Article: Minimal Metalsmithing

Jewelry Discussion
41

The technique of PMC is the technique of Ceramics. My problem with
PMC is that it is used as imitation of traditional techniques. If it
is to be treated as artistic medium, it must stand on its own. Which
means the designs should be appropriate to express it plasticity.
Designs in metal, on the other hand, conveying the metal properties
like rigidity, flexibility, reflectivity, an etc.

The artist must true to its medium. The work done in traditional
technique imitating PMC should be equally rejected as the work done
in PMC imitating traditional techniques.

PMC will never replace traditional technique for many reasons. It is
a siren song that it is a good medium for beginners. It is not.
There are no shortcuts in learning working with metal. If one feels
that investment in time and tools is too much, then one can choose
another medium where requirements are less stringent. But one will
never become a true artist if all one does is faking traditional
techniques and trying to convince others that it is as good as the
original.

Leonid Surpin.

42 
I do agree that pieces made with PMC should be noted as being PMC,
not Fine Silver as is is my understanding the two are not
identical.

completely correct…think of it as the particle board of the craft
world,that happens to be made of metal particles- or Mitsubishi’s
industrial waste recycling program… except that there is no
formaldehyde to help preserve it!

R.E.Rourke

43

I got shot down when I suggested PMC was in fact a pyramid scheme
and that paying to sell it when it can be bought by anyone from a
wholesaler was as close to mlm as one could get ( read: pmc guild’s
certification scheme). all the pmc -ers wrote art is art. and while
ars longa vita brevis. my vita in playdough was breva a long time
ago.

the stuff doesn’t work. it can’t be remelted as Nanz put it and has
no viable uses in the metalsmithing world. I bought a bunch of the
24kt stuff (until I realized it was made by the detestsable
Mitsubishi corp.) thinking - oh great. shortcuts!! if I want a
strangely incorporated and shaped hinge, voila’ mould it, fire it and
solder it in place, or fuse it there. much to my amazement it had
zero crystalization capacity and the particles kind of sat there like
clay!.

so then I contacted Tim McCreight (lovely man whose contributions to
the self-education of many a metalsmith are profound), and he
confirmed my speculations on alloying it to make it stronger. which
I tried. it didn’t work. Later my suspicions were as yours, he must
be making financial gain from it. and is as their consultant, and has
been, as one of the first "to help develop it for the U. S. market
"as mitsubishi’s own reps put it.

It should as any art, be labelled with the medium used to make a
given piece.

Plain and simple, and a no-brainer there. that’s why JL Collier and
me, at least, were dumbfounded that Metalsmith magazine chose to
call it fine silver - it ain’t that. besides fine silver is a third
the cost of pmc. and then when one adds the bucks to teach it, or
resell it. we’re talking thousands to go up the ladder to the
highest certification levels. ( by the way anyone wishing
Certification in PMC: I’ll be happy to send you a beautifully
engraved diploma that states you are a Master PMC Artist! for only 10
bucks! if you submit any image of a piece of your pmc work. or at
least polymer or plasticene coloured silver, or gold that looks like
PMC. Why should PMC guild get all the revenue??)

actually I think it’s a great thing for say an OT department or camps
and schools to create a semi-permanent, albeit expensive, gift item,
or keepsake out of a metal-like product with no skills in jewelry
making necessary to form an adornment ( or in some cases - horrid
pieces of mixed media, being taught by the thoroughly untalented at
ridiculously high fees that they- M&K D- have been getting away with
for years, unscrupulously so) that is wearable. There are exceptions
as you said, Gordon Uyehara for example is a metal clay prodigy. but
lets be honest folks. anyone can stamp clay and bake it off and wear
it. but to sell it as fine jewelry when most are using CZ’s to"
embellish" it speaks volumes to me.

I suppose my main concern with the entire PMC thing is that people
are getting scammed. and scammed into thinking they are jewelers.
and soaked by a company that started out questionably at best
regarding human rights and ethics. (another reason for my puzzlement
at Tim’s involvement- not that I believe that patriotism has an iota
of credence, but that given their history, each individual must
choose to be associated with such a corporation or not). Art Clay has
had none of the MLM, or scamming that I have seen associated with the
PMC raquet. But I do know that when I posted a formula for making a
metal clay on about. com a few years back, Mitsubishi’s legal
department "recommended I cease and desist " and was potentially in
violation of their patent. which I in turn presented that “an art
material could not be monopolized” and since they Mitsubishi, was not
exemplary, or even compliant in upholding any legal judgments against
them, never heard from them again. So if you must use metal clay let
it be ART Clay, and if you must make adornments out of the stuff, or
enter it into jewelry competitions ( having a separate category to
acomodate that media) Please label it as metal clay.

