In The Kiln - November 2024

Cooking With Glass -- And Wood -- (ツ)

“If one's different, one's bound to be lonely.” --Aldous Huxley, “Brave New World”

Neoteric Wood Art is located in St. Helens, Oregon. Marvelous Mosaic & Fine Art is at The Manor in Deer Island, Oregon, and is owned and operated by Kory Dollar. We collaborate on many projects shown here. Also this post will get cut short in your email, please click on the title to view it properly.

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Color Wheel

Color Wheel, by Dave - 100% reclaimed materials. Base from old cutting board, pedestal pine from scraps, glass from discarded glass factory sample kit.

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November News Update

Hello Everybody,

It’s so nice to see you here again, and a hearty welcome to new subscribers!

Generally, the majority of the art posted here is from the combined works of the supremely gifted artists at The Manor, my certifiably charming wife Kathie, and pugnacious old me. During normal times, we usually have plenty of material to fill these pages with all sorts of story’s, anecdotes, and plenty of beautifulness (yeah I made up that word).

Since mid November, The Manor has been closed to give everyone a much needed rest and for some reorganization. It will reopen the beginning of 2025.

Due to this interruption, purchases of my frames, stands and other items that supply the students and accomplished artists has slowed and therefore not as much artwork to show for this post, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any, it just means that Kathie and I are home exclusively focused on the projects that we’ve not been able to get to during the busy periods. And she hasn’t kicked me yet!

ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

Slider And New Style Stand

Pictured below is what’s known as a slider¹ of which I posted about here. Kory Dollar makes the glass and I make the stands. She is always bringing me projects, that keeps me from doing something diabolical like zip-lining. In August Kory arrived and dropped off an armful of these sliders on my doorstep. It always goes something like this;

Kory: “Hi Dave, here I brought you these.”

Me: "Great! So, when do you need them?”

Kory: “When you have time, but I need these three as soon as you can get to them. The one I made can wait.”

Me: “Sure, no prob, I’ll add it to the other 199,000 you left here!“

Kory: (-‿◦)

Me: (ง'̀-'́)ง

But that is what I do, I love new challenges and she always brings me something to stir my imagination. But I sometimes wonder if she keeps bringing more than I can do so I’ll get tired of tripping over them and have to do something with them. Once I removed the plateau of sawdust covering it, I did something I wanted to try when time allowed. Behold --

When the slider is set in place, most of the framework is obscured so as not to detract from the piece.

This is a much different approach to framing these than my previous ones, those were made by students and other artists. With Kory I can tinker with new concepts, she only gets mad when I break stuff ☜(`o´)/

While I like it, I don’t know how well the other artists and clients will feel. Art is 100% subjective.

My other thought is that I rather like the look at least on this piece as the colors pop out from the dark wood. In this case, I used walnut raw edge for the base, mahogany for the struts and redwood for the end-caps, then I stained it all with an oil-based chestnut and topped with a satin clear spray. One minor aspect I like is that these struts also keep things from tipping sideways. Although the odds are small, they are never zero.

I’m testing out this new style for a few reasons. Artist’s, give me your feedback!

• The first is wondering if anyone will like them?

• Next, is it worth it? Despite the simple appearance, it is somewhat complicated to make as all pieces have to be custom cut to fit each individual artwork, so mass producing them is not going to fly.

• Another concern is this is done out of necessity as these sliders are seldom square, meaning the bottom is lopsided and disallows the piece to sit vertical. Put the slider in a groove to stand it up and it will invariably list to the side. I’ve been trying to find an attractive way of remedying this and I may have found it by adding struts to each side. Although Kory claims she can saw off the uneven part.

• Lastly, I have been trying to find a way of covering the GIANT trench I need to cut into the base for the piece. It isn’t as simple as using a plunge router and removing just the right amount of material, it has to be cut at an angle, curved, and tapered, a technique that is doable, but the time it would take would far outstrip any amount of recompense I could expect.

