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Monday, May 5, 2014

What Inspires...Louise Goodchild

Today we are delighted to welcome to AJE a guest contributor - jewellery Designer and Artist Louise Goodchild to tell us a little bit about what inspires her beautiful and immaculate wire work.


Hello, I’m Louise Goodchild and I work full-time as the designer/maker at Louise Goodchild Designs. I’ve been working with wire for a few years now. Anyone who follows my work will know that I’m a confirmed bead addict as well as a wire worker – I have a lampwork ‘problem’, which I daren’t indulge too often! Luckily, I can squeeze quite a lot of colour into my wire pendants, which are mostly made with coloured wire and seed beads, so I don’t get bored.

I work from two desks in the corner of our guest bedroom, and I have to confess, as much as I love it when my desks are tidy, I often work in utter chaos! 

 
What Inspires You?

I’m often asked this question. Sometimes I think it may be easier to reply with what doesn’t inspire me! My imagination is usually in overdrive, so it often only takes a chance phrase or glimpse to prompt an idea. Like many people, for me visual inspiration is a great trigger – just going outside can be a good kick starter if I’m in a bit of a creative slump. This small laburnum in my front garden is in bud and will be flowering soon. It wasn’t a great stretch to imagine a laburnum pendant, so out came the wire and beads.



Admittedly, I do make a lot of pictorial wire pendants, so the vision in front of me is often translated fairly literally when it’s in my hands. Although, of course, artistic licence is a wonderful thing! Those who know my work may also know I have a slight obsession with ‘sheepsies’ – this photo of distant sheep in the fields was taken on Sunday, but my Springtime Splendour was not the first – nor likely to be the last! – featuring sheep.



Colour – and all the delicious combinations found in nature – are a great inspiration to me. The sky seen from my front door gave me the most beautiful palette for my Setting Sun pendant.



Inspiration doesn’t have to be translated directly, of course. My flowering honeysuckle last year inspired this bracelet – the colours were just so vibrant. I couldn’t resist putting together a palette of beautiful beads in the same colour scheme.



I also take inspiration from stories and fairy tales – several of my pendants, and many of my drawings are based on myth, legend and folklore. Here are two variations of one of my most popular designs – the wire goddess (originally created as an entry into the logo challenge for the Wire Goddess Team on Etsy – I didn’t win!).  When I'm asked to make these as commissions it's often to represent the wearer or a departed loved one, which is really quite humbling.



So what inspires you? What do you do to kick start your creativity if your muse has done a vanishing act?

Louise


A few more of Louise's lovely pictorial wire pendants available from her Etsy shop.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/LouiseGoodchild

16 comments:

  1. Absolutely beautiful work Louise and great to see what inspires your design. Thank you for writing for us today.

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  2. Nice to read this about Louise. I love the octopus and wire goddess pendants!

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  3. Beautiful work as always Louise, you have a distinctive style :)

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  4. Gorgeous pieces! I've never seen landscapes in wire before, your colors are amazing! So happy to have been 'introduced' to you. :) :)

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  5. Stunning work Louise! Enjoyed reading more about you!

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  6. Absolutely Amazing!!! I love your pieces and I'm so happy to see your work here on AJE!

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  7. I love this concept of scenic pendant - the setting sun and goddess are very beautiful

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  8. Gorgeous work - wow! Thanks for sharing this with us!

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  9. Gorgeous work,loved reading about what inspires you!

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  10. Oh my how Delicious your work is. I love where you get your inspirations from and how you translate them into pure beauty. I am so happy to have been introduced to your work!!!

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  11. Aw, thank you for the lovely comments, everyone! :) x

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  12. Oh, I saw your little sheepies on Flickr! I love your scenic pendants--the sunset and the castle are divine! I also love the medieval-inspired window with the flowering vines, I picture a Renaissance maiden at the sill, waiting for her knight!

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  13. Thank you so much for sharing your work and inspiration with us! I've never seen anything like your work before and I just love it!

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  14. What amazing and totally original work. I love your use of color and seeing all the things that inspire you. So glad to have been introduced to your work!

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