Patterning is where the personal style of the artist comes through
yet there is so little effort made by most people to explore pattern
variations. Lamination is pure process, once you gain control of the
process there is nothing to it, patterning is where the magic
occurs. I occasionally teach a 2-5 day workshop on patterning where
we just focus on the ways to develop patterns in mokume gane.
There are 5 classes of pattern making for mokume gane I have
classified. I am sure someone could come up with more.
Horizontal Patterns
Cutting down from the face or front side of the mokume with chisels,
burs, mills, etching etc. The work is either cut into to expose the
lower layers and then forged or rolled flat again. The advantage to
this process is that it results in a flat sheet and is probably the
most used method.
A variation on the cutting down method is one where the billet is
carved to expose lower layers and left in relief this is called Guri
Bori and it is the original method of patterning mokume gane
developed by Denbi Shoami back in the 1700’s
Punching down (chasing style) is the second class of pattern
development. In this method the design areas on the front surface
are pressed down using punches or hammers. The whole face is then cut
down to the level of the punch depressions. This allows for very
controlled pattern development but requires lots of labor or machine
tools to level the face after the design in punched into it. This
method also results in a flat sheet and if complex punches are made
and impressed into the sheet with a press offers very repeatable
patterning.
Punching up from back (repousse style) The laminate is pushed up
from the back side by using punches and working on a resilient
surface like pitch or wood and then the front side is filed or cut
back to flush to expose the layers in the design. This method offers
the least control of the pattern and results in a uneven back side
and it is very easy to cut through if the punched impressions are too
deep.
Vertical Patterns
Ribbon forms (see George Sawyers work) This method starts during
lamination. The strips are folded back and forth like ribbon candy
then hammered flat to close the loops and soldered together and this
is repeated to form a block of material that has a pattern running
all the way through it. By slicing across the folds a strip or sheet
can be cut off the block that will have a mirror image relationship
the the place on the block it was cut from. This method works best
for making small items like rings.
Twisting/Forging
The laminated billet is deformed by twisting, forging etc to distort
the layers and may be further cut and forged to create greater
distortion. This method is used to produce the star pattern material
you see. A twisted bar is cut down the axis of the twist revealing a
repeating 4 pointed star.
HTH
Jim
James Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts