Bali Spaceship

Akim Funk Buddha, the leader of the crew

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, I am off to Bali in a couple of weeks. Two members of our crew are heading there this week, so I set up a blog to document all of our adventures and discoveries in Bali.

Have a look: Bali Spaceship

Pardon me if I post over there a bit more in the coming weeks!

Pro Bono Jeweler

I have been following the blog of metalsmith Gabriel Craig for some time. He has been thinking very deeply about the world of craft and the handmade and how it fits into our contemporary life.

He never mentioned this project on the blog, but I was delighted to read this article in American Craft. Love the idea. I get some very strange questions about how my work is made, and it is true that in our society the connection to hand work has been lost to the point that many cannot even fathom how pieces of metal are alloyed, formed into sheet and wire, manipulated into various shapes, joined by heat, and finished through texture or polishing.

Bravo to you Gabriel!

Art Jewelry, Bubbling up into public consciousness

A very affordable and accessible piece of studio jewelry of blackened silver, 22K and rhodolite

In doing some research lately, I discovered that one of my long-held dreams has been implemented. Yes, this would be the exposure of art jewelry to the realm of the art and design collectors. I used to frequently drop the idea of an art jewelry contingent taking rightful place at the Art Miami art bonanza that takes place every year in December.

A round of congratulations to Ornamentum Gallery for taking the plunge and exhibiting in 2008 at the Design fair that has developed alongside the main art fair.

It wasn't just the high price tags of the art and one-of-a kind furniture that got my attention. It was also photos of attendees at galas, enjoying cutting edge art while wearing the most boring, yet extremely expensive, diamond necklaces and stud earrings. It left me astounded that people that were spending the time and money to seek the most innovative in art and furniture design were oblivious that they could have the same for their jewelry. Oh, and it would actually NOT cost the small fortune that the diamond necklace commands.

Well, I could go on, but this article really lays it all out nicely, including reasons to believe that the tide is turning for those of us in this under-recognized field.

While I make work that is more accessible in content and price than some of the names mentioned in the article, I do believe that what is good for those at the cutting edge will be good for all of us. After all, the collector is likely to start with work that is wearable, probably more traditional in material and construction, and not at the top end of the price range.

So, despite the current gloom, there are reasons to see a bright light at the end of the tunnel for those of us in the studio jewelry, art jewelry, handmade jewelry realm.

Indonesia-Bound

As many may already know, I spent two years in Nepal, one year during college, and another year post-college as a Fulbright scholar. Both years were spent studying the traditional art of the Kathmandu Valley as I created my own sculptures using traditional techniques. This experience really made my own work take shape and has had a lasting imprint. It was also my first introduction to working full-time on my work in a very self-directed manner. This made me realize that I really did want to be a full-time studio artist.

Subsequent trips to Tibet and Mongolia added new themes and approaches to the mix and kept me fully charged with ideas for a very long time. This all happened before I started my own business. Once I went off on my own, I put everything I had into the business and it occupied all of my waking hours. I had to put thoughts of travel abroad out of mind for a very long time. Not only did it take all of my energy and financial resources to get things off the ground, I felt that taking two or more weeks off was out of the question.

Lately, I have been feeling that the creative battery has been running a tad low. There are still so many ideas to explore, but I have been wanting to really re-arrange my thoughts in a big way. Another thing I have been longing for is a more collaborative experience. I didn't necessarily expect this to come as a jewelry-related collaboration and my involvement in the Middle Eastern dance and music community exposed me to the way in which performers collaborate.

Enter in the picture a performer called Akim Funk Buddha. He is a consummate collaborator and has worked with many dancers that I have studied with and admire. My husband, Jun, and I became big fans of his work, and in fact, I had the feeling that he was the performer with whom I wanted to collaborate. Through conversations with him, he told me that he was planning to go to Bali with as many of his people as were willing and able. We had the miles, and the abilities to work on the visual aspect of the show, and through those converging circumstances, a new project has been born.

In April, we will head to Bali, and I will be working on the costume design, shopping for materials, contracting local craftspeople, and seeing what kind of incredible creations can be made from the wide variety of materials.

I am trying to not to anticipate too much what kind of effect the trip will have on my work, I want to just experience it in the moment. I do expect that the trip will have me all fired up and ready to get to work in the studio exploring many new ideas and maybe new materials.

Do you know someone interesting in Bali that I should meet? Please drop me a line!

