Studio Jewelry: From Mid-Century to the Present Century
The course will begin with an exploration of studio jewelry as it developed post-World War II across the United States and later on in Europe. From the east coast to the west coast and in between, with a lack of formal metals education, jewelers were looking for ways to develop their voice and create a "wearable" art form. Relying mostly on their own entrepreneurial spirits they led the charge for change. Recognized by museum curators across the country, who organized groundbreaking jewelry exhibitions, they banded to create metal guilds and were collected by women who considered themselves patrons of the arts. Not unlike today, these jewelers lived in a challenging time both socially and politically and used jewelry, their medium of choice, to communicate with the world at large. These young jewelers, inspired by current trends in fine art and design have become part of the cannon of studio jewelry. We will take a chronological look at the generations of studio jewelers whose work today is highly sought after by collectors and curators, as well as their process and materials. Some studio jewelers Included in the course will be: Alexander Calder, Art Smith, Margaret de Patta, Wendy Ramshaw, Andrew Grima, Bruno Martinazzi, Gijjs Bakker, Robert Lee Morris, Peter Chang, Joyce J. Scott, Myra Mimlitsch-Gray, Karl Fritsch, and Lola Brooks. Lectures will be interspersed with artist and gallery talks.
Lectures will be recorded and shared with registered students.
Lectures will be interspersed with artist and gallery talks in a series of five hour-long sessions.