Chinese New Year 2021 on Friday, February 12 begins the Year of the Metal Ox. With my love of metals it inspired me to create a metal ox using my textile technique of copper wire crochet. Here is a look into my creative process:
It is tradition in Japan to send nengajo which are postcards decorated with the Chinese 12-year animal cycle. The Year of the Ox is called ushidoshi, 丑年, in Japanese. They can be traditional designs, kawaii, or my favorite as one-of-a-kind artworks. Whatever metal ox design I created I would need to then translate the image into a strong postcard design.
With the wire crocheted ox completed I now need to photograph it in a way to create the best file for printing. It did take some back and forth between Adobe Capture and Fresco to ensure I had the details just right to send the file to the printers. I added strong eyes and nostrils and cleaned up the flow of the wirework in the image. This interdisciplinary nature of my work really pushes me to see how many unique possibilities there are from a single idea.
Metal Ox Artwork
While I wait for the nengajyo to arrive from the printers I ordered a shadow box frame for the wirework piece. Added a unique wire signature and framed it. I had fun including the small signature “D” to the design providing balance to the overall metal ox image presented. This original wire crochet design is ready for hanging in the home of a strong ox. Worldwide shipping available and includes 8 of the resulting nengajo pictured further below.
Nengajo for 2021 Year of the Metal Ox
The nengajyo arrive and I LOVE them! Gorgeous glimmering raised gold image and Japanese kanji ushidoshi, 丑年, on a turquoise background. Just as I had pictured!
