Nature Inspired Art Clock Commissions

One rewarding aspect of making art clocks over the years is the opportunity to design and create clocks on commission. For about 7 years I've been working with L'Attitude Gallery in Boston to create custom wall clocks for the Boston Children's Hospital. I've made giant dragonflies, an airplane, a sailboat, a giant crab, three horizontal cityscape clocks and, more recently, I created several “Ode to Trees” block clocks.

“Ode to Trees 2” is a 30-inch-long wall clock rendered in various shades of orange and green. Two whimsical trees painted on 3” square blocks make up the center of the clock body. A whole lot of love goes into these clocks. The tree designs are carefully drawn in black marker, then painted with layers of color washes to create a surreal environment. Contemporary numbers are drawn on the clock face in gold paint marker. The clocks feature an open window near the bottom that houses a swinging pendulum. Black and gold scalloped patterns decorate every circle opening.

The inspiration for the 'Ode' clocks comes from my love of nature, particularly trees. I live in a place (Portland, Oregon, USA) where trees are abundant. All kinds of trees. Walking around (and around) my neighborhood with our border collie pup, I have plenty of opportunities to take notice of the variety of trees that grow and thrive here. A mild climate paired with steady rainfall make for a very happy tree community. Towering heritage elms overhang the width of a street, creating forever shade. Delicate Japanese maples provide the focal point for many a landscape. Not to mention the wide variety of pine trees...

Of course, one thing always leads to another, and at the start of 2012 I found myself 'branching out', if you will. I was commissioned to create a wall clock in the Ode style, but with whimsical flowers instead of trees. The challenge with custom work is usually the color palette and this project was no different. The intended room was a nursery and images of art on the walls and a rug were my starting point – and the Ode to Trees design, of course. In the end I came up with these fun, stylized flower designs, complete with a butterfly on one stem. I chose a mountain motif for the flowers' backdrop and a sunset for the sky. And so, the “Ode to Flowers (numero uno)” was born!

Monsters, Gift Bags & Patches - Recycled, Upcycled at The Village Art Show

The Village, a non-profit promoting the sharing of art and culture, and also a spin off on Northwest Share, is holding its first ever art show this Saturday, August 15 from 2 to 6 pm at 4144 SE 60th Ave, next to Coffee Lovers.



Because we live so close, Jonah and I thought it would be fun to participate in this free community event, meet a few artists and art lovers (as well as coffee lovers, right?) and share some of our newest creations.



I'll be offering a selection of one-of-a-kind embroidered patches that make use of fabric scraps and garage sale embroidery floss.





Jonah will be offering his practically famous DIY monster iron-ons, monster cards and a selection of his watercolor art.




Last but not least, my reusable cloth gift bags will be available for sale. They come in several sizes and all sorts of fun materials from sample upholstery to upcycled scraps from my grandma!

The Wedding Gift Clock

I know it's been a little while since I've posted, but don't think I haven't been working, and then some....we recently moved (that's mostly the work I was referring to...) back to the east side of Portland, which I am very happy about. I miss the tall, tall trees and the acre for Jonah (our 8 yr. old son) to romp in, but being able to walk and bike to virtually everything has us revisiting the idea of giving up our vehicle - that and the $4.33 per gallon of gasoline!
I wanted to show off my latest earth-friendly clock design. It is another tall one - 6" x 24" - and it was made as a gift for friends of ours who got married in April. I always like making something new for somebody and then offering it as part of my line. So, in the spirit of the rest of my earth-friendly wall clock designs, here is the "Rising Song Long" in barn red and pumpkin orange! (Oh, and it'll be available on our website soon!)

"Rising Song Long" pendulum wall clock [barn red/pumpkin orange/taupe] / 6" x 24" / $115

...and, a close-up...

A Brief History of Infinity Arts Now On Flickr!

This is still a work in progress, but there is already a good range of current 2008 clock designs and some of the oldest clock designs from 2000. In the end, it should contain about 200 images documenting the history in images of Infinity Arts handcrafted clocks - enjoy!

-CLICK TO BROWSE THE INFINITY ARTS CLOCK ARCHIVES at flickr-

Custom Wall Clocks For Children - Joshie's Giraffe

After making this giraffe wall clock (more about that later), I wanted to write a little bit about children's wall clocks. While I have made many custom children's wall clocks over the years and, up until recently, offered a line of children's wall clocks through our website, I decided recently that I would no longer offer the line. The main reason being that the clocks are so jigsaw intensive to cut out that I have to price them too high. Instead, I intend to include a small section of photos of the children's clocks that I've made as a portfolio of my style of children's clock.

Joshie's Giraffe is the first children's clock I've made in a very long time, so I'm excited about it and want to show it off. I made it for a baby friend of mine, whose nursery has a jungle theme. The clock is made using sdf (sustainable design board) made from 100% recycled wood pulp and painted with milk paints (voc-free). Earth-friendly equals baby-friendly! It is painted a pumpkin orange with chocolate brown, rich red-orange and cream accents. It has lots of little handpainted design details as well as handpainted numbers on the face for easy readability at the 4am diaper change.

