FORM AND FUNCTION at Foundry Art Centre

May 5th, 2016

I am so pleased to announce that 3 of my pieces completed over the last year will be shown at the juried exhibition, FORM AND FUNCTION, at the Foundry Art Centre in St. Charles, MO.

This is a pretty big deal for me. I submitted 3 pieces and all three got into the show!

Pieces I submitted are: “Inside/Outside” (salt cellar and spoon); “The submersible vessel Ai-Apaec encounters its namesake traversing the deep in his underworld aspect” (filigree and copper headband); and “Monument Gate: or, How I Finally Found My Grandmother’s Keys.” (jeweled hair comb and stand/box).

And here they are:

Ai-Apaec, photo by Victoria Altepeter

Salt Cellar, photo by Victoria Altepeter

Photo by Grant

Photo by Grant

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Thing. Cube? Title this!

July 23rd, 2015

Here is a Thing I made. It unfolds completely, and is completely reversible. It reminds me a bit of the Lament Configuration from Hellraiser, and also when I was making it I was sort of thinking of Dali’s hypercube crucifixions. To fully appreciate it, you should watch this:

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Submarine Story: Completion.

May 3rd, 2015

Here is Lucy wearing the completed Ai-Apaec headband. The cephalopod fits over the sub, and the tentacles follow the pattern in the “porthole” agates.

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Submarine Story: Part 2

May 3rd, 2015

The Decapitator Ai-Apaec, traveling the underworld, encounters a submarine.

Filigreed silver, Brazilian agate.

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Submarine story: Part 1

May 3rd, 2015

The Submersible Vessel Ai-Apaec Encounters its Namesake in His Underworld Aspect. (Wearable alice band in the form of a submarine)

Etched copper, Brazilian agates.

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Anniversary Buckle

May 3rd, 2015

Cast silver, reticulated shibuichi, cast copper, sheet copper, grossular garnet, aquamarine, peridot.

A gift for my beloved.

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Turk’s Head Earrings

May 3rd, 2015

I made these for my awesome sister-in-law. Heads cast in bronze from dolls, headdresses formed in wax and cast in silver, set with lapiz, coral, and turquoise. Necks finished with carnelian.

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Things I Made Last Fall: Part 3: Advanced Metals And Mechanisms

May 3rd, 2015

Advanced Metals and Mechanisms is about making things that do things.

This face spins on an axis and the horns rotate, so you can get four different configurations. The body opens to reveal a heart, (heart cast by Matt Mosher in 2014) and the arms swivel at the shoulder.

A bottom piece and a supporting frame is in the works.

Totem Face. (Reversible piece) 2014. Silver, Faux bone/ivory, ammonites. Photo by Victoria Altepeter.

Totem Face. (Reversible piece) 2014. Silver, Faux bone/ivory, ammonites. Photo by Victoria Altepeter.

Totem (body) (Closed) 2014. Silver, Shibuichi, opal, faux bone/ivory, cast bronze.

Totem (body) (Open) 2014. Photo by Victoria Altepeter.

A Tea Infuser about Irremediable Loss. 2014. Sterling Silver. Photo By Victoria Altepeter.

This tea infuser’s pattern of holes is the first few lines of “Marrakesh” by New Model Army, transcribed into music box tape. If you were to slice it open, flatten it out, Xerox it by 50%, punch the Xerox, and run it through a music box like this one, it might still sound like the song.

I used Music Box Composer to transcribe the song by ear.

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Things I Made Last Fall: Part 2: Form Emphasis In Metals

May 3rd, 2015

Form Emphasis in Metals is a class that focuses on forming techniques such as raising, fold forming, and the creation of spiculum and other forms in metal. I made two salt cellars and matching spoons, which altogether comprised my 3 required projects. There was considerable overlap with the material being covered in my other classes.

Inside/Outside. (Salt Cellar) 2014. Copper. 4″ x 2″ x 1.5″Photo by Victoria Altepeter.

This was an attempt at making a vessel with no clear inside or outside. I wanted the effect of pooling to the sides on both cellar and spoon.

Salt Witch House. (Salt Cellar) 2014. Copper, Brass, Bronze. Photo by Victoria Altepeter.

Salt Witch House. (Salt Cellar) 2014. Copper, Brass, Bronze. 11″ x 11″ x 11″. Photo by Victoria Altepeter.

The house began as a sample in Intro for soldering a butt joint. The door is soldered to the floor; the house rotates open on the hinge of the door to reveal the “cellar” beneath. The house is fold formed to create the brick-like texture of the exterior, and the roof of the house is a form called a Heistad cup, made from brass. The house itself has a floor, so that when the roof is removed and the house is closed, the cellar is hidden from view. The mountain on which the house sits is a raised form , and the salt cellar is sunk into this. Everything here except the door is cold-connected using rivets. The small bronze “pebbles” are the tops of pins that hold the house to the mountain base, they can be removed to refill the salt cellar. The window and door hinges are also fold formed.

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Things I Made Last Fall: Part 1: Intro to Metals.

May 3rd, 2015

Last fall I took three studio metals courses simultaneously. I took Intro to Metals (to fulfill the pre-reqs for the other two classes I was also taking–it made sense at the time, honest), Form Emphasis In Metals, and Advanced Metals and Mechanisms.

Here are the three official projects I produced in my Intro class. Since I’m not really a beginner, I was able to push the projects a bit further than a regular Intro student coming into a metals shop for the first time.