OK, subject is Australian Culture. Not really having a clue, I did some Internet research (love Google images!) and hit some fascinating sites devoted to Australian Aborigine art, including Dot Paintings. I think ah ha! Perfect! I have my subject. Also ran into the Dreaming concepts, and how often the person takes on the form of animals in it.. alittle more research and I decided I would make a gecko pendant or pin, and wrap it so it looked somewhat like a dot painting. Delighted in the concept, I started to bend the wire. I should have done this in copper. $15 + dollars in sterling wire later, and I"m still not happy with my "gecko" . So much for dreaming, think nightmare instead!
My main problem is size. I wanted to create a pendant or pin, maybe 2 inches long. See the three in the picture? the biggest one is almost 5 inches long!! I just couldn't get the gecko small enough and sturdy enough, and with enough detail to satisfy me. Worse yet I kept running out of wire... each gecko started out with progressively more wire, and I ran short in 2 of them.. I finally got a smaller scale but it didn't look right.. I couldn't get the paws/claws to look right , or get the dancing look right on a smaller scale.. I wanted jaunty geckos damn it! happy dancers in the dreaming, discovering truths and creating understanding of themselves. This should be A HAPPY process at least in the end right?? arrrghghwgh! I finally gave up and took up the best looking gecko I have, which is the pic below. Jaunty dancing check, actual complete tail, check! it's like 4 inches long.. so what, I reasoned, I'll just use it as a huge pendant on a beaded necklace. So then I spend a couple of hours trying out different ideas to get the look of the dot paintings I wanted. No go. ( here is an example BTW:
http://www.didgeswedoo.com.au/aboriginals.html ) So finally this afternoon as everything went wrong both artistically and in real life ( don't ask, it's been a long day all the way around) I decided to call it a night on this theme. I spent 10 minutes hammering the buggers thin, So now I present my Gecko Bookmarks, suitable for any fine book you would care to read. I have 2 left if you are interested, my daughter has already bought/stolen/appropriated one of them!
My main problem is size. I wanted to create a pendant or pin, maybe 2 inches long. See the three in the picture? the biggest one is almost 5 inches long!! I just couldn't get the gecko small enough and sturdy enough, and with enough detail to satisfy me. Worse yet I kept running out of wire... each gecko started out with progressively more wire, and I ran short in 2 of them.. I finally got a smaller scale but it didn't look right.. I couldn't get the paws/claws to look right , or get the dancing look right on a smaller scale.. I wanted jaunty geckos damn it! happy dancers in the dreaming, discovering truths and creating understanding of themselves. This should be A HAPPY process at least in the end right?? arrrghghwgh! I finally gave up and took up the best looking gecko I have, which is the pic below. Jaunty dancing check, actual complete tail, check! it's like 4 inches long.. so what, I reasoned, I'll just use it as a huge pendant on a beaded necklace. So then I spend a couple of hours trying out different ideas to get the look of the dot paintings I wanted. No go. ( here is an example BTW: http://www.didgeswedoo.com.au/aboriginals.html ) So finally this afternoon as everything went wrong both artistically and in real life ( don't ask, it's been a long day all the way around) I decided to call it a night on this theme. I spent 10 minutes hammering the buggers thin, So now I present my Gecko Bookmarks, suitable for any fine book you would care to read. I have 2 left if you are interested, my daughter has already bought/stolen/appropriated one of them!
1 comment:
Oh, man!!! But what do I see?? How about a crystal encrusted gecko to hang as a wind chime or sun catcher?? That's what I see. These would look cool with beads and fire polish crystals hanging in the kitchen window......
I like them!! (But of course a Liz would like a lizard)
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