Author: JohnM

Watercolor Wildflowers is studio artist business. John Meng-Frecker is a retired civil engineer surveyor - I make resin art ornaments, lighthouses, nightlights, geometric art, resin paintings, and I do other graphic arts related services like framing and hanging installations. My resin slab designs are geometric themes and color compositions. Art pieces are transparent, colorful and illuminated with LED by AC or battery power. Shipping of online purchase is free and local Installation in Omaha area is included with purchase.My resin art is unlike any other and will look incredible in your home or business. My paintings are planned, well constructed, and beautiful. Hang them on your wall or in front of a window. I've built LED backlighting which shines brightly through the colorful resin. Made-to-order and Commissions 4029437516.
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August Newsletter: Resin Accent Lamp

Lamp with blue LED bulb in 20-sided clear icosahedron lens on a brass pole sunk into a 5-sided pyramid base of solid clear resin.

Resin Accent Lamp. Happy August!  Watercolor Wildflowers Monthly Newsletter featuring lighted icosahedra and a 40 watt LED icosahedron accent lamp. 

Customer Newsletter August 2025 Icosahedron Lamp

It is often said that, art is about light. I agree.  When painting with watercolor, my best landscape work is guided by light and shadow.  My resin art benefits from light, shining through clear and colored resin. Using back lighting and accent lighting brings out the brilliant color that transparent resin holds.

Lamp with blue LED bulb in 20-sided clear icosahedron lens on a brass pole sunk into a 5-sided pyramid base of solid clear resin.
This resin accent lamp is artfully made from resin, brass fittings, and simple electrical components.

Lighted Icosahedra in Resin

My studio is loaded with supplies and tools to build all these curious sculptures and resin paintings. Having the right assembly and parts leads to better art. Having everything at hand has increased my focus. Having a workshop to quietly cure my art and wood varnishing is incredibly helpful. In the studio, I work at the edge of practicality, leaning toward a mild panic. Everything I do in art is an experiment at some stage. I keep trying new materials, tools and techniques. This has led to some incredible discoveries, and a few chunks of failures in the trash.

Resin accent lamp with blue LED bulb beside a clear pentagon bowl holding a rainbow icosahedron. A warm lighted aqua icosahedron sits on a dark sideboard.
Resin accent lamp with blue LED bulb beside a clear pentagon bowl holding a rainbow icosahedron. A warm lighted aqua icosahedron sits on a dark sideboard.

New Accent Lamp

Resin Accent Lamp ideas by Perplexity AI.

My pentagon lamp base is made using a custom five sided pyramid mold that I built from “mechanically attached” polypropylene blocks. Polypropylene (PP) is the plastic material used for milk jugs. I use PP because resin absolutely won’t stick to it (but then neither will glue). Drilling and screws hold it together.  The inside of the mold needs to be tight, without leaking when the resin is poured. This hard mold casting is the same method I used making hexagon lighthouse bases. I like the look of a solid mass of resin with clean angular edges.

Unique resin accent lamp with blue green LED bulb in clear icosahedron lens.

Ornamental Art

When I set out to do resin art, I didn’t want to make the same things others were doing (charcuterie boards, jewelry, coasters, cell phone covers).  Neither does my art make a statement or communicate a message. I make “ornamental art” or decorative art. So far not many people have not found it useful enough to buy it. Or… I just haven’t been discovered. That’s OK though. I’m having a great time being creative in my 50th & Leavenworth Studio. But, its time to clean up and get organized for winter. My wife wants a couple doors refinished and my studio is the perfect dry workshop to do staining and finishing. Studio for hire if you need something…

Back Lighting

Back lighting is something I’ve done with my resin paintings.  It’s amazing what goes on with color as you mix red, blue, yellow. Now do that with lighted transparent resin! It is not elementary or plain. It is a way to mix without color mistakes. If I meant for blue to go here, but it went there instead, well… I’ve got purple or green along those edges now. I could not create this kind of beauty any other way.

backlight icosahedron small
Back lighting from afternoon sun shining through rainbow icosahedron. The hard geometric shapes and shadow lines contrast well with the soft mixed primary and secondary colors. Find it in my STORE.

Clear Pentagon Bowl

The pentagon bowl is an idea I discovered. I made a flat mold with five 3-inch sides.  When I had six of them I attached them side-to-side with one in the middle, like a daisy.  As you raise up two sides, they meet at about 60° from the horizontal.  Do this five times and you have a bowl shape with a flat pentagon bottom. These look great!

Pentagon shaped petals formed around a clear flat resin pentagon at the base to form a unique bowl.
Pentagon shaped petals formed around a clear flat resin pentagon at the base to form a unique bowl.

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Icosahedron Video – Art by John Meng-Frecker

Video Cover: Close-up view of clear epoxy resin icosahedron with a blue green LED installed at the base. The icosahedron is about 6" diameter.
Video of Lighted icosahedra in my resin art studio. These 20 sided shapes are made by hand from epoxy poured into equilateral triangle mold. Beveled. Assembled. I can make with or without lights.

$35 in My Secure Online Store

Exploring the Beauty of the Icosahedron

The Creative Process Behind the Icosahedron Video

Icosahedron Art by John Meng-Frecker showcases a stunning Geometric Sphere composed of 20 equilateral triangles cast in epoxy resin. This exquisite piece can be tailored to your preferences or acquired directly from the store for $35. Secure your unique Icosahedron by visiting my online store today.