44

Hello Orchidland,

Intersting discussion - however, I detect some conflict. Let’s not
get our knickers in a bunch over it. What follows is just my humble
opinion.

The metal clays are fun to play with and are an easy (albiet costly)
way for the average person to make some jewelry. I think that has
value.

When PMC first came out from Rio, I bought a few packs and a kiln,
then took a class at Catalog in Motion. The class really wasn’t
necessary to learn how to use the material, but I did enjoy the
instructor and others in the class!

It’s fun stuff, but I have found it too expensive to use in making
stock that will generate profit at a show. I do think that the metal
clays have some great applications when making a metal master for
casting or for trim that can be soldered to regular sterling. The
paper form is a cool product and relatively inexpensive to use,
especially to create texture for application or casting.

Again this is just MHO, and is worth exactly what it cost you! :wink:

Judy in Kansas

45 
No matter what you think of fabricating items in PMC, there is no
reason it is not as acceptable a medium for making your metal
master for casting as wax.

and there in lies the point. most metalsmiths and jewelers know how
to make our own molds and need not send anything off. To compare the
two as equal forms is not accurate. clay is clay is clay, it doesn’t
lend itself at all in the slightest to lost wax casting. you may copy
an object- or rather have it copied for you- but the application is
different, technique different, and cost absurd, when given that wax
is a 26th the price.

R. E. Roruke

46

Good morning one and all,

First, I am intrigued that so much attitude was read into Nanz’s
response. There are probably ten people on here who are so qualified
to offer opinions (i.e., via experience, credentials or both) that I
would literally pay them were I not able to get their thoughts for
free thanks to this site. Nanz is one of them even though I am
inclined to feel a little trepidation (“be careful what you ask for”)
when she responds to a question of mine because she can be brutally
honest.

Now to the topic at hand: having no vested interest in PMC, I didn’t
find her rude or insulting. She voiced two very true facts: 1) PMC is
not feasible for production work (logical); 2) it opened up a whole
market to people who could not previously produce metal jewelry.

(Yes, lack of skill would be a reason people are unable to produce
metal jewelry.) What is interesting is how people took those two
generic statements and suddenly made them personal.

In any venue, there is beauty and crap. Some PMC artists do amazing
things and some don’t. Nothing unique to PMC; just the way it is
across the board in any medium. So, people need to stop assuming
their own individual work is being attacked during the course of this
conversation. If there is something wrong with a piece having a
clay-like aspect in its design, then why are you using PMC? One can’t
have it both ways… either you are fine with your method or you
aren’t but bottom line: you are starting with a clay product.

It is also safe to say that PMC’s development is a direct result of
a society driven by immediate gratification and low cost.

James Binnion, who by far is one of the most experienced metalsmiths
on here in terms of metals’ interaction, cohesiveness and all other
facets, addressed the nature of PMC and where it falls short. Sorry
to all the PMC artists, but your opinions just don’t carry the same
weight because you are simply touting the line given to you by the
manufacturer. (Yes, Mr. Binnion is also one of my ten.)

The solution is simple: any item made from PMC should be labeled as
such. Let the consumer decide if it matters. Let those who use the
product as their means to be artists, continue to do so knowing that
they now have to identify the means with which they are producing the
end result and proactively address any repair questions if they
arise… unless they feel that putting a PMC mark on their piece
somehow undermines it… in which case, then perhaps we know why
there is so much bluster going on.

As for myself, irrespective of how many people tell me that PMC is
durable, I will continue to make my pieces the old-fashioned way
because those methods are proven to last and I create pieces that are
intended to be handed down through a family’s generations. So, while
PMC has its own niche, I am pleased that it does not impact my niche
at all.

Cameron

47 
No matter what you think of fabricating items in PMC, there is no
reason it is not as acceptable a medium for making your metal
master for casting as wax.

