Make a Clay Hanging Decoration at Home

Rachel Akers

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I draw my inspiration from my home town of Birmingham but also my travels all over the world. Having lived in New Zealand for 8 years, spending 6 months of my university time on an exchange in Connecticut USA and many travels in Europe and worldwide.
I find, in cities, the juxtaposition of architecture to green spaces quite beautiful, it is surprising how much woodland is still left untouched in a big city like Birmingham. There are some incredible new and unique buildings going up all around the city but also some stunning old buildings. Dotted between these buildings you will always find trees and plants to keep us all in touch with nature. This is true in many big cities around the world, like Auckland in New Zealand, Sydney in Australia and Barcelona in Spain. I could go on. There are so many stunning unique architectural and natural combinations in these places. It is easy to create wonderful artwork with all this inspiration, much of it on my doorstep.
In my sculptures I use various thicknesses of wire and semi-precious gemstones to create bespoke and unusual pieces that are fluid and winding like a beautiful tree but also have the rigidity and structure of the angular frame like the architecture I see all around me. I manipulate the wire into the form of the tree trunk and branches so each piece is unique. I don’t always use a frame and let the tree flow naturally into unusual forms. I love the use of the wire to create the wood like texture and when the light bounces off the metal and gemstones it creates an ethereal like quality.
I also create jewellery and other sculptural forms using the wire and gemstones but the trees are my signature pieces. I create bespoke wearable jewellery often using flowers and trees as my inspiration, using the same style and techniques.
I have taught art in both the UK and New Zealand, mainly drawing techniques and clay workshops. I am looking forward to teaching you many different artistic skills with my unique workshops in Clay creation, Jewellery making and mural painting.