Design of the Month · July 2005

"Gye Nyame"

The first piece I designed was an Adinkra symbol called Gye Nyame which means "the omnipotence of God." Adinkra symbols date back to the 17th century and were created by the Ashante people of Ghana, Africa. The symbols were used ceremonially and represent historical, religious and philosophical ideas. Presently they can be found on clothes, pottery, walls and other everyday items.

The Gye Nyame was commissioned for the front window of a natural hair care salon so it had to be eye-catching. I wanted the symbol to appear as one piece and did not want lines that would distract from the flow of the design. Although it doesn't show in the image, the central symbol consists of three pieces; the interior lines were not visible in the panel because I finished them with a black patina. As you might guess, the deep curves in the design required the use of a band saw on three of the pieces, but the other five I cut by hand.

Without Glass Eye 2000 designing this panel would have taken much longer. Features that I like especially are the ability to number my pieces with the click of a finger and to print my designs at any size. It is, to me, the best program made to make designing stained glass easy.

The Sunny Blues set, seen below, was easier to design and build than the Gye Nyame. A customer wanted a composition in blue, green and purple. I was able to design the panels side by side to make sure they complemented each other. Glass Eye 2000 helped in making my final selection of colors and textures.

In March 2004 my sister started playing around with my pictures of stained glass which I had on a CD and decided to try her hand at building a web site. Little did we know that she would catch on so quickly! After my site was online, she submitted it to a few Internet galleries. One of the sites was the Electronic Cottage Gallery.

Not long after that the producers of Home and Garden Television contacted me by email after seeing my work at Electronic Cottage. They wanted to know if I would consider making one of my boxes on the show Crafters Coast to Coast. Who could pass up an opportunity like that? The production team from Crafters Coast to Coast came into my home and filmed the making of a jewel box and a sun catcher. The show was first aired on June 17, 2005.

I have been creative for as long as I can remember. The look of colors, the feel of different textures and the smell of a work in progress is something that brings about in me a sense of peace.

Glass Eye 2000 has been one of the best investments that I have made for my business. Aside from being a superb design tool, it allows customers to see how the completed piece will look before construction begins. My customers are always impressed when I show them their designs with the colors they have chosen!

~ Angela Smith
 

About the artist

Miss Angela Smith has been actively committed to the arts and crafts business for more than three decades. She and her sister, Cynthia Fardan, who serves as her webmaster, have successfully run an arts and crafts business for several years. Their work has been featured at many places such as the Banneker-Douglass Museum, the Maryland Historical Society, the Kromah Art Gallery, and the Kunta Kinte Heritage Festival, just to mention a few. Miss Smith has a website at www.africansand.com and can be reached by email at angela@africansand.com.

see the previous month's design