S02.E04: Force of Nature

[Door County Cherry]

Airs Jan. 22, 2021:

Quote

Asked to make meaningful pieces about climate change, the artists fill the shop with icebergs, beetles, mushrooms and more. 

 

[Aulty]

Wow, I loved the look of Chris'. Elliots beatle was fantastic, and a great comeback after it broke. I am relieved that so far nobody has tried to blame the assistants for any mishaps.

Surprised that they sent Brad home. Nao's looked like plasticine and the textures weren't very realistic. Andi's looked good from a distance, especially the bottles, but I am siding with the judges in that the mushrooms weren't convinving up close.

I feel like Mike's would have had a bigger impact if it was made of pieces of sea glass. Kat's platter was intriguing, but the cuttlery was amateurish.

Pity the show still doesn't give us much about the different techniques.

Edited January 22, 2021 by Aulty

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I liked that they did briefly discuss the environmental impact that glass blowing has and ways to reduce that footprint.

One thing I like seeing is how the contestants interact with their assistants each week. Some of them are a lot clearer in their communication than others.

I rolled my eyes when Chris said he hadn't had a chance to look around at what everyone else was doing BUT it all looked mediocre compared to what he was doing and then proceeded to begin describing other people's pieces.

I loved the way Cat made the spiraling pine tree in the center of her piece. It really gave the green color a beautiful glow.

Elliot's dung beetle recycling a piece of glass was a great concept for this challenge. I was glad he was able to salvage the body of his insect! I liked how shiny and iridescent he was able to make his beetle.

I really liked watching Chris do that French pulling technique but I was still too mad about the fact that HE DIDN'T FULFILL THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PREVIOUS CHALLENGE and therefore shouldn't have even been present to make the icebergs for sale piece. And seriously, this guy wants to rename this technique after himself? I don't know much about glassblowing, but I'm guessing he didn't invent it which means he can kindly STFU.

Andi's mushrooms growing on bottles was an interesting concept.

I liked Nao's weirdly colored processed food. Ironically it made me crave french fries, which I haven't had since before the first lockdown began last year. I loved how melty the cheese looked on her burger.

Brad's delicate trees were very stark.

I liked concept for Mike's piece with all the small pieces forming an infinity symbol. My only quibble was that it was so flat. I would have liked some kind of height.

I was sure the judges would give the win to Chris because of his French pulling technique so YAY for Elliott winning instead.

Farewell, Brad!

ETA: This is the episode where Chris said, "I either want to be number one or I want to be eliminated," yet I noticed that when Elliott was announced the winner, Chris didn't ask the judges to eliminate him. Please STFU!

Edited January 23, 2021 by ElectricBoogaloo

[Michichick]

I can’t stand Chris and his ego, so I’m sure he’ll be around until the final. Ugh. 

i think Nao probably should have gone home this time, or maybe Andi but at least Andi’s piece incorporated hope.

[Starry-Eyed]

I was surprised and frustrated that Brad went home. I have no idea how challenging the different techniques are (wish they would give us more info), but I really liked the look of his piece and I thought it fit the theme much better than some of the others. I liked what Nao did in the previous challenges, but to me this one looked like it was something a kid would make out of play-dough, and it felt the least removed from the brief. Chris's didn't have any element of hope, but I knew after the fancy techniques he used that they weren't going to eliminate him, unfortunately. His ego is ruining this season for me.

[GaT]

Nobody did the "hope"part of the challenge, did they all forget?

[dleighg]

I gave a little side-eye to one of the artists' claim that "glass is recyclable." Well art glass in a multicolored piece isn't recyclable as art glass, as we all know what happens when you mix paint colors LOL. I appreciated that later the guest judge said that they recycle all of their clear glass.

Yeah Chris was pretty insufferable this week as well. His piece, and technique, were cool though.

[Starry-Eyed]

14 hours ago, GaT said:

Nobody did the "hope"part of the challenge, did they all forget?

I think that a couple of them did. Elliot's piece, which won, was supposed to be able nature (the beetle) overcoming human environmental damage (the big ball of trash). Andi had mushrooms breaking down plastics. Mike's piece was literally an infinity sign showing nature's eternal persistence, and even Brad's trees were supposed to show the beauty and resilience of nature along with its fragility.

[Door County Cherry]

14 hours ago, GaT said:

Nobody did the "hope"part of the challenge, did they all forget?

I think "hope" is a bit nebulous and open to interpretation.  They may have thought the hope part didn't need to be as explicit as the judges seemed to expect. So if they "missed" on this and technically didn't meet the brief, I'm less mad than I am when Chris deliberately ignoring the brief.  

[SLAMP]

I would love to see if Elliott's dung beetle piece is available for purchase? It's so beautiful! I'm hoping it's not too pricey, but im guessing it will be 😕

[Sycatu]

On 1/25/2021 at 1:34 AM, GaT said:

Nobody did the "hope"part of the challenge, did they all forget?

Nowhere in the brief that was shared with the viewers did it say anything about hope. I was in fact so confused watching the critique that I had to go back and rewatch the beginning. They were asked to inspire change and not create hope. Hope is one way to do this, so either it was taken out in the editing process or never said at all—either way, terrible storytelling and annoying to me as a viewer.

[Bruinsfan]

Yeah, on that front I think Nao, Cat, and Chris all fit the brief by giving us cautionary tales. I know that plastic-y looking fast food made me think twice about my next burger or pizza! (Though the fries had the opposite of the intended effect on me as well, ElectricBoogaloo.)

Elliot deserved his win, but I wouldn't have been upset if Mike had been chosen instead. Both pieces were beautiful and fully embodied the challenge.