History of Clay : Bakelite,
an early plastic used in both practical and decorative applications,
was extremely popular with designers and had an early form of polymer
clay available in kits, but the phenol base of uncured Bakelite was flammable
and these were discontinued. Modern polymer clays are based on a
plastic modeling compound brought to the attention of German doll maker
Kaethe Kruse in 1939 as a possible replacement for plastics that had
become difficult to obtain during the early days of World War II.
It was not suitable for use in her doll factory, so Kruse turned it
over to her daughter Sophie, who was known in the family as "Fifi". The
formulation was later sold to Eberhardt Faber and marketed under the
name "FIMO" (FIfi's MOdeling Compound) in honor of Sophie Rehbinder-Kruse.
Meanwhile, in the early 1940s, Zenith Products Company was founded in
Schiller Park, Illinois, USA. Zenith began as a company that
manufactured coatings for the fastener industry: waxes, hot melt
compounds, and electrical insulating varnishes. The product "Sculpey"
was originally formulated for potential use as a thermal transfer
compound - to conduct heat away from the cores of electrical
transformers. However, this formulation was not successful for that
purpose, so the compound was temporarily shelved. A visitor to the
manufacturing plant was "doodling" with a lump of the clay-like
substance and created a small figure. It was then baked in a lab testing
oven - and Sculpey
was "discovered" as a sculpture medium. This happened in the mid
1960's. By 1967, it was being manufactured and sold on a small scale in
the United States.
The history of polymer clay as an art medium is only decades long,
unlike many media that have been around for centuries and have long
traditions. This newness means that there is a great deal of innovation
by users of polymer clay. Often, ideas are born by borrowing from the
traditions of some other materials, such as metalworking (mokume-gane), ceramics, glass (millefiori, lampwork),
paper, etc. There also is extensive derivation inside the medium
itself, as the attributes of this accessible medium lend themselves to
sharing and copying.
Polymer art jewelry is now part of the permanent collections of the
Museum of Art and Design in New York, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston,
the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Racine Art Museum, and others.
Polymer Clay accessory making has become increasingly popular in the
younger generation especially with the new communication methods like
the internet. Online, various sites like Youtube.com have become a
nesting ground for new techniques and ideas to spread, as well as a
place for artists and hobbyists to show their creations.
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