The Latest

I just got back from the latest show. This one was for gallery owners scouting for new work. While the show exceeded my own expectation, it is true that we are in the thick of some really unexpected realities. As the Chinese proverb says, "may you live in interesting times".

Well, as we all hold on and see how things will shake out with these interesting times, I have been in the studio, yes, making new work. I have been adding new pieces in the Wrought Inlay Collection. I also started playing around with some paisley-shaped cabochon peridot and rhodolite garnet that I have had in the studio for some time.

I have some big news about a trip I am taking this spring, but I am just going to save that for another post. In the meantime, the bracelet above is a new addition to my Brocade Garland Series. It has some repousse 18K gold, combined with blackened silver.

Community

These days, I am feeling that the zeitgeist is community. Whether it is my neighborhood or my country, or my small field of art jewelers, I am tapping into a broad feeling that many of the superficials are being stripped away, leaving us looking straight at each other. I admit I am a bit terrified of what will happen in the next year or two. However, when I spend time with other people. I feel that if we can all get together, we can face whatever challenges that emerge.

I spent today, the National Day of Service, helping a spirited entrepreneur with her side project. She helps battered women furnish themselves with housewares and clothes after leaving shelters, giving them sewing skills along the way. I think that this has a strong connection for me. As a craftsperson, I understand that working with the hands can provide mental comfort, and the finished work can provide a sense of accomplishment.

I am also planning a community focused on art jewelry. However, that one is still a germinating seed, so I will keep it under wraps for now.

Happy Inauguaration Day and Happy 2009!

Finishing Up For the Year

I have wished my UPS driver a Happy New Year and will today hand-deliver my last-minute custom orders. Tomorrow I will be off to commune with the cacti and celebrate the holidays with my mother in Arizona.

While this year was nothing for the the history books, I have made it through. I am very grateful for all my friends, supporters, colleagues, gallerists and patrons. Without all of these supportive people, I wouldn't really have anything. Happy holidays and thank you all!!

Bhutanese Metalwork

This Wednesday, I am going to be moderating a discussion at the Rubin Museum in NYC. A documentary film about Bhutanese metalwork will be shown and I will be talking about my experiences as a contemporary metalsmith as well as my experience working with Nepali artisans. There will also be a tour of the Bhutanese exhibit after the discussion.

This particular exhibit is remarkable in that these statues are normally only seen if one actually travels to Bhutan. All of the statues and other art was borrowed from the monasteries and are considered consecrated. As for the film, I went last week to the film about Bhutanese wood work and weaving, and I can attest to the fact that it was mesmerizing to see the mastery with which the craftspeople work.

A Nice Surprise

As I was riding the subway, I opened the latest issue of American Craft and found this! A very nice surprise indeed.

The Latest

My work is on the move again. Both in the physical sense of being sent to various galleries, and in regards to artistic innovation. I have expanded on the series that I am calling "Wrought Inlay", begun this summer. I haven't really found the reason within, but I have been in mood for vast expanses of very black metal lately. Punctuated, of course, by continuing obsession with undulating curls.

Some of this new work has gone off to the show "Small Treasures", at Ironwood Gallery in Ridgefield, CT. Other pieces have gone to 3rd Ward Jewelry in Milwaukee.

I have also sent off some very special packages with other collections of work to:
Perlow Stevens Gallery in Columbia, MO
and
Max's in St. Louis Park, MN

My Hometown and Craft

Hello! I'm back!

Although I live in Brooklyn now, my hometown is Racine, Wisconsin. I grew up there and made the decision to be a metalsmith while still in high school. It was very many years later that I realized that my town has had an enormous impact on the crafts movement of the United States. There is a very lovely article in the latest issue of American Craft that mentions the collector Karen Johnson Boyd, of the Johnson Wax family (in print only). This family was responsible for the influential Crafts USA exhibition of 1969, introducing handmade objects to thousands of Americans.

Personally, I was able to benefit from the fact that Racine high schools actually offered metal art classes. I grew up two blocks from some famous Frank Lloyd Wright buildings, and I took in the offerings at the Wustum Art Museum, now expanded into the Racine Art Museum. It is hard to know, but there was clearly a spark of connection there somewhere in my young mind.

Artist citizen

A couple of things that I came across this week were relevant to the cross roads of politics and arts that I now find myself at. I am preparing for the Philadelphia Museum show night and day. However, I also am glues to the political news.

