All You Can Eat

 

On Monday I started to sample Lola Brook's spring concentration class, All You Can Eat. In the morning everyone shared images of their work and inspirations. In the afternoon we shared our most prized possessions and talked about why we chose them. Lola asked us to write an essay before class about our object and gave us a list of questions to consider. (How did we acquire it? What does it mean to us? What does it mean to posses something? Etc.) I chose a locket that once belonged to my grandmother. I enjoyed this exercise and was especially excited about it because I've been so curious about the meaning of objects. (see Evocative Objects.) It was fascinating to listen to the other students talk about their objects as everyone brought something different to table. Then we drew numbers from a hat and took turns selecting from a pile of wrapped packages. Once we had unwrapped and then swapped back and forth a bit, we were instructed to make something wearable with our object. I got a package of plastic strawberry paper clips which I altered and clustered on a safety pin.

More pictures on Flickr.

Thanks for reading.

how about one more...

another view of the bow cluster brooch with chain and tassel

thanks for reading.

brooch pro-shot

just got this image of my latest brooch from my photographer hank drew. yep, he's good...

thanks for reading.

stitched brooch

yesterday i made a stitched piece of jewelry for the session's scholarship auction using two colors of thread and the colonial knot. i really like how it turned out and plan to make more very soon.

the session ends today and i'll blog more about the class next week.

royal brooch

i just finished this brooch moments ago...oxidized sterling, silk thread

something new. i really like it.

i am pretty sure this sweet wasp nest specimen i found yesterday got under my skin. i didn't realize until after i assembled the top layer.

thanks for reading.

drawing on metal

since i have been trying to draw with metal and due to my personal interest in line drawings of late, i have been noticing all kinds of jewelry with drawings. i find this stuff so interesting so i started collecting images a few weeks ago...

this first image is a brooch by kristin beeler. this drawing is ink on mother of pearl. you can find lots of other pieces at velvet da vinci. along with work like the piece shown here, you will also see some etched drawings and what looks like scrimshaw. all the drawings are very simple and very delicate.

here is a brooch by esther knobel - sterling silver with perforated (drilled) drawing sewn with iron wire. this is from the fantastic series "the mind in the hand." see more at sienna gallery.












joanna gollberg - these sterling silver earrings with little perforated drawings of familiar shapes are sewn with plastic thread and are one of many of jo's experiments.

ps...joanna just blogged about a a similar concept. check it out here.







iris eichenberg... more examples of perforated drawings - "heimat brooch" in sterling and bone. please also click here to see a perforated and stitched necklace by iris eichenberg.





so, like all my posts on pop-out/pop-up jewelry, i will continue to post images of work that include drawing on metal as i find them.

thanks for reading.

studio update

this week is an exciting one for me. i am updating my website with all the new pieces i designed back in january as well as making little changes here and there to the site itself. (thanks to all those who critiqued the site for me and for all the great ideas!) the new work and "improved" site will go live on friday. (and so will free shipping for a month!) i'm also busy filling orders to stock my shops. last week i completed my work for 21st century jewelry and sent the final three pieces (a necklace, a ring, and a pair of earrings) to my photographer, hank drew, in seattle. i did make these pieces more 3d, my goal as i mentioned awhile back. i am very pleased. it was a fun challenge figuring out how to make it all work. plus, spending all of last week on studio jewelry was so refreshing.

here's another sneak peak from my new collection pieces...a steel and gold long oval link necklace. thanks for reading.

guest star friday no. 6 (snag installment #3)...carlier makigawa

i know it's saturday, not friday...i've had a busy week!

anyway, this week's guest star friday is carlier makigawa, a metalsmith from australia. i was not familiar with carlier's work until the snag conference where i attended her lecture. her work is composed of cage-like wire stuctures that are clustered or grouped together to form pendants, bracelets, and brooches. the work is light and airy with a subtle strength. the pieces resemble pods, buds, and other organic forms, but because of the rigid metal structure and simple monochrome the pieces become something quite different, other-worldly perhaps. i was particularly interested in her use of negative space because this is something i think about carefully in my own work. she talked about how negative space can suggest that something was there. nice. i enjoyed her talk very much. she began by discussing earlier work and progressed through her career to recent projects which include sculptures and public art.


the top piece is a pendant - cluster #1, flourish 2005–06 from hybrid clusters 2005-06
sterling silver, silk thread, 50.0 x 8.5 x 7.5 cm. the bottom piece is a bracelet - in silver and monel

thanks for reading.