Icosahedron Geodesic Sphere in Resin

Witness the artistry of the Icosahedron in the captivating video by John Meng-Frecker. Purchase a unique Geometric Sphere for $35 from the secure online store to enhance your décor with this exquisite piece.

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July Newsletter: Rainbow Icosahedron

Four Icosahedra and a Pentagon Bowl sitting on a white plastic board. One Icosahedron is totally clear. Two Icosahedron are heavily colored with transparent primary or secondary colors. The last Icosahedron is thinly colored with a washy effect. A clear pentagon bowl sits adjacent.

It’s Summer!  Watercolor Wildflowers Monthly Newsletter here featuring a rainbow Icosahedron.  What’s that?  Read on.

Resinart nightlights and lighthouses on display in a darkened room. Colors range from red to yellow to aqua to green and blue.
Glowing nightlights and lighthouses on display in a darkened room. Colors range from red to yellow to aqua to green and blue.

This month’s winner of a Planetary Nightlight is Robert at RobertLovesPi.net, a very cool blog about polyhedra and tessellations. Subscribe to my newsletter for a chance to win!   

ENTER Drawing by ->  SUBSCRIBE

Customer Newsletter      July 2025

Rainbow Icosahedron in Resin

Exploring the intersection of art and science, the Icosahedron embodies principles of symmetry and balance. Its structure has fascinated mathematicians and artists alike, inspiring countless creative projects. At my studio I’ve kept going with the Icosahedra idea (plural of Icosahedron). Its like a geodesic dome but all the way ’round. The trick is finding best way to assemble these beveled equilateral triangles.  Mathematically, it will fit. The best outcome requires  precisely made 60° resin triangle chips of equal thickness. Beveled edges of 15° are sanded on my vertical belt sander.

Alcohol Pigment

I’ve found alcohol pigment is a good way to color the hard resin after the sanding and clean-up. Primary and secondary 3″ colored triangles are distributed evenly.  Each Icosahedron has 20 triangles. So I make 3 red, 3 blue, 3 yellow, 3 violet, 3 orange, 3 green (rainbow) and then 2 clear triangles.  The coloring may be simple but its the best way to avoid muddy (tertiary) color accidents.

Alcohol pigment effectively colors the cured resin post-sanding and cleanup. Each Icosahedron comprises 20 evenly distributed colored triangles. The distribution includes 3 red, 3 blue, 3 yellow, 3 violet, 3 orange, 3 green (rainbow), and 2 clear triangles. This simple coloring method helps me prevent undesirable muddy colors. Muddy colors are the mixing of less bright, less clear, tertiary colors by accident. I want these Rainbow Icosahedron to be mesmerizing and fun to look at.

colorful display of Icosahedron equilateral triangles in rainbow colors laid out on a white board
Equilateral triangles to be used to make a three-dimensional Icosahedron

How to Assemble an Icosahedron in 20 Pieces

I found the best way to assemble the Icosahedron from studying the unfolding diagram. Unfolding diagrams show what elements make up a three-dimensional object (flattened pieces). Turns out you start with the middle.

colorful pentagon with triangular elements in primary and secondary colors forming a star and another pentagon
This is the inside of two-thirds of an Icosahedron. The bottom triangle edges of the crown are visible first, then the inside of the alternating crown triangles, then the pentagon top.

The middle band of 10 triangles up then down should be taped edge-to-edge on a smooth flat surface with 1/2″ masking tape. Carefully raise the chain of triangles onto its side and curl it into a circle. Tape that last triangle to the start of the circle. I carefully add more masking tape, tightening and holding the triangles more firmly together. This makes a crown where curiously one triangle tips inward 5° and the next triangle tips outward by about 5°.

I form the top pentagon as five triangles pointing into the middle and pulled up at the center. Starting these shapes with masking tape saves a lot of frustration. Add the top to the crown. Match, fit and tape edges tightly together in all directions.

The bottom pentagon goes on the same. If made with near-exact equilateral triangles, then a tight fit can be achieved. The taped pieces are glued together carefully with tiny resin welds between tape. 

Two heavily colored Icosahedra resting on a white plastic board in the sunshine. The image cast from light through the Icosahedra appears on the white plastic board.
Two heavily colored Icosahedra resting on a white plastic board in the sunshine. The image cast from light through the Rainbow Icosahedra appears on the white plastic board.
Colorful pentagon shaped Icosahedron sitting on a sunny window sill. The equilateral triangles are colored in a washy technique and they are colored red, blue, yellow, purple, green, or orange.
Colorful pentagon shaped Rainbow Icosahedron sitting on a sunny window sill. The equilateral triangles are colored in a washy technique and they are colored red, blue, yellow, purple, green, or orange.
Four Icosahedra and a Pentagon Bowl sitting on a white plastic board. One Icosahedron is totally clear. Two Icosahedron are heavily colored with transparent primary or secondary colors. The last Icosahedron is thinly colored with a washy effect. A clear pentagon bowl sits adjacent.
Four Icosahedra and a Pentagon Bowl sitting on a white plastic board. One Icosahedron is totally clear. Two Icosahedron are heavily colored with transparent primary or secondary colors. The last Icosahedron is thinly colored with a washy effect. A clear pentagon bowl sits adjacent.

Finishing the Rainbow Icosahedron

All of these get a clear resin finish.  I’m trying different pigments and transparency ideas.  And I’ve got some one-way mirror film that will create an infinity effect.  You’ll see forever next month as well as some food-safe stylish Pentagon Bowls!

CALL OR VISIT MY STUDIO 5069 Leavenworth Street Omaha, NE 68106 (402) 943-7516