Success of Bone & Rust Art Co.

I recently have been posting about my first booth at the Juke Joint Festival. I wanted to write an article and let you know how I did in sales and on making new friends. I sold several pieces of jewelry, art, and a few sculptures. I sold a Chicken-Wire Taxidermy Deer Form sculpture to a lady from Atlanta, GA, a Dog Skull Cross to one of my friends from Clarksdale, MS, a huge cross made from chrome that came off of an old ford truck to acouple from out of town, a Salvaged Copper Wire Cross to my fifth grade teacher, and a Wooden Cut-Out of Mississippi to my friend's mom. I also sold a  paintings and at least eight pieces of jewelry.

Jewelry:

1)"Entangled Teeth" (Raccoon Teeth) (Earrings)

2)"Snake Vertebrae & Pink Pearls" (Earrings)

3)"Pick Your Fight" (Guitar Pick) (Necklace)

4)"Skeleton Key" (Necklace)

5)"Glass Beads" (Necklace)

6)"Glass Beads" (Necklace)

7)"Leather Cross Cuff" (Bracelet)

8)"Relic" (Necklace)

Painting Artworks:

1)"All Eyes On The Wierd Girl" (Painting on 11x14 / Canvas Panel)

2)"Untitled" (Painting on 8x10 / Canvas Panel)

3)"Cotton in the Field, Cotton in the Sky" (Painting on 4x12 / Streatched Cotton Canvas)

4)"The Patch-Worker" (Painting on 4x12 / Streatched Cotton Canvas)

5)"Disaperaing History" (Painting on Streatched Oval Cotton Canvas)

6)"Patch-Work Landscape" (Painting on 12x12 / Streatched Cotton Canvas)

7)"Plug-Head" (Experimental Painting on 11x14 / Canvas Panel)

8)"Pillbug-Man" (Experimental Painting on 11x14 / Canvas Panel)

9)"Untitled" (Painting on 8x10 / Canvas Panel)

Sculpture Artworks:

1)"Life As We Know It" (Modge-Podged Images on Found Object / Salvaged Metal Self)

2)"Chicken-Wire Taxidermy Deer Form" (Chicken-Wire, Deer skull with Antlers, and Deer Jaw)

3)"Dog Cross" (Real Dog / Coyote Skull, Epoxy, and Wooden Cross Painted White)

4)"Ford Chrome Cross" (Cross Made From Chome Embelishments from a Vintage Ford Truck)

5)"Mississippi License Plate Cut-Out on Wood" (Assemblage on old Cypress Wood)

6)"Twisted Copper-Wire Cross" (Copper-Wire Hand-Bent into a Cross)

7)"Abandoned Spaces" (Mississippi Salvaged Wood Cut-Out with Hand-Textured Front)

Jewelry Debuting At The Juke Joint Festival

"Leather Cross Cuff No.1" 2014 by Britt Burchfield

"Cotton Boll Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield

"Tire Swing Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"Oh! Deer!" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"Entangled Teeth Earrings No.1" by Britt Burchfield 

"Skeleton Key Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"The Pulley & The Prism Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"The Craftsman Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"Bamboo Panel Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"Leather & Spring Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"Elegant D.N.A. Necklace" 2014 by Britt Burchfield 

"Untitled Necklace" 2013 by Britt Burchfield 

Our Debut: The Juke Joint Festival 2014

   The public debut of Bone & Rust Art Company is just one week away, so I am getting excited. It's not only an adventure for me, but a step out on a limb; a step away from being an artist who just paints. I am making this session because as an artist I don't won't just one thing associated with my name, I want a million possibilities to be at my reach. I have come to the realization in my personal life and life as a creative spirit, that: It's not about the time you spent, but the technique in with you did it. I have prayed over the past few weeks that all will go well next Saturday, that I have enough artworks and products, and that I meet more people than I can remember! I also have prayed that I make a name for myself. I want to be able to make something that touches the life of another person, because Art is supposed to do that and if it doesn't than what good is it? I want someone to see a piece of mine and say, that's from Bone & Rust Art Co. and tell others about it. In life so far I've had three artist mentors. Bradley Gordon, Hayden Hall, and Randall Andrews have all inspired me and encouraged me along my path as an artist and as a young man starting out with a long road ahead. I look at them and see Clarksdale's Van Gogh, Piccaso, and Basquiat. Men who are and will be remembered for who they were and the art that they gave to the people. Two of these three men that I look up to own pieces of my art, one owns at least four of my artworks and the other owns one piece. I love discusing new ideas and projects with them. They give me their honest feedback and that's one reason I look up to them. I have been packing up all of my art pieces and products for the Juke Joint Festival and I've almost packed it all into boxes and bags. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't scared for a bad result, or loosing profit from is journey that I've been making over the past two years. All I can do is advertise, pray, and show up. Can't wait to meet all the people who come from out-of-state and other countries.

