet. Here’s the Charm City / “Ace of Cakes” creation made especially for the International Polymer Clay Association’s 20th anniversary. It served over 200 people and it was yummy! The Ace of Cakes crew were given pictures and books of polymer clay art for inspiration. The top layer was definitely Ford/Forlano-esque! I kept visiting while in the cake line and lost my place a few times so was happy that I finally made it to the front before every piece was gobbled up.

I left Synergy2 with loads of inspiration and a strong desire for more tools…a kiln and enameling equipment as a result of snippets of presentations by Tam Honaman and Gwen Bernecker. The best part of the conference experience for me was the opportunity to meet and chat with all the fabulous artists. We heard so many times how the polymer community has advanced artistically by leaps and bounds even compared to just two years ago.

Back to work!

Maureen

I received my copy of “1000 Jewelry Inspirations” by Sandra Salamony today. I couldn’t wait until July for my contributor’s copy so I ordered one from Amazon.com. As the title suggests, the book features page after page of beautiful jewelry by contemporary artists meant to inspire the reader. It is divided into chapters: beads & baubles, paper & mixed media, polymer & metal clay (that’s where my work is featured), vintage & repurposed, fibers & fabric, and wire & metal.

My local polymer clay guild, Clayville California, has so many amazing artist members. Many of them have been featured in books and articles and now I can count myself among the “published artists” too!