Cover Girl!

We are thrilled to show off the artwork of 

Joy Funnell, our cover artist for Vol. 2, Issue #2.

Joy Funnell's Beautiful Mask made out of fine silver is our cover piece for our next issue!

(P.S.--You might think that there is something missing from the cover!  

And there is!!  We will reveal an exclusive special article in a few weeks!!)

I have loved this piece of jewellery for a long time and wanted to know some more about it. 

MCAM: When did you make this piece?

Joy: I made this piece in January 2010 to enter into the 11th Silver Accessories Contest in Japan. I was delighted that I was awarded an Honourable Mention for it.

MCAM: Challenges you encountered while making it?

Joy: The main challenge was getting the material effect around the face. I was working with textured clay at .25mm thick so I could get the draped effect but it took a while to get it to look right. I like to decorate the backs of my pieces as well so I finished off the back of the headdress with more of the draped material effect. I think that took longer to do than the front!

MCAM: How many in are in this series?  Any inklings to make a commercial series?

Joy: This mask was the third in a series and it took the longest to make. I worked on it off and on over a three week period. When I finished this mask I felt that the idea had run it course but after a break from them I am starting to feel another one may yet be on the horizon. I kept the first one in the series as I use it for my branding. I sold the second one and will be selling this one soon. I certainly won't be going into mass production of them though!

MCAM: How does it hang on a chain?

Joy: On the back is a question mark shape bail and the piece sits very comfortably on a sterling silver torque. Even though it is a relatively heavy piece at 43g it does not feel heavy when worn on this.

MCAM: What are you working on right now?

Joy: I have several pieces on the go at the moment. A couple of them are bird related for the Bird a Week challenge I am taking part in. I am trying to make more pieces with Enamelled Accents on them as examples for the workshops I am teaching at the Guild of Enamellers conference in April and MCWC in July. I have one particular half finished pendant with an angel on where I am struggling to decide on the right design to go around her but I will just keep looking at it until inspiration hits me. I also have a step by step tutorial I am writing in progress.

MCAM: What type of metal clay is your favourite?  Why?

Joy: I work almost exclusively with Art Clay Silver 650. When I first encountered metal clay this was the type being used and I quickly went ahead and took my Art Clay certification courses as I was so enamoured with it. Because of that I have just stuck with it. It works well for me and I feel very comfortable using it. When I teach I explain to students about other brands and tell them they should try them if they wish to see what they prefer to use.

MCAM: Have you tried others?
Joy: I have used Art Clay copper but the other metal clays available do not really appeal to me. I enamel a lot of my pieces and I was enamelling long before I ever discovered silver clay. I always used to work on fine silver and have a dislike for enamelling on copper. It is just personal preference and for me Art Clay Silver is what I am passionate about. Maybe in the future I will experiment more with other clays, but for now I shall stick with what I really enjoy using. I know I will create my best work if I do not have any nagging doubts in my mind about the medium I am using. 
 

Thanks Joy for sharing this information with our readers!  

~Jeannette Froese LeBlanc, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief

Contacts for Joy: 
Website www.joyfunnell.co.uk
Blog http://joyfunnell.blogspot.com/
Ebay Shop http://stores.ebay.co.uk/ArtClayUK