Handle With Care

Monday, November 16th, 2009

Handle With Care by Amy Crook

I did a lot of experimenting in my bronze casting days, some of which was more successful than others. Most of the failed experiments got reclaimed and melted down into new art, and these were one that I was just never quite sure about. They’ve grown on me over the years as they’ve acquired a softer texture with age and handling, and now I’m quite fond of them.

The original idea behind them was to make something that, while visually interesting, was best viewed with the hands. The experience of handing the heavy bronze objects, feeling their fingertip-size curves and interesting little deviations is entirely different from just viewing them, and one that’s hard to convey over the internet. They start out cold but warm to the touch, their surfaces hover on the border of smooth and rough — the ones with the turquoise patina seem almost enameled, while the plain bronze ones are softer almost like a raw silk. The smaller ones make interesting worry stones, while the larger ones are heavy enough to demand your full attention.

I created two different models in clay and made molds, then created these six pieces from them — you can see the similarities among the three moon-shaped curls, and then the largest one also has two smaller cousins taking different halves of itself. When finishing them, I tried to enhance any imperfections from casting, smoothing and enlarging them so that they added textural interest without any unpleasantly pointy surprises.

I keep them in this little pot from my distant past, with just the biggest one peeking out the top to intrigue people. I especially like the little hollow loop at the tip of #2 below, which is the right piece in the second row above.

Handle With Care, 6 pieces in bronze, various sizes from 2.5″ in diameter to 2.5″x1.5″, weighing 11 oz to 28 oz apiece.

Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art
Tags: art for the blind, bronze, for sale