Curious Minds Podcast S2: The New Kid on the Craft Block

While toilet roll, flour, and pasta were deemed the most newsworthy shortages around the world in 2020, another took shape on social media. Suddenly, everyone was at home and wanted to discover a new hobby while getting in touch with their inner child…and white polymer clay sold out everywhere.

Polymer clay, also known as oven-bake clay or FIMO, is a relatively new material—a German doll-maker discovered its suitability for making doll heads in 1939 and sold it on for mass production in the sixties. In fact, it isn’t "clay" at all, but PVC plastic. For decades it was associated with childhood crafting. But now, a new life for this material is blossoming, thanks to the satisfying videos of the process and results all over Instagram and TikTok. But the material isn’t without controversies, from the pricing of items (when the clay is very cheap) to environmental questions.

This week on Domestika’s Curious Minds podcast, we talk with four artists and craft-experts to explore the boom in polymer clay’s popularity, the creative possibilities, and how it’s leaving behind its kiddie reputation to become a valuable art form.

Click on the link below to listen and subscribe on Spotify. Alternatively, you can find the episode on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Season 2, Episode 4: The New Kid on the Craft Block

Our guests in this episode are Bonnie Bishoff, Zoe Rain, Gail Tan, and Ginger Davis Allman.

Bonnie Bishoff and her husband J.M. Syron have been making art and furniture for thirty years. Their designs combine polymer clay with more traditional materials, and Bonnie shares that people are often unsure about the use of plastic in art. But, as she explains, there are benefits to the material, from the lack of waste products compared with wood and metal, to its sheer malleability: you can even use it to sew!

Clay and Rain, owned by artist and streamer Zoe Rain, is a shop selling polymer clay accessories, often with tiny botanical details. Zoe's journey started in 2019, and became a full-time job in six months. She discusses the process of learning to use polymer clay professionally—because the packet instructions don’t provide the best methods to ensure a high-quality product. She also explores the lack of appreciation for the medium, and how customers can get confused by the pricing of polymer clay items.