INTRODUCTION
All of Lori Ristinen's scrimshaw is done by hand, one piece at a time, without the use of either machine or pattern. She scrims from pictures in magazines as well as actual portrait photographs, often using a number of pictures taken from different angles and showing different aspects of the subject in order to get the desired effect.
She says also that some clients "have described what they had in mind and I would draw it and send it to them for approval (and make changes when needed)".
Lori scrims in full color as well as the more traditional black and white. "I can't say which I like better. It all depends on the subject to be scrimmed and the material. I have scrimmed a wide variety of subjects from wildlife to scenic pictures and people and portraits to objects. People have asked me what my favorite subject to scrim is. My favorite thing about scrimshaw is the detail. If I had to narrow it down I suppose it would be African wildlife. I don't like snakes but I like to scrim them because of the detail.
I've always loved art, especially drawing and painting with watercolors and although I didn't go to college to pursue a degree in art, my brother did. I've always shown him my paintings and drawings (and now my scrimshaw), and he critiques them. I've learned, and will continue to learn, a lot from him!
Why scrimshaw? My father-in-law, Les Ristinen, suggested I should try scrimshaw. He deals in handmade Finnish knives. He'd heard that the best things to practice on were plastic spoons. I thought I'd give it a try, and I actually even sold a few! I no longer scrim on the spoons - I've gone on to much better materials for scrimshaw!
I started scrimshaw part-time in 1995 and have been a full-time professional scrimshander since 1997, loving every minute of it! It's been a constant learning process. I work out of my home in rural Minnesota, but don't have a shop for people to come and look/buy scrimshaw - I sell my work through my web site as well as through gun and/or knife shows in the United States.
The more I scrim, the more I improve. I find easier ways of doing things, whether it be about the materials I scrim on, the tools I scrim with, or the inks and paints I use. I sign my scrimshaw with my initials (LJR) and then the month and year. When I first started scrimming, the quality was changing drastically month to month - it's not changing as much today but it's still improving ( grin )"
Lori Ristinen
( if Lori's "still improving" the mind boggles at where she'll end up! Ed. )
