My polyclay one of a kind pieces. My work has actually always been one of a kind. For me it devalues something in mechanically replicating it. The only purpose of replication is to sell more, make more money, which is fine and often allows more people to enjoy a specific piece. Yet there is something special about owning a one of a kind. There was a Native American artist who was very famous for his jewelry. He was Navajo I believe. I remember he made a series of bracelets in which he inlaid the interior or the bracelet as well as the exterior which of course was the usual practice. His feeling was that the exterior was for everyone to enjoy, the inside however was only for the wearer/owner of the piece to enjoy...a little secret between the artist and the wearer. Nice!
The thing aboutsculpting OOAKs (at least in doing an animate form--inanimate too probably) is that when you are working on a piece, nothing could be more intimate. You are shaping something that seems to be guiding your fingers and directing you to it's nature, what it is to become. You become so attached, taking care of every curve, convex and concave. It may take days (for me) or hours. The piece becomes precious, not unlike a child and you care for it and hope when it leaves you in it's curing process that nothing "bad" will happen to it. When it finally arrives in it's adulthood you are the proud parent and love the piece and probably see a beauty that not everyone may. You are forever attached and if any one else is lucky enough to take over the care of the piece (say, purchasing it), they are not just receiving an object but such an intimate and personal part of you that will always be with them even when you are no longer. If anyone has been blessed enough to stand before "Starry, Starry Night" by Van Gogh then you know that photos of the work do not do it justice. In fact many find it ugly or replusive. Yet when you stand in it's presence the work is so powerful that you are overcome with Van Gogh's inner beauty, his tremendous passion, the extreme aspects of his nature. It's very intense! He lives on so powerfully and this is why certain works hold and increase in value, because of that passion of the artist that they embody. This is what makes a successful artist. This is for what I strive--for the living energy to be embodied in my work. I am never happiest then when I hold a piece in my hand and am lost in the joy of manipulating the medium with my fingers. Something so profound about the process. I salute those OOAK artists that create such original and lovely works and offer them trustingly to the world!