Progress of Procrastination

I sometimes take breaks from art projects. When I feel like giving up or letting an idea go, I take a break and do something else till I find inspiration again to go one or finish the project. It may be a month or just a day, whatever it takes to be inspired again. I sometimes work on three to four projects at a time, it depends on how difficult they are. We'll I guess it's true I started this article over a month ago and I'm just now writing more of it. I recently started reworking a wearable sculpture that I have been making and waiting for a long time to finish. I call the piece "The Fashion World's a War". It's a dress made entirely out of repurposed chicken-wire, artist canvas, blood, sweat, and a few of my own personal tears! It's a labor of love, but it's a work in progress. I am currently working on layering canvas onto the chicken-wire form. I plan on being finished by April and I might even display it at my debut at a local Mississippi artist craft and music festival known as the Juke Joint Festival, held each April in Clarksdale, Mississippi. We'll have to wait and see where it goes, but I'm staying positive!

Finding the Right Decor

   I recently cleaned all the junk out from my room, took my bunk beds apart and stored them in the attic, and rearranged my two bookshelves. I decided that I wanted to redecorate my room with repurposed and salvaged items, so while I was in Clarksdale one day I went to a junk store that was located in a dirty, waterlogged, dusty, store front that used to be some bigger store. The owner was just trying to make an honest living selling anything that he could. He was really nice and checked on me offten to see if I needed help or had any questions. I found some salvaged chippy painted wood that I liked, an old cotton painting on a wooden panel and as I was fixing to pay the owner for what I had, I saw an amazing trunk barrier under a pile of junk. I quickly asked if it was for sale and he said that it was for sale, so I said SOLD!!! After that I had a trunk for redeocating my room, I just needed a desk and a few little items to hang on my walls. I have a few animal skulls that I want to hang on the walls. I also want to print and frame some of my personal photography. I am going to use one of my bookcases as an art supply station on the left of my desk and the book shelf on the right is going to be my curiosity cabinet. I have so many small curiosity cabinet worthy pieces but I'm going to have to organize it. I also collect weird and strange pottery pieces. I have a Penny Loafer made of clay, a bright orange hunting themed pitcher, and a blue and grey glazed bowl that I found in local woods. Oh! I almost forgot... I got my new desk from my families business that works on and hand-builds Cotton Module Trucks. I notice a dirty, little, blue, wooden desk that needed love, so I broke out the sponges and cleaning spay and put some elbow-grease into shining it up a little bit. Then I called a local glass cutting company and got a custom piece of glass cut for the top of the desk. I brought it home and wa-la, a salvaged desk given new life. Then same day my family went to Cleveland, MSto shop at Wal-Mart and I bought some drawer organizers that are Lego like. They stick together on the sides of each cubby. I am still working on decorating, but hope to be through soon. 

Rust or Bust

    I sometimes think that I was born in the wrong decade. I love old things, but I'm a new soul; only seventeen years old. I find a solice in all things old, vintage, antique, and odd. My love for old things comes from being brought up in the Mississippi delta and being taught to appreciate the value and pourpose of things. For me it's RUST or BUST! I also love making art out of things that once were shiny, but over its lifetime, has weathered, rusted, or has been forgotten. Art to me speaks in volumes when it comes truly from the artist's heart. Art to me is also like species; there are many different styles, forms, and shapes of art.

My New Hobby: Jewelry Making

I have been making salvaged and repurposed jewelry for a little while now. Piecing this and that together to make minimalist and statement pieces. I have made necklaces, bracelets, broaches, and earrings. I love the thrill of making something new from something old. I love mixing something shiny with something tarnished; a little bone with a little rust. That's how I came up with the name Bone&Rust Art Co. My mom let me pick out what I wanted for Christmas since I'm older and don't want toys. We ended up at Jo-Ann's. I picked out some necklace and bracelet chains, some beads, charms, some blank kraft cards, letter stamps, and a black ink pad. I had fun rummaging through all the jewelry making supplies. I can't wait to open it all Wednesday and start designing new pieces with what she bought me. I love that my mom supports me in my journies even if she doesn't agree with or like what I do. I get a lot of support from my family and my artist friends. 

  These are some ideas that I am currently working on.

The top necklace is styled with gold safety pins and pearls.

This necklace is made from antiqued brass chain and grey heart charms.

I bought a few skeleton keys a week ago and am just now getting to design some necklaces around them.