Today’s Wednesday Indie Artist Fixx interview is with Pamela Foeckler of Ploust Art & Design.

What’s the name of your business and why, what do you create and sell and how did you get your start?

Ploust is a made up name that bubbled to my lips one day.  I take molds of real sea urchin shells and cast them in resin mixed with dyes and atomized metal for a bit of sparkle.  I had been collecting sea urchin shells from the tide pools where we live and I wanted to find a way to capture their form.  I started experimenting with casting them in plaster and then different resins.  It took a while to figure out a process but I finally achieved the results I had in my mind, preserving the remarkable structure of something so fragile and organic.

We love your use of the sea urchin form as an inspiration for jewelry. What other natural forms or mediums do you use in your work?

I’ve been using lichen, drift wood and barnacles in some recent work. In my relief wall works, I’m exploring the topography of mountains, icebergs and glaciers.

Please share some of your artistic, culinary, and musical inspirations.

Artistic:
17th century Flemish still life paintings….especially those painted by Adriaen Coorte…..swoon! And the drawings of Stephanie Halpern , collections at natural history museums, Indira Matina Moore’s work, and old wooden Ukrainian churches and barns.

Culinary:
I’m a loon over classical Persian food.  It’s so sensual, steeped in history and composed of such extraordinary ingredients—pomegranates,saffron, barberries, sumac, rose petals, mint.  Also, there’s a book by Niki Segnit called The Flavour Thesaurus….it’s such an exquisite idea and so well presented, I choke on my envy. Plus, everything Nigel Slater writes, everything Silvena Rowe cooks, everything Heidi Swanson photographs and everything put on a plate at Fäviken Magasin and NOMA.

Musical:
Almost everything that comes out of Iceland—Ölof Arnalds, Gus Gus, Sigur Rós, Jönsi and of course the iceberg that is Björk. Plus, The Horrors, Royksöpp, Róisín Murphy, classic singers from the 1920’s and 30’s—like Dorothy Dandrage, Annette Hanshaw, Ruth Etting—and Indian ghazals.

Do you have a mentor? If not, who would your dream mentor be?

My dream mentor would be an amalgam of three people: Marcella Hazan, so I would be cared for and well fed; Anne Truitt, so we could obsess over color and materials all day; and Björk, so we could listen to interesting music and I could borrow her clothes.  A splash of Steven Colbert would be nice too.

Has the draw to nature as artistic muse always existed for you, even as a child?

I grew up in the forest of Northern Wisconsin near a lake.  I used to make sculptures on the pier from the clay lake bottom, moss covered forts and snow caves 15′ deep into the snow drifts.  I also dragged every cool thing I found back home and decorated my room with it…..tree branches, leaves, rocks, etc.  If I could live outside in nature I would as it’s the place I find the most joy.  I guess they call that camping.

Underwater or overground?

Both.  Love being in or near water but my Mister flies a plane and that perspective to the ground is amazing too.

Dolphin or whale?

Dolphin. They’re just as wicked smart but they can dance.

Beach or forest?

Both. That’s the thing about Northern California.  There’s the Pacific Ocean on one side and an old redwood forest on the other, both are magical places.

What are the best and the worst things about being an independent maker/creator?

The best bit is satisfying a need to conceive an idea, explore it and end up with something physical that resonates.
The worst part is being distracted by all the other demands of life that keep you from achieving that satisfaction.

What/where is the Sea Ranch and how has it been instrumental in your artistry?

The Sea Ranch, CA where we live is an ecological and architectural community in Northern California that was begun in the 1960’s.  The original concept has flourished in many ways and been tainted in others.  It’s still a very special place that has exposed me to exceptional elements of nature in the redwood forest, at the tide pools, on the beach and out on the water.

Tell us about your upcoming cookbook, Morsels of the Forest.

One of the gifts of the forest Pacific Northwest is the bounty of wild mushrooms.  My husband and I have been foraging for many years now and with my love of cooking, cookbookery and photography it seemed a natural and exciting project to write about cooking with the wild mushrooms of the coastal range.  It’s an enormous amount of work but so gratifying.  I hope to find a publisher soon!