One item of interest was an article in American Style magazine that mentioned the NEA report on artists as professionals. There are twice as many working artists (including dancers, writers, architects and and many others), than there are lawyers. We number 2.2 million. Not an insubstantial number. See the report here: www.arts.gov

I also heard this conversation on my favorite radio station. It is from a series called 30 issues in 30 days. Finally, A serious conversation about the candidates and the arts! Listen to it here. Not, mind you, that I was undecided, but I always like to sink my teeth into conversations about art in society.

NOLA

Last week I took a trip to New Orleans, as previously mentioned. I discovered that the creative spirit is alive and well in the city, even if many other things are not. I am rarely disappointed to return to NY after being away, but I did feel a certain lack of exuberance on my return. I am not just talking about drinking on the street either. The proportion of eccentrics and free spirits is so much lower here.... I overheard my husband asking our cat is she wants to be a Louisiana kitty... I'll keep you posted on that!


I felt a connection with the ornate buildings in the french quarter, but I also had the chance to see many other parts of the city too. I highly recommend taking a trip to this spirited city to see the beautiful parts, but also the dilapidated and decimated parts. The first ever New Orleans art biennial will open in early November, and for lovers of music, of course, you can always find that in spades.

I had the chance to visit the galleries of both Thomas Mann and Katy Beh, and I found them to be moving forward full steam ahead. From my observation, the urge to adorn is very strong in New Orleans, with all of the festivities throughout the year. I was fascinated by a couture gown atelier in the french quarter (photo above), which had ballgowns with a very particular eccentric flair.

So, get down to New Orleans, don't be shy!

Preoccupied??

I know I have certainly been preoccupied lately. Some watch sports teams and the post-game analysis, I love to watch debates and the post-debate analysis. Between that and all of the other shocking news lately, I have been distracted to say the least.

In the meantime, I have been watching the orders for a couple of my rings flowing in. The biggest hit by far has been my Bold Wrought Ring, pictured at top. It is blackened silver with a bit of 18K and an enhanced color sapphire. I went through a large stash of the sapphires already and I just picked up another few dozen. Once this latest group of stones is finished, there is no guarantee that I will be able to get more. So, click here to order while they last. I may change to another stone going forward, but the orange sapphire is really great with the black..

I am off to New Orleans for a wedding. I expect to see a lot of very interesting architecture and wrought iron while there. I just got a smaller camera, so that should be more conducive to a more visually rich blog. I am also proud to note that I made the rings that will be exchanged. That moment in the ceremony always stands out for me.

Facebook

I joined Facebook last year. At first I didn't utilize it much. However, I have been seeing a large increase in the number of people I know who have signed up on facebook, and not only that, they are using it to share so many things. Yesterday, I set up a fansite for my business. Go have a look, and if you are a Facebook member, sign up to be a fan. I am not sure how I will use it to best share information, but it should be fun. Possible a photo essay on my favorite tools. I also have an old tv clip of me that I would like to share.

Thanks for being a fan!

Museum of Art and Design

Later this month, the Museum of Art and Design opens it's doors, with a completely renovated building, right on the southwest corner of Central Park. As many may know, it was previously called the American Craft Museum. Even without the word craft in the name, it is still a museum that focuses on works made in the various craft mediums.

An exciting part of the new museum is that it will contain it's own jewelry wing. With the general lack of contemporary jewelry being shown in museums and galleries around NYC, this will be a great addition for the field.

In addition, I recently read that the museum received a donation of 800 pieces of jewelry collected from around the world by collectors Daniel and Serga Nadler. That will be great addition, as the jewelry pieces from "countries including China, Egypt, India, Mexico and Myanmar", will help contextualize the entire culture of human adornment.

Congratulations to the museum for this bequest!

AUgust in New York

Usually August in NY is something to be dreaded. The heat index often goes above 100 degrees with the subway stations even hotter. I also have had my schedule packed in past years with shows and trunk shows. So, the month is packed with panicked preparation, long drives, sleep deprivation and long hours spent indoors selling.

This summer, I decided to forgo the shows. Part of the reason was that I had exhausted myself making work for gallery shows in July. I also felt that with the current economy, it was a time to hang back rather than keep pushing. I have been of the opinion lately that it is better to gather my energies for future opportunities.

So, with this decision and the relatively light workload in the studio, I had more free time. Then, I got the best gift of all, which was incredibly non-humid, comfortable August. I couldn't have been in a better mood in this month. I biked around the city, met some friends, went to some performances, stayed up until 2am watching movies. Since I usually work 7 days a week, I guess you could say that I packed many weekends into one month.

