Thursday, September 2, 2010

Creative Process

Julia shares a little insight into her creative process. Here are some of the ways that she keeps her creative energy flowing to produce her ever-exciting jewelry designs. Explore what materials engage her and how she surrounds herself with interesting objects to inspire new patterns and textures in her jewelry designs.

Left: One of a kind, aquamarine bead and sterling silver necklace, SOLD. 
Right: Marble sculpture by Julia Groos

1. Work in a different medium.
In general, I really enjoy metals, but I also like stone. Carving marble  is a slow process, but there is a delightful mystery to working in stone that you don’t have in metal. As you chip away here and there stone reveals something that you didn’t know would come out. The first time I worked with stone, I was surprised by how much I loved it. Inspired by this medium, I have been approaching some of my lost wax designs as if I were working in stone. Many jewelers work with wax in an additive fashion (adding wax materials together like working with metal), however I enjoy a subtractive process of carving that mirrors the approach I take with stone. I try to imagine the form “trapped” within the block of wax and then work to unveil the magic. Then this minature sculture is molded and cast in metal, such as silver or gold.

Left: Collectibles, hand-crafted silver rings and beads, miscellaneous.
Right: African blue glass beads and hand crafted sterling silver beads and clasp.



2. Collect things that bring you visual joy.
I’m a collector. I think many artists are collectors. Ever since I was a kid I would lag behind my family, because I was busy picking up special pebbles on the gravel or in the park. I also enjoy collecting driftwood. I have lots of pieces of it in my home. I enjoy the organic shapes and the smooth textures. The influence of these objects is more subconscious than deliberate, but they definitely affect the way I design.

Left: Rusty chain
Middle: Pearl, silver, gold, steal and diamond brooch
Right: Collectibles, bones, nails, miscellaneous found objects.




3. Use a little force – or lighten your touch.
I love the process of moving materials- especially metals. Forging is really exciting because with heat and some brute force you can bend and move metal into amazing shapes. I love to work with iron. Even though it’s hard to solder, you can magnetize it, make it rust and even heat patina it to a beautiful color of blue.  

On the flip side, I definitely want to work in aluminum more. Where iron is heavy, aluminum has  ”lightness” to it. It’s a fun material to experiment with. I guess that is where most of my creativity comes from experimentation and allowing the space for magical connections to occur.


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