Tell me your thoughts, please. Should I make more in this style?

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Robin on a Fan Pedestal

Robin by Kathe Wise on Fan Pedestal

A few years ago when Kathie was starting to really get the itch to be a full-time artist, she was experimenting with technique. She gave this to someone back then but they recently had to make a snap decision to move, and move far away, so she is now back in possession of it. I never had good pictures of it, so I took these (yes, the pictures are better, but, you know me, could always be MUCH better).

As to the pedestal, I was using a bunch of this old 90° tempered glass shelving inserts we were gifted. Well, as Tom Peterson used to say, “Free is a very good price!” But that adage only goes so far. Sure, free is great, but one has to find a way to frame it. I’ve made other items from this glass here where they look simple, but they ain’t easy!

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Collaboration, Cooperation, Creativity

Kory is the greatest, I don’t know where Kathie and I would be without her. Over the past ten+ years we all have been working together so much that the aspirational objective of our lives has been altered. We are doing what we were born to do by putting all our efforts into making art.

That brings me to a few thoughts. Sometimes, actually quite often, we underestimate the challenges of bringing into fruition a concept. An idea trapped inside the mind can cause exasperation as we try furiously to unleash its potential but can not figure out how to unlock the door.

Perhaps more importantly are the feelings we wish to express. Those intense emotions are the source of passion and is a mighty powerful force. If those expressive energies are repressed in our hearts, it must find an escape, and it will find a way out as it can hurt like an unrequited love. This can break a person’s spirit.

For a true artist, unexpressed creativity can leave us feeling alone and, at best, “misunderstood” as the romanticization goes. What compounds all of this will ultimately lead to that old familiar “creativity block.” How well we artists know the coldness of creative stagnation as it shrouds our vision and stultifies the mind.

But get those ideas out we must!

Imaginations unfulfilled is like a caged bird in the mind. Underfed and alone will cause it to die in the nest with nobody ever hearing its song. In the wrong person it could instead grow into a monster that will gnaw apart the heart and mind of the artist, and that can lead to some very dark places. I sometimes wonder about people wrestling with demons; could they be hyper-creative genius’ who’s potential had been squelched or never tapped, their essence denied?

"There is a touch of madness in every genius." --Aristotle.

However, there is help, a tool which isn’t utilized nearly often enough, and that is the beauty of collaboration. The emotional support from another trusted soul can rejuvenate the spirit that drives our work with “trust” being absolutely crucial for there is nothing that will crush the essence of an artist more thoroughly than someone who would disparage our work. About the most contemptible creep is a spouse telling the person they should have total love and trust in that they “don’t have any talent” or “their work is garbage”.

Them’s fightin’ words to me!

The creative process is a journey of exploration and experimentation, and artists often face challenges such as finding inspiration, overcoming creative blocks, and refining their skills. Collaboration can be a powerful tool for defying your own limitations as the expectations of these challenges can be fostered by working together and push each other to new heights. You readers can help by expressing your preference in the stand outlined above. The collaborative spirit is an essential key to the success of all of us, and it lives large here at Neoteric Wood Art and at Marvelous Mosaic.

Perhaps you will join us?

Sign up for free, this is never pay-walled, we exist largely on the love and support of donations, volunteers, and of course the collaboration of others.

If you would like to be cooler than all those other pseudo-cool people by keeping me off the streets and becoming a shill for some hideous corporate hussy, by me a cup!

1. A “Slider” is an abstract form of fused glass art made by taking a sheet of clear glass and placing a sheet of stained glass on top face-to-face. This sandwich is then placed inside a high-temperature kiln but set at an angle so that as the stained glass begins to melt, it begins to ‘slide’ down the face of the clear causing wildly distorted features. To add variety, smaller pieces of contrasting glass and/or powdered glass called ‘frit’ is often added on the surface creating some spectacular, if not unpredictable results.