Here are a few more shots, including close-up, detail images - enjoy! And, contact me if you would like to have a wall clock made for your child's room.

Sustainability Fair - February 10th @ the Hip Drip Cafe in Portland

We are very pleased to be a part of the first ever Sustainability Fair in Portland this Sunday. We

will be there talking up our new materials - sustainable design fiberboard (sdf) and milk paints - as well as peddling a selection of our brand new Earth-Friendly clock designs and recycled art. See you there!

Earth-Friendly Wall Clocks

As you may or may not know, we announced almost 7 months ago that we intended to focus on finding earth-friendly materials to make our wall clocks, home decor and art. Here are the first of our clock designs using sustainable design fiberboard (sdf) and milk paints, which are voc-free. I'm very excited about the richness of the new color palette and about all of the lovely color combinations I have yet to try.

And, just in case you think "earth-friendly" always means "expensive", I think you'll be pleasantly surprised to discover that the new clocks are just as reasonably priced, if not more affordable, than ever they were!

I'll be posting more in early February, too, so check out the one-of-a-kind clock section at infinityartsgallery.com for the latest updates.

"Orange With Ivy" earth-friendly pendulum wall clock - SOLD!

"New Tribe" earth-friendly pendulum wall clock - DETAILS (at infinityartsgallery.com)

"Spiral Groove" earth-friendly pendulum wall clock - DETAILS (at infinityartsgallery.com)

"Green Spin" earth-friendly pendulum wall clock - DETAILS (at infinityartsgallery.com)

"Woody" earth-friendly pendulum wall clock - DETAILS (at infinityartsgallery.com)

Mary & Cindy Block Clocks - Contemporary, Pendulum Wall Clocks

Without being too personally revealing, I would like to offer this post as a kind of gratitude-offering for the people I have been honored to creatively collaborate with recently and for all of the creative endeavors happening all around me.

This series is called the Mary & Cindy Block Clock Series. They are a collaboration between me (Mary) and my mother-in-law (Cynthia). She painted all of the pretty flowers, real and imaginary, on 3x3-inch squares. After living in a shoebox for over a year, I layed them out, designed, dreamed, painted and made them into block clocks. I'm happy with how they turned out - I think our unique forms of creative expression combine quite nicely into a wall clock. My mother-in-law, like all of the Potts clan, is creatively gifted and particularly gifted at painting and drawing. Her flowers and heart flowers! are absolutely dreamy.

There are 6 of them, each one-of-a-kind and $45 each. They are available at our etsy store and at our website, InfinityArtsGallery.com.

#1 - Details (infinityartsgallery.com website)

#2 - Details (infinityartsgallery.com website)

#3 - Details (infinityartsgallery.com website)

#4 - Details (infinityartsgallery.com website)

#5 - Details (infinityartsgallery.com website)

#6 - Details (infinityartsgallery.com website)

Also, these designs are some of my first pendulum wall clocks made using 100% recycled sdf (sustainable design board) and non-voc milk paints. The flower blocks are painted using acrylic paints. I hope to post a separate blog about our earth-friendly new clocks very soon.

-Mary Preiser Potts

Infinity Arts at Crafty Wonderland this Sunday!

Hi there, I've been busy, busy, busy on a multitude of things - aside from writing blog posts! So, I wanted to stop in and say that if you live in or near Portland, you can come see us at Crafty Wonderland this Sunday from 11-4 at the Doug Fir, located on East Burnside in Portland. Along with 40 or so other great artists, we'll be selling handcrafted contemporary clocks and art just as on the website, but if you come to Crafty Wonderland, we'll offer you a ripping local discount!
See you there! Mary

Custom Cityscape Clock for Boston Children's Hospital

Justin and I are home from Hawaii and I hope to post a few photos as soon as I finish playing catchup! But first, I wanted to post the new custom clock that I finished just before leaving for the land of Aloha. I've been working with a gallery in Boston over the last few years, creating clocks for a children's hospital there. Here is the newest of 3 cityscape clocks and a glimpse of other children's clocks I've made for the children's hospital in the past...

Cityscape 3 Wall Clock / approximately 12" x 45"

Cityscape 2 Wall Clock / approximately 12" x 45"

Johnhanclock Cityscape Wall Clock / approximately 10" x 40"

Airplane Clock / approximately 24" length

Dragonfly Clock / Approximately 24" tall

I'll be back later with my newest Block Clock art clock designs!

Custom Art Clock Design

NUMBER 46 by Mary Preiser Potts

I am currently working on a custom version of a large wall clock that I designed and made the prototype of almost 3 years ago. The original art clock was 22" wide (at the widest point) and 54" long (including the pendulum). The custom version is smaller than the original and, as such, is posing some interesting challenges for me. In the original art clock, the center gold area with the small circles running down it, including the little bit coming out from the bottom of the clock was the pendulum. It was huge! In order to perform this feat, I had to use a heavy-duty pendulum drive, which sticks out from the back of the clock 2.5 inches. In order to hide this pendulum-driving beast from the side view of the clock, I built a frame around it so that only the frame would be visible from the side...

