Sculptural Art - Liisa Hashimoto Jewelry

Liisa Hashimoto knows how to capture
 the magic of a garden oasis
and disguise it as sculptural art jewelry.

Over the years, this artist
has contructed elaborate, charming

 nature-based vignettes  - such as
 flowers sprouting, a bud gently unfolding,
 or a garden scene coming to life -

out of little more than metal and imagination. 

Working with silver, copper and brass,
her work is playful, lighthearted
and extraordinary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From October 6 through November 30, 2012,

Shibumi Gallery in Berkeley, California

is presenting an exhibition called, Light Fiction,

a show including work by Liisa Hashimoto.

 

The gallery describes this exhibition as,

 

. . .  a playful yet elegant perspective of the natural world. Liisa Hashimoto’s jewelry and sculpture explore the process of man made objects left out in the elements and the ways in which nature merges with them. . . Her inspiration is derived from images found in nature and living things – buds coming out of small seeds or tiny mosses growing around ponds and lakes. She imbues her pieces with the energy she finds in these small living things. . .

 

This is a wonderful opportunity to see
current work by this contemporary artist.

 

For lots more photos be sure to visit

 her website.

 

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Jewelry with Personality by Laura Stamper

So when was the last time you wore

jewelry with personality?

Literally?

With names like Redhead Mermaid, Sexy Siren,

Urban Goddess, Queen of the Butterflies,

and Garden Fairy you just know

every piece in this collection

has its own personality and its own story to tell.

Expressing one's vision means different things

to different people.

To Laura Stamper it means sculpting and painting 

delightful characters on porcelain

then creating equally lovely metal settings

for those paintings.

Her sculptural series features imaginative

tongue-in-cheek characters that just seem

to be infused with

charm and playfulness.

Approaching each piece of

jewelry like a painting allows the artist

to create a mood.  Most of the time

that mood is filled with pure whimsy.

 

Ultimately, her designs

 come to life when highlighted

with gemstones and set in

sterling silver with 22k gold.

 

Some of her characters are brazen and bold.

Some are innocent and demure.

Every richly imaginative piece

is filled with detail.

 

 

 

The real jewels in these pieces are expressed

in the intricate details and characters
representing the imagination and

ingenuity of the artist.

You're not just wearing jewelry,

you're wearing a work of art.

It's easy to see that her jewelry is like an

art gallery that can be boldly worn on one's

 fingers, wrists and neck.

You can see more of collection at her website.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Exhibition of Art Jewelry - Marilyn da Silva

Exhibitions of art jewelry are always

memorable events. Taboo Studio recently held

 an exhibit of new work created by eight jewelry

artists revolving around the theme of birds.

Titled "Bird by Bird" this exhibit

featured work by Marilyn da Silva,

Christina Goodman, Gabrielle Gould, Judith Hoyt,

Rika Mouw, Rone Prinz, Sarah Wilbanks,

and Kristi Zevenbergen

In this post we'd like to showcase

the work of one of these artists:

Marilyn da Silva.

It was very apropos that

she be a part of this show since

her body of work has been inspired

for more than a decade

by all things ornithological.

 Her pieces are rich and lush and tell

specific stories that are augmented

by her personal philosophy.

Here are her words regarding the

 brooches that are part

of this particular exhibition.

These brooches focus on the songbird family known as warblers. They are often difficult to see with the naked eye, but they can fill the air with song. These small treasures along with other songbirds are diminishing in number because of insecticides, feral cats and the loss of their environment due to human intervention. Hopefully, their beautiful songs will continue to enchant us throughout time.

We feel this brooch is one of her prettiest.

Called "Serenata III (Bay Breasted Warbler)."

It features materials such as textured sterling silver

and copper handpainted with gesso and colored pencil.

 It's an example of her wonderful designs

that could easily be displayed as art but

 also happens to be wearable as jewelry.

Here's another lovely example of her work.

This brooch is called "Serenata I

 (American Redstart)."