I have done this a number of times, and the only problem was that
the caster was a little put off when he realized that his price
quote to me, based on the weight of the original, was wrong because
the original was light for its volume. I didn’t mind that he had to
adjust the price, but I think it embarassed him to have to come back
to me about it. So tell your caster clearly up front that the
original is PMC!

Noel

48 
The only 2 limiting factors in creating objects directly in metal
are skill and imagination.

As opposed to creating objects in metal clay, which is limited by…
uh, skill and imagination! ;>)

Noel

49

Ian,

unfortunately it will look the part, but won’t hold up…24kt is soft
stuff to begin with, it won’t stick to the brass (temperature 's are
wrong)…You could make pieces out of some more modern ceramic
materials and then coat those with 24Kt metal clays, but the 22kt
metal clay accessory known as “aura 22” would work as well.: look at
it as if it were a glaze on a clay…I too initially thought, oh man!
shortcuts, and restorations of granulated pieces in 24Kt…but was
sadly and expectedly let down after a number of trials with things
from statuary to rings and brooches, and even hardware ( pocket door
pull decorations and ecclesiastical painting and decorating
contracting restorations to be exact), It is simply non adhesive with
any strength and won’t endure time,elements, uses, or do much other
than mucking up your projects…and the cost: better to leaf things
than to pmc them…

R.E.Rourke

50 
Tim McCreight finds that PMC has the density of cast fine silver.

This statement, and I will be checking with Tim, to see if he said
it, is a physics, and particulate impossibility. plain, simple
scienctific fact.

PMC has nowhere near the density as fine silver. Even after firing,
the particles do not crystallise and therefore, it is not only a
structural impossibility, but a minerological one. not to mention
the fact that to gain the kind of density pure silver has, one would
need astounding pressure and heat to drive off the binder, and
hypersinter it into something with even 2/3rd’s the strength of.
999Ag. Oh and .999 Ag can come into contact with Al without problems.
PMC cannot… it is clay and more suited for potters then, than
jewelers…

R. E. Rourke

51

When I was first forwarded a copy of the post that Nanz Aalund made
to the Orchid forum, I was angered and dismayed a reaction that many
of you shared. While I do not insist that my staff members all hold
the same opinions about the various media that we cover in Art
Jewelry, I do expect that they show respect to those who use those
media. Nanz’s primary area of expertise is in traditional
metalsmithing, and it was that for which she was valued at the
magazine.

Since its inception, Art Jewelry has valued metal clay as a medium,
and has included projects from talented artists. Metal clay has
always been a part of the mission statement of the magazine. Every
Editor who has been at the head of Art Jewelry, from Candice St.
Jacques, who was in charge of the first single-issue publication, to
Dori Olmesdahl, who guided the magazine through its first year and a
half, to myself, has been proud to include metal clay projects and
finished jewelry in the magazine’s pages. We have worked hard to
build relationships with individual metal clay artists and various
metal clay communities by becoming involved with various
competitions, publishing work by talented artists, and lending our
name and financial support to conferences, including the first-ever
PMC Guild Conference in London, which just took place last month. I
have always felt that it’s not only the responsibility of
publications such as mine to encourage and support the growth of a
relatively new medium, but that it’s a privilege to be able to
observe the emergence and evolution of such a radically new art form.

So, I did take very seriously indeed what was said in a public forum
by one of my employees, who posted under her affiliation with Art
Jewelry. Nanz Aalund did not speak on behalf of Art Jewelry on the
topic of metal clay, whether on the Orchid forum or in any other
public venue, and she is no longer associated with Art Jewelry
magazine.

If anyone would like to discuss this matter with me, either through
the group or through e-mail, I will be happy to respond to the extent
that I am able to do so.

Hazel Wheaton, Editor, Art Jewelry magazine

52 
And the discussion of why it does or doesn't make sense to use PMC,
given the long history of metalsmithing

Let’s see, PMC and metalsmithing in the same sentence, When someone
makes something from PMC or Art Clay, and files or solders it the
initial piece was not created from metalsmithing, Some might take
issue that casting is different than fabrication, however to
fabricate
you start by casting an ingot, and to me whether you cast an ingot or
a ring, definition of casting is pouring a liquid into a mold and
letting it harden without pressure.