I am off to the midwest this week to see my friends and family. I will be going to the show at the Kohler Center on August 28th. My mother has rounded up a number of people to go and be my fan club that day.

I get back on the 3rd and then....let the work begin. I will move into preparation for the Philly Museum show in November.

Enjoy the last few days of this month!

Jeweler by Night

Flourish of Gold exhibit with my work in the foreground

Right now, I am just getting over my adrenaline depletion. I managed to get the work for the Kohler Center show to the Manhattan UPS depot just 10 minutes before closing. This is not an unusual circumstance to find myself in, despite my attempts to have my creativity come in normal daytime working hours. Before big shows, no matter what I do, I always end up staying up all night. I didn't actually work through the night this time, but I did keep pushing quitting time to 9, 10, midnight, then finally 2 AM. I seem to have breakthroughs at that time, and after reading this article in the New Yorker, I was able to see that there have been studies done in the field of brain science regarding this phenomena.



Unfortunately, the whole article is not online, but the essence of it is there is a part of the right hemisphere of the brain that helps tie together disparate ideas from across the brain in an intense moment of impulse. This is the moment of "A-ha", which comes as a creative idea or a solution to the problem comes in a flash of brain activity.



The only problem with accessing this ability is that the brain must be relaxed. If the brain becomes more focused, the left brain executive area takes over and the more subtle right brain impulses get overridden.



When I am on a tear working in the studio, the adrenaline helps me get through the long hours of mental and physical labor. It cannot, however, be turned off easily when it is time to sleep, so that leaves me even more tired than I should be. I can see that this tiredness could increase the possibility of right brain insight when my back is against the proverbial wall. So it looks like there may be reason not to alter my pattern.



I have always tried to change these natural tendencies, but if there is brain science backing me up, why fight it? Onward with delirious creativity!

Bracelet Show

Wrought Inlay Bracelet

blackened sterling silver

Last week, I sent off some bracelets for a show at 3rd Ward Jewelry. They were one of the first galleries to represent me, so I was delighted to be able to make some special things for the show. This bracelet was the product of a late night right before I had to send the pieces off. No matter how much I try, everything comes together in the last minute for me. However, like this bracelet, sometimes it is the pressure and the lack of over thinking that can push me in new directions. I really love this new direction and I wasn't really ready to send it off yet. It is important to spend time with new pieces before they leave my studio.

This week, I am pushing myself very hard to get together a great group of works for a show at the Kohler Arts Center. This show is called "A Flourish of Gold". Obviously, with a title like this, my work is quite a prominent feature of the show.

I am really enjoying the process of making this new work, but I have to admit, I have some sore arms and hands right now!

Jeweler by day...

What? It has been a month since I was here?

I do have a reason for that. I usually post in the evening after my work in the studio is done. However, I have been occupied this last month by spending my evenings in the dance studio or bent over a sewing machine. For the last two years, I have been studying middle eastern dance (aka bellydance), and my teacher Kaeshi finally persuaded me to get up on the stage and perform. On July 2nd, I got out there and performed my own choreography in a costume I had made, bedecked, of course, in my jewelry.

Why is this relevant to jewelry? I have realized that studying a performing art has had a profound effect on my studio practice. Most concretely, my various aches and pains from hours working on tiny things have vanished. Moreover, it has stretched my mind with a curiosity to see just what I am capable of. What are the most outrageous possibilities for my work? If I can learn this dance well into adulthood with virtually no dance experience, what can I push myself to achieve in the craft I have been practicing since my teens?

Another aspect of the creative outlet of dance is the theatricality of costuming. Just as the costumes enhance the experience of viewing the dance, jewelry can enhance our presence on the stage of daily life. Why not enhance, or create a new persona with the jewelry. My work has obviously become more bold over the past year and this can be directly attributed to my dance experience.

The other thing that I love about dancing is the exuberance I encounter among the dancers I meet. They are people who have released their creative energy in a major way and have shaped their lives around their passion. I have met very few complainers among them. The sense of community is also very strong. Although I love my community of jewelers and craftspeople, the reality is that we are not so compelled to work in such a community and collaborative environment, which is something I have always longed for.

I would recommend to other artists that taking up another discipline can be a very good way to invigorate the original passion. Creative people have so many ways to approach work that crossing boundaries of disciplines can be a great way to gain new insight.