I am in love with Angela Monaco’s Concrete Polish line of jewelry. It’s so raw and organic, yet strikingly elegant. Seemed like a no brainier that I should interview her for this week’s Wednesday Indie Artist Fixx.

What’s the name of your business, what do you create and sell and how did you get your start?

My jewelry line and boutique is called Concrete Polish.  The name Concrete Polish sprung to me one day when I was thinking about what my jewelry represents.  The pieces I design and make have a balance of a rough and refined line, but with a feminine touch.  It is a balance of sculpture that creates an edgy yet sophisticated piece of jewelry. Concrete Polish represents that idea of balance.

Please share some of your artistic, culinary, and musical inspirations.

I am highly influence by crystals and the sculptural formation of them.  I have been collecting gems for many years.  The way I design and produce  jewelry changed after I took a casting class at the Maryland Institute College of Art.  I have also been vending at many music and art festivals since I was 22.  Selling my jewelry at these events has always been very inspiring for me.  Being a part of such a large creative atmosphere is so much fun!  I love music and dancing.  I have seen many different bands and DJ’s including Daft Punk, LCD Soundsystem, Little Dragon, Phish and many more!

Who are 3 of your favorite artists of all time?

My favorite Jewelry designer is Linda Smyth of fleathers.etsy.com. My favorite visual artists would have to be Sylvia Ortiz and Alex Pardee.

Do you have a mentor? If not, who would your dream mentor be?

My mentors are all of my friends and teachers who are artists.  We all help each other grow and learn new techniques.  It takes a team of artist to really get yourself out there.  It’s all about collaboration and making the world know who you love.

Has the draw to jewelry as artistic expression always existed for you, even as a child?

I have always loved jewelry. I think the attraction to jewelry and creating it began with my mother.  She has always worn a ton of Native American Jewelry. I was always asking to borrow it as a child.  Now she calls me to borrow jewelry, I of course make her anything she wants!

What are the best and the worst things about being an independent maker/creator?

The best thing about being an entrepreneur is seeing the progress you have made over the years.  I also love how happy it makes a customer to have a piece of jewelry that makes them feel confident.

The worst thing about owning your own business is that sometimes it is very hard to see the progress you have made because everything is always evolving. The infamous To-Do list never ends.  BUT…I create my own to-do list and I am very fortunate for that.  I keep a journal and I record my accomplishments in it as well as other thoughts and ideas from my life.

We love the combination of rugged organic metal and refined sculpting that your pieces reflect. Can you tell us a little bit about creating this dynamic and how it makes unique jewelry?

My process of making the Mineral Massacre Line is a fun medium for me to work with. It is a combination of using actual organic crystal growth and wax carvings for me to come up with the designs.  When I sit down to design new pieces I usually start with an idea and make a few spin-offs of that concept to create a few different designs.  I have many molds of rings and pendants I have created. I love taking the wax injections of them and chopping up different parts of them and creating something new.

How does your studio and/or creative process change as your prepare for the holiday season?

I recently opened up my own boutique in Philadelphia called Concrete Polish. When I opened the Boutique, I started with only jewelry that I designed or Linda Smyth formally of Topstitch Boutique.  As I got the hang of things, I started to incorporate a few other jewelry artists.  Everything is handmade and I feel we have a great dynamic of jewelry in the shop.  I recently purchased new merchandise for the holiday season, including: a great variety of natural gemstones and candle holders made from Quartz, Amethyst, and Selenite.  The shop has a great new look and every empty space is filled with a fun gift that is glowing.  We have many events planned for the holidays, starting with a Black Friday Weekend Sale after Thanksgiving.  We will be having sales up to 35% off of selected jewelry.  Another fun holiday event I will be participating in is the Art Star Holiday Bazarre, which is November 19th & 20th in Philadelphia.  I will also be at the Brooklyn Artist & Fleas December 10th & 11th in Williamsburg. Both are great events with tons of handmade art for gifts.  Hope to see you there!