Since PMC is never taken to a liquid state, the basic form is not
arrived at in the same way. To me the bottom line is, if done right,
does PMC have the structural integrity that products produced by
traditional methods have, and if it does not, it has an inherent
flaw that all the creativity of design does not mitigate. If someone
makes PMC without any filing or soldering, I do not think they can
use the word metalsmith. How about sinterer? The process used to make
something changes our perspective or the object and the way we
relate to it. I don’t think there will be any antique furniture made
of particle board. If something is formed and fired the way clay is,
it seems that it is more related to ceramics by process.

Choice edible mushrooms just starting to appear in the Colorado
mountains, and this will be a great year from all the rain we have
had.

Richard Hart

53 
I wonder how many pieces you have created with metal clay to be
able to come to this erroneous conclusion. Let us know your
experience, will you? Instead of making accusations that are
completely uninformed.

having created many metal clay ceramics…I have many years skill as
a goldsmith and can assure you that it cannot be forged, annealed,
rolled well, or any other traditional skill involved in making
precious metal jewlery Not to metnion the cost, MLM scheme, pyramid
scheme and con game that PMC certification is while Art Clay is not
as covertly devious- both materials, I suspect the entire meta clay
trip will be a fad that will just go away in a few years after the
market becomes saturated with PMC and art clay objects, that if were
as you say, would be being bought up for little money and remelted,
but again, that is not possible…

R.E.Rourke

54

After reading the discussions both on the Orchid listserv and the
Yahoo Metal Clay discussion group, I’ve been struck by the
similarlities in Nanz’ messages and many I read when digital
photography was starting to make headway into the phtographic world.

I started out in Photography in 1968 with a minolta srt. Over the
years, I perfected my craft, studying with wonderful artists like
Ansel Adams and Galen Rowell. I had a full B&W darkroom setup and
when cibachrome rolled around, I moved into color processing.

Then Digital came along. it was first viewed as a fad. then for the
point and shoot crowd - not “real professionals”. today I doubt that
there are few professional photographers around that don’t have at
least one digital camera. and unless you bulk load your own, it’s
getting harder to find black & white 35 mm film - or color film in a
variety of low exposure rates for that matter. There will probably
(hopefully) always be film for photographer who chooses to use it,
but digital photography has become an additional tool that most
serious photographers wouldn’t to give up.

Nanz and other metalsmiths who denigrate metal clay are perhaps as
short sighted as the early naysayers of digital photography.

why not just see it as one more tool in your arsenal, rather than a
threat to jewelrymaking on a grand scale? Are there situations where
I would not use metal clay? absolutely. but there are many
circumstances under which I’d much prefer to use metal clay to the
fabrication techniques I learned at the Maine College of Art.

I just completed a lovely two-sided pendant with a large bezel set
turquoise cab on one side. Both sides have deeply incised designs
taken from navaho and hopi woven baskets, highlighted in LOS. The
pendant is complemented by an incised toogle clasp, using the same
designs as the pendant, but in miniature. 6 one-inch lozenge beads
with similar native american designs are strung as a part of the
necklace. These were all made in Art Clay Silver, and the native
american designs were quicky sized and produced using photopolymer
plates. the plates for all the pieces took less than a half hour to
produce. The entire necklace, start to finish, to less than a day to
conceive, fabricate and finish stringing. carving or creating rolling
plates to create the same incised designs would have taken much
longer and the end result might not have been as good.

Judy Haupin

55 
Fired and fully sintered metal clay, is fine silver or 22K gold and
may be filed, cut, hammered, dropped, scratched, annealed, forged,
bent, you name it, add infinitum.

What is so wonderful about metal working and what PMC lacks is
metals amazing ductility and malleability.

When you can take a 5 mm thick slab of PMC punch a ring out of that
slab with a finger size of 6, 2mm wide and fire it then stretch it
up to a size 11 and back down to a size 7 without annealing or
breaking it then I will believe you that fired PMC has the same
properties as wrought fine silver. PMC is porous as are all powdered
metal products without the use of special processes to close up the
pores. And pores make it weak.

There is a company that makes seamless wedding rings from powdered
metals. They need to be easily resizeable by the jewelers who sell
them. To make them they press the metal powder with 40 tons per
square inch to achieve 80% of theoretical density pre firing. Then
the preforms are placed in a high vacuum to remove water and other
contaminates before firing then fired in a controlled reducing
atmosphere. At this point they are at 95% of theoretical density.
They are pressed again and re fired to further close any pores.
After that final firing they achieve 99% of theoretical density which
is similar to a well cast item. They can then pass the above test.
There is no way PMC comes near that in density, ductility or
maleability.

