Art Elements September Theme - Blue

One of the images we used for this month's them.

The Art Elements Theme of the Month is Blue. This theme made mom and I think of different ideas to try. Mom found the space image and I found the other image we used for the second piece.

What does blue mean: blue is seen as trustworthy, dependable, and committed. The color of ocean and sky, blue is a constant and calming influence in our world. Blue has equal appeal to both men and women. (Sensational Color - Mean of Blue: Color Psychology and Symbolism).

Did you also know that the colors pink and blue arrived as colors for babies in the mid-19th century, but the two colors were not promoted as gender signifiers until just before World War I. (Smithsonian Magazine). In a June 1918 article from the trade publication Earnshaw's Infants' Department said, "The generally accepted rule is pink for boys and blue for girls. The reason is that pink, being a more decided and stronger color, is more suitable for the boy, while blue, which is more delicate and dainty, is prettier for girls. (Smithsonian Magazine).

I thought that was interesting to learn. I had heard about the colors for boys and girls before, but it was fun reading about it again.

So, onto our pieces for this month's theme challenge.

The two pictures mom worked on making patterns for us to use. Mom and I first find images we like to use as patterns. Then mom draws out a pattern to use to glue onto the copper (again, I seriously hate to draw so mom does this part). Once the patterns are created we then scan them in and save them for future pieces. Then we glue the patterns on 20g copper to be sawed out.

Then mom works on sawing out the pieces. We use a jeweler's saw to saw out all the patterns from copper. If you would like to see mom saw out one section of the "Blue Woman" you can go to our Facebook page and click on the videos.

Once the pieces are sawed out they are then filed and sanded.

Sawed out pieces for this month's theme

Mom filing the "Space" piece

Mom filing the "Blue Woman"

After mom files and sands then it is turned over to me for enameling.

I had mom come out to the garage, after I laid out the colors. I had laid out all the blues we had to decide what we were going to use on the "Blue Woman" (I didn't realize how many blues I had in the opaque's until I laid them out). Then we started working on the colors to use for the space image. Again we went through the blues and then had to figure out what oranges to use. I then wrote out all the colors on the images so I knew what to use when enameling.

These two photos I have is mom trying to figure out how the two pieces fit together. We made the space piece into two separate pieces and then I was enameling them together. Mom had to figure out the lay out so I could take a picture to make sure I enameled the two pieces together correctly.

Then it was onto the enameling:

The two separate space pieces before I enameled

them together.

The "Blue Woman" after I took her out

of the kiln. The iron helps flatten the piece

when it bows from the heat while sitting on the

trivet.

Now that you have learned our pieces it is now time to show you the pieces:

The pendant is actually the piece that was sawed out of the middle of the "orange" section of the Space piece. Mom wanted me to use the enamels I use when I make our "Cosmos" pendants and bowls. I did add some of the yellow into the piece to tie it all together. There is blues in the middle that go into black and then I added orange, purple, and white too. I really love how it turned out. This photo does not do it justice.

Here is the "Space" piece. I really love how this piece came together. I love the blues that are going into black on the bottom piece and I am really happy with how the oranges turned out. The holes we have drilled in the pieces are to represent the stars. I do have white around the holes, but the photos aren't showing the white. I am going to have to take pictures again, because again these photos don't do the piece justice.

Our final piece is the "Blue Woman". I used three different blues and one gray enamels in the piece. I love how it turned out, it didn't exactly turn out the way I wanted it to, but I still love it. I am so glad mom is so patient with the drawing of the patterns and sawing, because I sure wouldn't have been able to create this piece.

If you would like to see what everyone else has created please go to the Art Elements Community Facebook page and check out the month's challenge album.