It's Been 10 Years, Part 6

one of my absolute favorite pictures from my original collections by Hank Drew, the Bamboo Necklace

One final 10-year post, and in this one, I want to say thanks to the people I consider part of my "team." My photographer, Hank Drew, my graphic designer, Brandon Dawley, my editor, Katey Schultz, and my mentor, Lori Talcott. I have worked with these wonderful people for years and I am grateful to them for their expertise, hard work, insight, and patience. Hank started taking pictures for me in 2004 with my production collections and is now taking beautiful images of my larger, more sculptural and installation-based work. I have known Brandon since high school and he's been creating logos, ads, banners, and posters for me for a long time. He also got my new website going. I met Katey at Penland in 1999 and recently she began editing for me from grad school essays to artist statements. Lori was one of my first teachers and continues to guide me today. In fact we had a long talk just a few days ago about grad school and, as always, she questioned, challenged, and supported me. These gifted, generous individuals know my work, they pay attention, they listen, they advise, and they communicate effectively and thoughtfully. There is a balanced, natural give-and-take that occurs between us and we work well together. I feel very fortunate to be able to work with them and consider each of them a friend, too. I hope you will take some time to visit the links included in this post and check out their incredible work.

 current installation shot by Hank Drew, 

Silently (I Saw a Robin Today)

the logo Brandon designed for my solo show I Live Here Now

Lori in her studio

Artist Statement

I am devoted to observing the world that surrounds me and questioning the human condition through the lens of my own life experience. Through a variety of traditional and exploratory multi-media techniques, I create jewelry, objects, and installations that hint at memory, time, loss, and the layered sense of self I believe we all carry. I intuitively select materials and forms to represent the intangible and to create abstract narratives. Using my own memory of people, places, and objects, I seek to communicate the duality of the human experience, convey emotion, and connect with others.

my most current artist statement written with help from Katey

Thanks for reading. 

Interview Across the Sea to This Land

When I was in Iceland I did a 2-part interview for a shop in Charlotte, NC that carries my work, This Land. The interview stemmed from a fantastic conversation about the meaning of handcrafted that I had with Dan McCreedy of This Land in my Asheville studio last year and I'm very pleased with the series. I was asked great questions and, as always, enjoyed the challenge of articulating my thoughts for others to read. I had never really thought about what handcrafted means to me before and loved the chance to describe how Iceland influences my work. I also really like the introductions written by interviewer for This Land, Katey Schultz, a friend and writer from North Carolina. The studio pictures are quite lovely, too, all taken when I was still living in Asheville.

Additionally, whenever I do an interview not everything I say is used. When I was asked about memory and Iceland, Katey suggested I give a few detailed descriptions of compelling experiences. I sited my Grandi harbor experience, which was published, and the following account from one of my road trips, which was not included:


"I went on a 4-day road trip two weeks ago and drove along the south coast of the island from Reykjavík to Höfn. One of the places I stopped at was Dyrhólæy cliffs at Vík beach. This is a place I had never been to before, but had heard really good things, that it was very special. I spent some time on the cliffs looking down and out at the sea, watching the waves, feeling the wind, looking at birds and rock formations. Then I walked down to the water from above and walked around. I also just stood and watched the waves and the light and water glittering on the pebbled beach as the waves came in and out. It was striking and mesmerizing. I took lots of photos and made videos of the waves and collected many beautiful, rounded stones. I talked with my friend about what we were seeing and spent time just being quiet. When we left we agreed that it felt like time had just stopped or that it didn't even exist for us in those moments. There were other people on the beach then as well, but it felt like we were completely alone. It was an amazing experience."

Finally, here's a short paragraph about tradition and my teachers…

"Jewelry has been made for centuries and the basic techniques and tools remain unchanged. In 1998 I began learning from an incredible metalsmith, Barbara Crocker, whom I studied with privately. I learned my foundation skills from her and later went to college for my BFA. While I was in school, I studied under a master goldsmith, Mary Lee Hu, and apprenticed with another master metalsmith outside of the university, Lori Talcott, who later became a true mentor to me. Each teacher instilled in me the importance of excellent craftsmanship and a reverence for the traditions of our field. The work I make now is made using traditional techniques and tools. I enjoy the simplicity of the basics and find they provide a tremendous amount of room for innovation."

Thanks for reading.

my writing, published

late last spring i submitted my work for possible inclusion in a new journal of art, literature, and culture called trachodon. i thought maybe i could get a few images published along with my artist statement or maybe an interview. surprisingly, the editors asked me to write an article about my work and, although the task seemed incredibly daunting, i knew it would be a great opportunity so i said yes. i also knew i would be in good hands with the editor, john carr walker, and associate editor, katey schultz. i started writing the article in april and went through the editing process with john over several weeks. i would send a draft to john and he would read it and comment, asking me questions and making suggestions to draw things out of me. slowly but surely we got to a place in the piece where it felt complete and we were both pleased. the article is about what happened to me and my work over the winter. it is accompanied by several images from my borderlines series and my artist statement. it was a tremendous challenge to write about my experience in this manner and wonderful to get it all down and sort it out.


the first issue (which includes my article "part of the process") just came out a few days ago - if you would like to learn more about trachodon or get a subscription, please visit the trachodon website or find them on facebook.

thanks to katey for asking me to write for the magazine and for being so supportive and a special thanks to john for being such a great editor.

thanks for reading.