My initial encounter with polymer clay and it’s charms occurred in 1987 when I was working at a fabric and art supply store in San Francisco. As employees we were encouraged to learn about the materials we sold in order to better inform interested customers, and as friends we would play around and experiment. On one evening of experimentation Fimo was put on the table. My boss owned both a necklace of glass African trade beads and one of polymer clay that she would often wear together. Her polymer necklace was made by Martha Breen who had already established what looked to me like a successful company, selling to museum stores under the name Urban Tribe. I could see the similar process used in both materials where the image was constructed in 3-D and then revealed by cutting a cross section and I was intrigued. I began making beads that night inspired first by Martha’s candy-like canes, and later by the traditional textiles that I loved -older ethnic rugs and fabrics that speak in the incredibly rich language of patterns. The process itself, of constructing the image rather than painting it or creating it through a gesture, resonated with my own ways of working and I continue to use these techniques today. http://sarahshriver.com/