Next Meeting and Program

Date: Sunday, May 22
Time: 4:00pm
Place: Home of Sarah Muse, Roanoke
Program: Metal Forming Techniques
Presented by: Sarah EK Muse

Founder's Report

I look forward to seeing you all at my home this month for our May Meeting and Program.

We welcome everyone to come and experience metal, whether you are a novice or a professional and if you appreciate metal, whether it is jewelry, flatware, hollowware, relief work, sculpture, etc., please join us for a fun-filled time. Refreshments are served, information and experiences are exchanged, creativity is inspired and enjoyment is had by all. -- Sarah EK Muse

Check it out! www.SVMAGMetalArtsGuild.com.
For the member's gallery page, please send Debra one or more of the following:

• 20 word description of yourself and/or your work for the member’s list
• Bio/statement
• Images of your work for your personal gallery page (send images electronically, Subject “SVMAG” to degan@radford.edu.) and
• Personal website address if it is available for a link to your site.

SVMAG Meetings/ Programs

Member's News:

Congratulations to Alison Pack! Starting in August she will be the Assistant Professor, tenure track- of Metalsmithing/Jewelry Design in the Art Department at Radford University!

Congratulations to Ed Dolinger! Starting in August he will be the Adjunct Sculpture Instructor in the Art Department at Hollins University and Sculpture Instructor in the Art Department at Sweet Briar College !!!

If you are a member and have news, please send it to Sarah Muse, E-newsletter. We would like to recognize the accomplishments of our members!

Opportunities

Best of books celebrate artists and artisans from all over the United States . Over 90 winners in each state competition including overall Best in Show, first, second, third place and Honorable Mentions for each category. BEST OF also features National winners with up to *$10,000 in cash prizes. The Best in show winner from each state will be eligible for 16 cash prize awards. Plus the First Place winners in both the Student and Emerging Artist categories from each state will be eligible for cash prizes in their own respective national categories. ELIGIBILITY: The competition is open to artists and Artisans in the states listed with more to be announced. Only original artwork created by the entrant will be considered. CONTACT INFORMATION: Postal address P.O. Box 6876 Williamsburg , Virginia 23188 757 564-6261. E-mail: General Information: artbestof@yahoo.com. http://www.bestofartists.com/welcome.html.

Blue Mountain Fine Arts Gallery Inc. is seeking artisans working primarily in 3D media. The gallery is especially interested in showing stained glass, batik, metal work, smaller scale sculptural pieces and uniquely designed work suitable for holiday gift giving. Blue Mountain is located at 19827 Main St., in the historic “Downtown” area of Buchanan Va. Please contact the gallery at (540) 254~9708 or Tina McConchie at (540) 473~3082 for an appt. to show work. Photos or slides may be mailed to the gallery for review at P.O. Box 241 , Buchanan Va. 24066. All material will be returned to the artist. Images may also be sent via e-mail to Tina McConchie at mcconch@rbnet.com.

Larks books will be publishing a new how-to book on chain mail techniques for jewelry. For more information contact Terry Taylor.

Basic copper and copper alloy fuming
Copyright © Charles Lewton-Brain 2002

Patination is a technique which has become popular for some kinds of fashion jewelry in recent years. Usually a patina requires the application of a toxic chemical mixture or the conversion of the metal surface to a salt of its metal. For most patinations then good ventilation and a knowledge of chemistry is necessary. There are however a number of old patination techniques which are based on a simple conversion of the metal surface to a colored salt or decomposition product of the metal. In ancient times metal objects might have been buried in manure or different earths, or even placed in contact with urine soaked porous materials such as sawdust to convert the surface to a colored patina. Going into the kitchen one can find a number of chemicals which can be used to convert copper surfaces or copper alloy metals to patinas. Salt for example may be sprinkled on a copper surface and then exposed to a humid atmosphere such as above a dryer or in a plastic bag with water in it to cause a major surface change as the copper is converted to copper chlorides. This results in a mottled azure green surface on a pinkish base. The process can take several days or longer. Afterwards the surface is briskly brushed off with a fiber bristled brush and sealed with a wax or plastic such as clear auto enamel.

Another easy conversion uses household ammonia fumes to convert the copper or copper alloy (brass for example) to copper hydroxides which are bluish green. One cleans the copper surface to strip it of all greases and oxides. Pumice powder or heating and pickling followed by a brass brushing with soapy water and a scrub with dish washing liquid and household ammonia will be an excellent cleaning procedure. The object is then placed into a sealed container with some household ammonia in a pan on the bottom of the container. This is left to fume for some time, up to several days. Brass and bronze however become damaged by the ammonia and so should not be fumed longer than several hours. A light dampness to the surface will speed the reaction. Faster yet and strongly blue is to use a dilute salt solution which is painted or sprayed on the metal. Fuming times will be quick, one to four hours being usual. The object when ready is removed, rinsed and fixed with a wax or sprayed acrylic coating. This is a relatively fragile finish and needs a protective coating. If one was patient and scrubbed off the loose patina in between repeatedly fuming it a very adhesive surface could develop. The surface can be easily modified by using resists such as thinned rubber cement to protect it or tying plants onto the surface with thread in an 'Easter egg' dying technique. One can use salt in a damp place and follow with fuming or the other way around for variation. Vinegar may be used instead of or along with ammonia.