Assemblage art, mixed media sculpture takes a lot of stuff. A large variety of stuff. Using my artist’s eye I look for specific kinds and sizes of stuff. It really is more than just buying a bunch of things or even collecting them from other sources. If it doesn’t speak to my inner artist it won’t be used and is just stuff that becomes clutter. These are the things I bought today for sculptures. You can see what most of it is. On the little baggy are teeny tiny blown glass elephants that I already know what they will be used with. The wooden clock case will be used in a shrine and the dial face will be saved for just the right sculpture.
Sticks and stones and words that will never hurt you. Working on more of my little assemblages using little boxes. Watercolor and eco printed cloth with passages from antique books. 6 inches square will be for sale in my Etsy shop soon.
I love how an assemblage artwork can be inspired by a single item. I found this box yesterday at a thrift. It screams ‘what if’. We will all just have to wait and see the answer.
As promised here is a pictorial on how to make a DIY hanging system for your studio wall. See the previous post for the parts that I purchased on Amazon. My cost was exactly $40 plus tax. Since I am a Prime member there was no shipping. The only other cost I had was for the molding at the top of the wall for the picture rail. An 8 ft piece at the box lumber store was $10. I am going to extend this a few more feet so whatever length you want for your wall will determine your cost for the molding.
The first thing I had to do was measure how long I wanted the wires to be, then allow for a couple inches fold over to make the loop to go over the top hanging hook. I made a removable mark on my table so the wires would be close to the same length. This wire cutter and stripper is a necessary tool. It easily cuts the wire and the top crimps the ferrule (crimping sleeve) after making the loop in the wire. I think the next pictures will explain that.
After cutting all my wires it was time to get them ready for the picture rail hanging hook. Take the wire and poke it through theferule, then double it back on itself to form a loop and putting the end back through the ferule. Make sure your loop will fit over the hanging hook. Then using your wire tool, squeeze the ferule. Pull on it to make certain it is tight.
Now it is time to slide the picture hanging hooks onto your new wires. You can put as many hooks as you like on the wires. I really like that I can stack multiple pictures on my wall without making holes. Make sure that the hook holds before hanging a picture. I had one hook that the spring mechanism didn’t work. I am so happy with this system! I’ve put one wire over the door for illustration. Since my ceilings are 10 ft. I need a ladder to install all my hooks on the rail. There are other options available for the DIYer, just do some online searching. Most of the ready made kits are for small areas and they were not an option for me.
JP Dawes Contemporary Artist 