And this brooch is called "Serenata II

(Black and Yellow Spotted Warbler)."

It's just as delicate and lovely

as the others.

This artist is a master at using nontraditional

coloring techniques on textured metals, and it's

 her immense skill and talent that allows each piece

 to seem alive with subtle, exquisite details.

Who could resist?

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Lauren Pollaro Jewelry

A dear friend of ours recently sent us

a photo of work created by assemblage

artist Lauren Pollaro.  She knew we would really

enjoy seeing this particular piece of jewelry

and she was right!  We were immediately

intrigued by the choices of color, texture

and design. Everything just seems to

work together effortlessly.

We like the handmade aesthetic that is

apparent in her work - it provides a strong sense

of connection to her creative process.

This artist's forte is creating harmonious

sculptural jewelry using various mixed materials.

Acrylic paints, sterling silver, semi-precious

stones, and found objects are often

 included in her work. Her pieces also feature

such disparate elements as

vitreous enamels, collage, and epoxy resin.

It seems like she uses almost anything

in her abstract compositions.

And the effects are all beautiful.

Here is a brooch/pendant made with

copper, sterling silver, and acrylic paints.

We especially like the sgraffito-like effect

she creates on the various surfaces.

We also find this piece interesting - it features

found objects, plastic, a twig,

sterling silver and paint.

There are many pieces in her collection

to admire.

This necklace includes many elements

including wood,

epoxy resin and pearls.

This one incorporates enamel on copper.

We're inspired by how

her eclectic selection of materials

just seems to come together effortlessly.

But we know that work that appears

effortless rarely is as effortless as it seems.

For those who are intrigued

by delightful colors, layered compositions,

and the handmade aesthetic this artist

successfully combines all this and

more to create sculptural works of art

meant to be worn as jewelry.

Enjoy!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Reiko Ishiyama Jewelry

We love to be surprised. 

Reiko Ishiyama creates jewelry

that surprises the viewer

both in terms of the materials she uses

and the manner in which she uses them.

  In her current collection, she hammers thin
sheets of silver and manipulates them into

small works of sculpture that seem delicate

enough to be easily damaged.  They almost
look like they're made of paper and it's

disconcerting to realize that they are not. 

She describes her work as follows:

My work has an almost fragile quality, stressing lightness and mobility. By shaping paper-thin sheets of silver, I can house space itself. When people hold my work in their hands, they are often surprised by its delicacy and lightness. There is an evanescent, momentary quality that I hope people can truly savor when they wear my pieces.

It's intriguing and pleasantly surprising.

Here are a few of our favorites.

We just can't get over how much it

looks like paper.

It all seems so fragile.
But that's just the illusion.



 

These pieces have so much texture
and layers of interest.

 

We love the delicacy in each piece.

 

It makes you want to gently tap it
to orient your senses. 
It's all so paradoxical.
Seemingly tenuous or flimsy they are sturdy.

The shimmer of light and shadow
combined with the artist's sculptural skills
to create a three-dimensional shape

 from two dimensional material

is simply inspiring.

 

Enjoy!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Rone Prinz Jewelry

Jewelry created by Rone Prinz can be described

 in many ways; we choose the words 

exciting and varied.

She uses traditional metalsmithing

techniques and combines them

with sculptural practices

to create charming visual delights.

In her hands, each piece of cold, hard

metal becomes compliant lending itself

to investigation, manipulation,

and ultimately, triumph.

Rone creates a rich and

 broad spectrum of work;

she has many types of scuptural pieces

grouped into multiple collections.

There are many fascinating pieces to
admire in each of her collections.
It's her Chair series that
 inspires us the most. 

Let's take a look at a few examples
of her detailed work.

This piece is humorously called
Winged Back Chair.

 

 

This one is called Chair Becomes Tree.

Here we can see her work called All Fall Down.

Her unique, handmade jewelry captures
ideas in structured, clean designs,
creating pieces that are elegant and whimsical.

We love being inspired by her ideas.

What do you think?

reade more... Résuméabuiyad