1. CHAPTER 14 ___________________________ The Crafts As Fine Art

2. The craft media are so called due to their history in making functional objects. - Functional objects are objects that are intended for everyday use, and that serve a utilitarian purpose. These objects can include container vessels, eating utensils, weapons, clothing, jewelry, textiles, etc.

3. All of these objects provide the same basic function – they are cups – they hold or contain fluid or other matter. The visual design and treatment of these different functional objects engages us in unique ways, and suggests purposes for these objects that go beyond the functional task of holding liquid.

4. Transcending the Everyday Experience… We all rely on functional objects to aid us in everyday tasks. Functional objects that seem commonplace today, that we may take for granted, each represent a technological innovation that allowed for greater comfort, protection, and other essential activities. When you consider the design of a functional object, it must satisfy certain requirements for it to be functional. (For example, a cup will only work if it is able to hold liquid – it would not function properly if it was full of holes or cracks.) Artists, craftsmen, and designers seldom stop at the basic minimum requirements for an object to function – instead, they seek to enhance the design of the object for pleasure, beauty, and improved performance. Consistently, throughout human history, as soon as a new functional object has been developed, there is a evident desire to artistically alter or enhance the design.

5. Red-figured water jar (hydria), signed by Meidias as potter 420-400 BC. This water jar is meticulously detailed with narrative and figurative scenes. The scenes tell two different stories: the top band of figures shows the abduction of the daughters of Leukippos by Dioskouroi, Kastor and Polydeukes. The bottom band depicts Herakles performing his final Labour – receiving the golden apples of Hesperides from the nymphs responsible for guarding the tree at the end of the earth. This functional object offers the owner far more than a place to put water. This object offers entertainment, and storytelling, as well as a cultural reservoir for collecting the stories of ancient Greece.

6. Wedgewood Queen’s Ware kitchenware, c. 1850.

7. Josiah Wedgewood, Apotheosis of Homer vase, 1786. Blue jasperware, height 18 in.

8. Left: Josiah Wedgewood, Apotheosis of Homer vase, 1786. Blue jasperware, height 18 in. Right: Euthymides, Dancing revelers, made in Athens. Red-figured amphora, c. 510 BCE. Wedgewood saw his Ornamental Ware as fine artworks; each was made by hand and unique, and he sought to recall the white marble statues and vases of ancient Greek art.

9. Metal

10. Gold never tarnishes or discolors

11. Craft Media We will examine an overview of the art of metalsmithing in these areas: Cold Connections – Rivets, tab construction, jump rings. Soldering Forming – Forging, raising, chasing and repousse.

12. Cold Connections Cold Connections are techniques for combining multiple pieces of metal without using heat. A rivet is a short metal pin or bolt for holding together two plates of metal, its headless ends are beaten out or pressed down when in place. Tab construction is when an artist leaves small extruding tabs on the edges of sheet metal, and by bending the tabs around other pieces of metal, they will secure the two pieces together. Jump rings are small, typically uniform, rings cut from metal sheet or wire. Although they may be soldered, many jump rings are structurally secure enough to be left unsoldered. By bending the ring apart to open it, it can be looped around other rings or metal elements, then bent closed to connect and hold the elements together.

13. In this piece of student work, the many pieces of metal are held together by rivets. The rivets act as little pins that have been hammered into a stable and permanent position. When multiple rivets connect two pieces of metal together, the rivets provide a secure and immobile connection.

14. Jessica Jacobi Bracchio Compress Copper, silver Although there are some visible rivets, there are also some flush rivets that have been countersunk. These still structurally function as the visible ones do, but they sit flush with the surface, essentially beconing invisible. The single rivet that connects the two halves of this arm clamp allows movement – the two halves can pivot at that point, and it acts like a hinge. A single rivet connecting two or more pieces of metal allows for movement.

15. The tabs on this student project have been cut from the same sheet metal that forms the body of the ring. The tabs bend up to connect the stone to the ring, acting as prongs. Cold connections are very versatile for joining different types of materials. Because they do not require heat, more delicate materials, such as stones, wood, plastic, etc. can be joined with metal elements using various types of cold connections.

16. Nisa Blackmon Bloodlines Copper, glass, thread This piece appears deceptively simple, as a rectilinear form, but it actually all made from one piece of flat metal. Nisa spent a great deal of time planning where she would bend the metal, and where she needed to leave tabs in order to connect the edges together to strengthen the form.

17. Individual jump rings, seen on the right, can be looped together or to various metal elements to connect them together. Jump rings are often used to make chains, and they allow for a great deal of movement in the piece.

18. Soldering… FIRE!

19. Soldering… FIRE! Soldering is a technique that joins multiple pieces of metal together by heating them with a torch. The solder is actually a separate metal that melts at slightly lower temperature, so when heated, it will melt and flow between the other metals pieces, effectively acting as a “metal glue.”

20. Jessica Jacobi Pitter Patter, 2009. Copper, silver, rubber, dye.

21. Liquorrhea; copper, silver, rubber, dye

22. Liquorrhea; detail

23. Jessica Jacobi Mysterium Terrible et Fascinans, 2008. Copper, brass, sterling, fine silver, gut.

24. Mysterium Terrible et Fascinans, detail

25. Richard Mawdsley Alpha-Omega: Water Tower #5, 1995-99. Sterling silver, gold and rhodium plating, pearls, mahongany.

26. Forming metal…

27. Raising is an ancient technique for creating metal vessels – forms that contain volume, such as bowls or cups. Raising is achieved by a precise series of hammering techniques that progressively compress the sheet metal up into a more vertical format. Raising is often combined with other metals techniques to create beautiful and sophisticated metal forms that primarily originate from a single piece of metal.

29. Harlan Butt Ruby Lotus Vessel copper, enamel, silver 2012 Harlan is a master enamel artist, and he is also an expert in raising and metalsmithing. The red body of the vessel is actually raised copper, which he ten covered in a red glass enamel. The silver elements were created separately, then joined to the copper body by soldering.

30. David Huang Untitled Copper, silver, gold leaf The overall form was raised from a piece of flat sheet metal, and then the localized details were added in later with chasing and repousse. The interior has been gold leafed, creating a stunning and lustrous surface.

31. Chasing and Repoussé Chasing and repoussé are forming techniques that allow the artist to specifically control what areas of the metal are hit forward or sunken backward. The artist hits the metal with small punch tools into a pitch bowl. The pitch is sticky, and holds the metal in place, and it is hard enough to provide adequate resistance while allowing the metal to give and move under the pressure of the tools.