A discarded ukulele case makes a perfect altar for my Ukulele Mama sculpture, made from paper clay, glazes, and acrylic. The background is one of my clay monoprints.
While making her, I was influenced by my decades of living in San Diego, close to the Mexican border and its pervasive imagery of the Virgin of Guadalupe.
Ukulele Mama is the first piece I finished after returning from our Southern road trip, and she has a little bit of Nashville attitude as well. She floats on a cloud made from one of my mother's vintage handkerchiefs.
In the top of the case is a ceramic lilly pod, made from paper clay, oxides, stains, and glazes.
The lilly pod was dipped in paper clay slip. The pod itself burned out in the
kiln, leaving the ceramic mold of it's shape which could then be stained and glazed. Shining down from the top of the ukulele case, it is a source of light, warmth, and protection.
Ukulele Mama continues my exploration of combining clay monoprints and 3-dimensional mixed-media work. I finished Garden of Eden, below, shortly before we left on our road trip:
Garden of Eden again uses one of my clay monoprints as background. The objects are all paper clay with glazes and stains, except for the bird's nest and eggs, which are the real thing.
I'm looking forward to some quiet studio time over Thanksgiving weekend to make some new clay monoprints. I give thanks for that opportunity.
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