Intuitive Art and Creating Fairies and Mermaids with Clay

Hi everybody,

This time I would like to tell you something about my more unusual work. As you probably know, intuitive art can be practiced in any medium. About ten years ago I had a period in which I have created a lot with clay. Gosh, time flies. I made little figures of fairies and mermaids and a whole enchanted landscape for them to reside in. Soon my focus switched back to intuitive painting, drawing and mixed media. I created some clay beads for making jewelry later on but after that I completely lost touch with crafting with clay. Sometimes I feel drawn back to it but my frequent moving the last few years hasn't allowed me to assemble my materials back together and set up a space for working with this particular medium. I hope to find the opportunity to get back into it some day. Until then, I thought I would share my creations from the fairy realm. Everything emerged from the same intuitive process as my drawings and paintings.

Fairy Realm, Clay, Wood, Wire, Styrofoam and Embellishments, 54cmx81cmx41cm, Intuitive Art 

I have always liked playing with clay. After discovering polymer clay, I sculpted three fairies (Green Sprite, Fairy Growing Planets and Fairy Sleeping Lila) and two mermaids (Pondering Mermaid and Mermaid Blue Eyes). Click on the links/captions below the images for other views of the figurines. They were all created in 2010. I thought it would look very enchanting if they could be dwelling in their natural environments. So, I decided to build a landscape specially designed for their own little personalities. Since the pedestals of the figurines are made out of air-drying clay, I decided to use the same material for the overall landscape as well. I decorated it with acrylic paints, colored rope, synthetic leaves and flowers, and real shells and rocks. The water is represented by an actual mirror as a play on the tradition of the mermaid's magic mirror. The core is made out of hard board that my husband hammered together for me. I then attached some wire to it as a support for the stalactites in the grotto. The entire thing is covered with about 15kg of clay which makes the piece rather heavy. Before painting I covered the clay with sand medium to make the surface look like natural rock. The landscape is 81 cm long, 41 cm wide and 54 cm high (this is not including Fairy Growing Planets sitting on top of the temple). The creation of the landscape took me another couple of years.

Green Sprite, Clay and Decorative Elements on Core of Styrofoam, 13cmx13cmx9cm, Intuitive Art 

Green Sprite

This little fairy is sitting camouflaged on a rock peering at the sky during a spring day. She is made of polymer clay and wears acrylic paint for make-up. The rock she is sitting on is made of air drying clay on a body of styrofoam. I covered it with sand medium for the rock effect before I painted it with acrylics. I then added embellishments made of polymer clay and touched them up with acrylic paint. This little fairy comes with a hand sown felt under-layer decorated with beads and golden thread. The under-layer is green and is matching the colors of the piece.

Pondering Mermaid, Clay and Decorative Elements on Core of Styrofoam, 20cmx17cmx14cm, Intuitive Art

Pondering Mermaid

This little mermaid is sitting on a rock contemplating the sea. Her beautiful orange tail makes me think of a Koi fish. She is made of polymer clay and is touched up with acrylic paint. A wooden stick makes her sit right up. The rock she is sitting on is made of air drying clay over a styrofoam body. I first painted it with sand medium for the coarse look and then with acrylics. I decorated it with polymer clay elements that I touched up with acrylic paint. The little mermaid comes with a hand sown wild silk under-layer decorated with beads and golden thread. The under-layer has the colors of pearl and salmon and is perfectly matching the piece.

Fairy Growing Planets, Clay and Decorative Elements on Core of Styrofoam, 14cmx14cmx21cm, Intuitive Art

Fairy Growing Planets

I imagined this little fairy seated in her own realm creating planets like how a gardener might grow cabbages. Her golden wings and skin and her colorful garments make me think of ancient South American cultures. This little gardener of planets is made of polymer clay and is touched up with acrylic paint. A wooden stick makes her sit right up. The platform she is sitting on is made of air drying clay over a body of styrofoam. First I added sand medium which gives it a natural coarse feel. Then I painted it with acrylics and decorated it with polymer clay elements and colorful gravel with a touch of acrylic paint. This little fairy comes with a felt yellow under-layer matching the colors of the piece.

Fairy Sleeping Lila, Clay and Decorative Elements on a Core of Wire and Styrofoam, 20cmx27cmx24cm, Intuitive Art 

Fairy Sleeping Lila

This little fairy is sleeping in a comfortable sparkling corner of a cave that is surrounded by growing mushrooms, little moths and snails. Also a small owl sits beside her. All have pink, silver, blue and lilac tints that are a perfect match with tonight’s sleeping place. Fairy Sleeping Lila is made of polymer clay and is touched up with acrylic paint and glitter glue. The cave she is lying in is made of air drying clay over a body of styrofoam and wire that is covered with sand medium to make it look rough. It is painted with acrylics and is decorated with polymer clay elements, a touch of glitter glue, fabric, wool and beads. A beaded lamp dangling from the top of the grotto gives her enough light to make her feel warm and cozy. This little fairy comes with a felt blue under-layer matching the colors of the piece.

Mermaid Blue Eyes, Clay and Decorative Elements, 14cmx21cmx9cm, Intuitive Art

Mermaid Blue Eyes

This little mermaid is enjoying the sun while she is at seashore. She is watching the pretty shimmer of the sea with her big blue eyes with which she can also see the beauty of the underwater world. This little mermaid is made of polymer clay. A wooden stick makes her sit right up. Her rock is completely made of polymer clay and is decorated with seashells made from the same material. She comes with a yellow felt under-layer matching the colors of the piece.

I hope you enjoyed this magical scenery! I would love to hear your thoughts!

Much love,

Rika