Judy Dunn lives in Acton, MA with her two daughters, husband and dog. She works out of a studio at home, where she can keep an eye and an ear out for the goings-on in the house, and enjoy the sights of her garden out her window. She has taken a less than traditional route to the artist studio. She studied chemistry, and eventually went on to get an MBA. After her kids were born she left the corporate world for good, and explored a number of new ventures, including making and selling custom window treatments, selling oriental rugs, and exploring the world of children’s book publishing, before eventually connecting with polymer clay. That was in the spring of 2003, and she knew almost immediately that this was what she was going to do with the rest of her life. Since that time she has won several awards for her work, and has published several articles about techniques in polymer clay.

Have you ever stopped to study how a blossom can be made up of many simple patterns in repetition? Or have you ever been engaged by the intricacies of the back of a leaf, or the surface of a star fish? I have found myself captured from time to time by these patterns in nature. What fascinates me is how a simple form repeated over and over again can create a more complex and intricate form. Patterns that seem impossible to understand can be more easily grasped at an elemental level.
I am playing with that idea these days. How can I combine simple shapes and forms in repetition to create a more engaging form? How can I take these forms and reinterpret them in a way that is reminiscent of nature, and yet thoroughly modern? By simplifying the elements, and focusing my attention on how to combine those elements, I am finding an infinite number of possible compositions.
Secondarily, I am taking a new looking at surface design. I am still intrigued by color. But the finish is more subdued. Pattern is more organic, as in the shibori series, or more subtle as in the mica shift pattern on the surface of the pod components. The edge of a component is as important to the composition as the primary surfaces. Highlighting these edges with leaf entirely changes the perception of a piece, reinforcing the overall form.
Finally, I am looking at ways to incorporate semi-precious materials with the clay. I love pearls and find that the luster of a pearl is a perfect accent to polymer clay. The new designs invite so many more opportunities to bring various semi-precious stones into play.....not as the star, but as an important element, nonetheless.