Jim

James Binnion
@James_Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts

360-756-6550

56

I am flabergasted and saddened to hear that Nanz Aalund has been
fired from her position with Art Jewelry because of what she said
about PMC. I read her post carefully, and found it to be a
logical,candid evaluation of the material. I am surprised people
took offense at what she reported, and disappointed that Art Jewelry
has dismissed her. I wonder if Art Jewelry’s reaction is based on
fear of offending your advertisers—many of whom sell PMC in its
various forms?

Alma Rands

57

Debra,

Let me state up front that I am not a user of PMC, Metal Clay, etc.
I believe however, that these materials certainly have a place in the
greater toolbox of metalsmithing, jewelry making and small sculpture
techniques.

I saw the PMC exhibition at the SNAG conference in Memphis and I was
impressed by some of the work. Cece Wire’s barn and silo ring was a
clean, beautiful and evocative piece. Claire Holiday’s brooch (the
cover of the most recent Metalsmith) is also a particularly well
rendered object. I had the pleasure of teaching for Claire in san
Antonio and held the piece. It was dense, well finished and
beautifully made.

I read Nanz’s post on what she perceived to be the short comings of
this material. While she may have demonstrated a lack of information
about and current experience with the new generations of metal clay I
would not consider her post an “attack” on either the material or
those who use it. Perhaps she could have chosen her words more
carefully or familiarized herself more thoroughly with her subject.

But allow me also to say that this line in your response could be
construed as a statement made with a similar lack of understanding or
depth about the possibilities offered by traditional metalsmithing
technologies:

I am currently learning some "traditional" metalsmithing skills to
add to my Metal Clay work. But truly, I can find so many ways to
create/work with Metal Clay that cannot be done with sheet or wire
or casting. On the other hand I see so few things that can be done
with sheet/wire/casting/etc. that cannot be done with Metal Clay.

It certainly demonstrates, to my eyes, an uninformed bias. While
results similar to those achieved by traditional processes may be
possible with metal clay in the hands of certain practitioners, I
have seen a fair share of poorly executed PMC/metal clay work
presented by those calling themselves “jewelers”; work that would
have benefited from exposure to more traditional technologies and
better technical choices and implementations.

Our field is one that is constantly expanding in the technical,
thematic and conceptual arenas. We have embraced and incorporated
many new and, perhaps at the time, strange procedures and materials.
We have borrowed from other craft and art disciplines, from industry
and from applied science. We are members of a field that is
wonderfully open to recognizing new possibilities and then applying
them.

I think that the problem for some metalsmiths and jewelers is what
they --sometimes I-- perceive to be the attitude put forth by some
metal clay practitioners that PMC and Metal Clay are substitutes for
other processes and materials, yielding results that are faster, just
as good, more easily learned – and therefore superior-- to
traditional approaches.

Certain materials and processes yield better results in specific
instances than others. It really is a matter of selecting the proper
tool from the box. PMC and Metal Clay are simply that: tools in the
box.

58

Dear Ian,

Would it be possible to use the 24 carat gold metal clay to
reproduce fire gilding (mercurial gilding)?

The short answer is, unfortunately, no. First they don’t produce the
24K gold clay anymore. And second, the clay won’t bond to brass. It
can capture" brass and other items, but then you have to worry about
the high heat that is required to fir the clay.

Btw, the 22K gold clay is an alloy of fine silver and 24K gold. Only
pure metals are used in the manufacture of the clays, just fyi.

It is also a very expensive material. Much more expensive than
buying traditional forms of metals.

Laura

59 
whether one makes the finished art valid and another does not....
that is a long and possibly, a never ending conversation.

What, again?!?!? I’ve never used PMC, likely never will - I’m with
James Miller on that. I’m put off by the shrinkage factor, mostly.
But whatever floats yer boat…It’s true it looks like PMC,
though.

60

Dear James,

I think your misunderstanding is that the binder LEAVES the silver
when fired. In particle board the binder stays in the material.

However, metal unlike wood, FUSES with itself if heated to a high
enough temperature. Right? Got it?

Laura