presentation report, snag installment #1

time to start writing about all that happened at SNAG... i think the best place to start is my presentation. after a few intense weeks of preparation and some serious self-doubt (including a desperate phone call to my mom), i put my very first power point to bed the night before the seminar. (come on, how much fine-tuning can one really do?) i felt good about the content and visuals and had practiced many, many times. i had to stop, but not before another run-through with my friend and fellow presenter, marthe le van. we practiced one final time at about 11:30pm as we lounged in our matching twin beds in what we now refer to as "mansion camp." (we stayed at an extravagantly decorated brownstone in downtown savannah.) the next morning we made our way to the conference hotel, stopping at the fantastic SCAD shop for some very helpful retail therapy. (i was so nervous at this point!) i bought a ridiculously good fabric brooch made by kristen hlis. (this name might be a little wrong...i'm taking it from my receipt.) for the next 4 hours we dealt with all the technical stuff, which wasn't easy - there were a lot of issues. finally, after transferring our presentations to one laptop, the seminar started at 2. i spoke at 4:30. by that time, i had calmed down quite a bit and i have to say, i am pleased with the way it went. my talk had 4 sections, starting with my background. then i outlined indie shops and galleries, indie craft shows, and trunk shows. i defined each topic, discussed pros and cons, and mentioned my personal experiences. i really hope the attendees (all 200+) got something out of it.

now about this public speaking thing, i think it's always good to make oneself do difficult things, like public speaking. (it builds character, no?) like i said, i wouldn't do anything differently, but over the next few days i paid extra attention to the other presenters. they are much farther along in their careers and have more experience presenting. i listened to how they opened and concluded their talks, noted their transitions, and the overall structure. i even took some notes which i'll just file away for future reference. eventually, i would like to make my presentation public. it might be a good resource for many emerging jewelers and other artists.

p.s. marthe le van is an editor at lark books. they publish wonderful art and craft books including my favorites in the 500 series, like 500 brooches.

thanks for reading.

savannah bound

i am off to savannah, ga tomorrow for the SNAG conference. my presentation for the professional development seminar is wednesday afternoon. i feel pretty good about my power point, but those nerves do like to creep up...

i am really looking forward to the conference! i love a good lecture. i am most looking forward to hearing iris eichenberg's lecture.

here's a picture of her work - a brooch made of silver. you can see more images of her work at ornamentum gallery.












as soon as i get back, it will be time to get my website all ready for the new work on march 21.

thanks for reading.

guest star friday no. 5...lina peterson

as with last week's guest star, sybille richter, i just found the fantastic experimental work of swedish maker, lina peterson. lina uses mixed materials (metal, textiles) and techniques (metalsmithing, crocheting, sewing, dip-coating) to create her sculptural pieces. i love her use of color, texture, and abstract forms. it seems she's investigating how her chosen materials (and their varying characteristics) and the process of making relate to one another. her work also seems very personal and intimate and i absolutely adore it. you can see more images of her jewelry at her website and at sienna gallery's website.

the above pictures (both brooches) are from sienna gallery's site.
top - "crocheted brooch" in oxidized sterling and cotton.
bottom - "stitched brooch" in textile, thread, and plastic dip-coated metal.

just lovely.

thanks for reading.

guest star friday no. 4...sybille richter

i just discovered the work of sybille richter earlier this week as i was perusing velvet da vinci's website. i've tried to find more information about her, but haven't had much luck. i do know she's from germany and has that signature minimalist german aesthetic. i love how sculptural and abstract her pieces are; very simple shapes and designs with a lovely, quiet treatment. it looks like she's using basic fabrication techniques to manipulate the metal and monochrome enamels for added color. you can see more images of sybille's work at velvet's website.

the above images are from left: brooch and necklace

thanks for reading.

sneak peaks!

here you go...a few images of my new stuff. these designs, along with about 30 more, will be available for viewing and buying on march 21 at my website. i'll offer free shipping for a month then, too! you will also be able to find most of the new work at my shops. you can find a list of them here. please email me (amy@amytavern.com) if you have any questions about these pieces.

images from top: preface brooch, layered necklace D, very thin steel stacking rings, cuff links (new men's collection!), tiny ratio earrings in sterling and (new) 14K, (all images by hank drew)

thanks for reading.