Well, this time around, because the clock is much narrower, and because my client foresees that much of the time the clock will be seen from the side, the idea of the frame being exposed from the sides is just too much for either of us to bear! So, the center gold area between the violet-mauve bars will be stationary - no movement. The pendulum will just consist of the large gold circle at the bottom. I think it is a great variation on the design and I really don't think the lack of movement down that center strip will take anything away from the overall look of the art clock.

Custom NUMBER 46 in progress

So, this is what I have been up to for the last few weeks....well, that and working on Justin's new album cover with him. If you're a fan of indie rock and experimental music, then click on over to Justin Potts' myspace page!

I have some new block clocks laid out and hope to post some new designs next week!

An Infinity Arts Feature Has Bloomed At Indie Quarter

We would like to thank the folks over at Indie Quarter for featuring our wall clocks and art yesterday - Indie Quarter is a UK independent design blog with lots of cool handmade items. Click here to check out our feature!

Spring Equinox Clocks!

Happy Spring Equinox!

Today is my 33rd birthday and I have to say that I get more excited about the beginning of Spring than I do about my birthday! Although, who can complain about home-made cards and cake?! And, what could be better (and more confusing) than being a Pisces-Aries cusp girl?
To celebrate, I have created a new group of Spring-y wall clocks with Spring-y names to ring in my favorite season. HOP, SKIP, JUMP, LEAP & BOUNCE are their names, the colors are fun and the designs are loose. They are a continuation of my "sidebar" series, but the clock style is a little different than the first group...

HOP by Mary Preiser Potts / 7½" x 16¼" / $90 / sold

SKIP by Mary Preiser Potts / 6½" x 16¾" / $90 / purchase

JUMP by Mary Preiser Potts / 7" x 17½" / $90 / sold

LEAP by Mary Preiser Potts / 6½" x 16¼" / $90 / sold

BOUNCE by Mary Preiser Potts / 8" x 22½" / $110 / sold

Also, if you haven't checked it out yet, the Spring Sale at Infinity Arts Gallery is in full swing. What's that? You haven't heard? Well, you get to take 25% off a wide selection of our art clocks and wall art. Enjoy!

Without further ado I call for spring fever to begin....NOW!!!

Ode to Trees...

Our Spring Sale is still happenin' at Infinity Arts Gallery, so click on over to see what we're offering at 25% off!!!
Jonah and I returned from a week in sunny Dallas, Texas last Thursday. Justin was busy recording songs while we were away; I, of course, was busy teaching my mother how to build a website; and, though no fish were actually caught, Jonah got in a much needed fishing trip with his Grampie (Justin and I have an aversion to sticking hooks through fishies' mouths)! So, I apologize for the lack of brand new clock designs, but I am working on 5 or so new ones and hope to have them ready to shoot by week's end - so check back!

I just wanted to share that someone took advantage of the introductory price of $225 on the ODE TO TREES Block Clock and bought it!

"ODE TO TREES" by Mary Preiser Potts / 12" x 33½" / SOLD!

I still have the SEEDS TO TREES Block Clock and the introductory price of $375 is still on for the rest of the week (until St. Patty's Day), so if this clock calls to you, then act fast!

"SEEDS TO TREES" by Mary Preiser Potts / 15" x 40" / Intro price: $375 / purchase

Cheers!

Early Spring Sale & 2 New Block Clocks!

Justin and I have decided that we're ready to move on into Spring - a little early perhaps, but the Groundhog did say....

So, please hurry to Infinity Arts Gallery because we're taking 25% off most of our art clocks and wall art pieces!

My latest 2 Block Clocks were a painstaking labor of love. They are extreme experiments in wall art clock design and I know they are just perfect for someone out there!

The first, "Block Clock - Seeds to Trees" is a massive composition of seed and tree designs with an assertive 15" golden ochre face. The introductory price is $375 (after St. Patty's, $425).

"Block Clock - Seeds to Trees" by Mary Preiser Potts / 15" x 40" / Intro: $375 / Purchase.

"Block Clock - Seeds to Trees" Detail with pendulum.

Number 2 - "Block Clock - Ode to Trees" is a tribute to the quiet giants in my back yard. This clock came to me all at once, like a vision in black and white. But try as I did to maintain that first vision, this piece evolved in its own special way, including the bold mixing of peacock blue, with deep rusty red and several shades of green. The introductory price is $225 (after St. Patty's, $275).

"Block Clock - Ode to Trees" by Mary Preiser Potts / 12" x 33½" / Intro: $225 / SOLD!

"Block Clock - Ode to Trees" Detail

I should be back later this week to give you the first glimpse of Justin's new clocks! Happy Spring!