Shake it out

This is just the song I need for today.
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What stays in the electroformer?

A strange creature with a thick spiny body!

I left a piece in the bath for 4 days and this is what came out, uh oh...but it's good, a happy accident.

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Holiday Sale at ECU School of Art and Design

Holiday Sale is coming up this week!!

Hope you can make it to the fabulous show of handmade art
by students of the ECU School of Art and Design holiday sale in the
Gray Gallery of the Leo Jenkins Fine Arts building.

Thursday through Friday, Dec. 1 & 2nd from 9am-9pm
AND Saturday, Dec. 3rd from 9am-2pm

The ECU Metals Guild will be participating
selling some pretty sparkly thangs!

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Talons in my Eilisain Etsy shop

Rawr!

These bronze cast owl talons are quite fierce and bad-ass!
Loving them. Get them at my Eilisain Etsy shop.

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Milagros

Milagros from Mexico = miracles from this year!

So much to be thankful for this year, family, friends and the joy of making art. I try to never take for granted to the opportunities I've been given to be creative and have the time to do it. There have been so many people in my life that have made that possible for me. Especially people like you, that read and view my work.

Thank you and gracias (para mis amigos latinos/hispanos) for all your support!

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La Noche del Broche

Participating Artists:

Abigail Heuss

Alejandro Sifuentes

Amy Tavern

Andrew Kuebeck

Angela Bubash

Anne Fiala

Annie Pennington

Ashley Buchanan

Atsuko Taniguchi

Autumn Brown

Beverly Penn

Billie J Theide

Bob Ebendorf

Caroline Gore

Claudia Rush

Corey Ackelmire

Courtney Starrett

Cydney Romano

Linda Kay Darty

Dejan Jovanovic

Elizabeth Crandall

Emily Marquis

Galatea Kontos

Gary Schott

George Schroeder

Hannah Stein

Jacob Martin

James Thurman

Jason Stein

Jason Polasek

Jenn Wells

Jillian Palone

Justin Klocke

Kat Cole

Kate Codsen

Kathleen Janvier

Kelly Robinson

Ken Bova

Krista Coleman-Silvers

Laritza Garcia

Laura Wood

Leia Zumbro

Lin Stanionis

Lindsay Hendricks

Lisa Johnson

Lisette Fee

Liz Steiner

Louise Oppenheiner

Lydia Tjioe

Lynette Andreasen

Margot Wolf

Margit Morawietz

Marissa Saneholtz

Marjorie Schick

Marlene True

Mary Hallam Pearse

Masako Onodera

Melanie Smith

Melissa Walter

Mi-Sook Hur

Michael Dale Bernard

Michael Gayk

Micheal Parrett

Nathan Dube

Nicole DesChamps-Benke

Pat Gavin

Paulette Myers

Rachel Shimpock

Renee Settle-Sterling

Robert Diaz de Leon

Robert G Jackson

Robert Longyear

Sandra Zilker

Sara Brown

Sarah Holden

Sarah Roberts

Sarah West

Shalena White

Stephanie Voegele

Sun Kim

Sung Yeoul Lee

Tara Locklear

Tim Lazure

Tina Lazzarine

Tova Lund

As I'd mentioned in a previous post, I'm very honored to be a part of this exhibition with so many talented artists. It is a night to celebrate the brooch at Equinox Gallery in San Antonio, Texas. Such a great idea for an exhibition!

Laura Wood and Alejandro Sifuentes, owner of Equinox Gallery have been working hard to ensure a successful show - they will have live models wearing the brooches on the night of the show, December 2. If you live in the San Antonio area, you should go! I wish I could.

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Visit to Jewelerswerk Galerie

The lovely Tanja, she has the softest and prettiest German accent.

Wearing an Iris Bodemer necklace. So envious!

Lisa Walker pieces on the wall.

It's like being in a candy store.

Lust, lust, and LUSTING for all of these pieces.

Would love to own a Darcy Miro cuff.

My friend Eva tried on an Iris Bodemer ring.
Quite wearable.

Delicious rings, I want that oxidized one with the mauve stone.

Bettina Dittlmann brooches (enamel on steel).

Since I was going to be visiting good friends in DC last weekend, I figured I might as well pop into Jewelerswerk Galerie (owner is Ellen Reiben) and see the new work they're exhibiting.

When I lived in DC two years ago I would always try and make it to the artist exhibits and attempt to talk to them, despite my nervousness. It's rare to have that treat of meeting the artist and learning their methods. I recall when Svenja John visited and I was truly amazed at how she came up with the concept for her pieces and getting them to fit seamlessly.

Tanja, the Galerie assistant was so kind to let me photograph the jewelry and ask her questions about her experience as a jeweler. I learned that in the Netherlands a citizen can actually request funding from the government to buy art - meaning, you don't have to pay for it, the government does!?! Seems like an extraordinary idea but wow, talk about supporting the arts. But Taina said that the program may possibly be cut, which would be terrible for the Galleries.

I left the Galerie with a renewed sense of purpose and inspiration.

Hope you enjoyed this post and thank you for visiting my blog.

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Bob's World

I had never seen this video till yesterday, wonderful. Bob is such a treasure to know. It's great to see how Bob was in his younger days!



There are several ECU grads, Kat Cole and Marissa Saneholtz, represent!

Thanks Lorena Angulo for posting on FB!
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A gift

A gift for a very good and dear friend I'll be visiting this weekend in D.C., she is one of my biggest cheerleaders, so she must be outfitted with some new bling.

I purchased the stone at the ECU Geology fraternity sale, I know, a geology fraternity? weird but I go crazy buying all sorts of awesome gems and geodes.

Hope you have a great weekend!
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Inside Jim Cotter's studio

Isn't this a great video of Jim Cotter in his Colorado studio? Jim Cotter was a visiting artist almost two years ago at ECU and I missed his workshop....I could really kick myself! I'm hoping he'll come back one day...soon. For now I'll enjoy this video of all the amazing jewelry and art he's creating.

check it out...




Jim kinda reminds me of Bob Ebendorf, and ironically they happen to be good friends.


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some lil' charms...

Will be on sale tomorrow at the ECU Metals Guild charm sale!
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New in The Hunted jewelry series

The Hunted - purple resin with crushed

green quartz and brass owl talon.

Love the aggressive quality of these.

Some more fun experimentation with resin and the owl talons. New in my Eilisain Etsy shop!

It's gettin' cray-cray (crazy) up in the studio, but I guess that's a good thing.
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Jewelry All Day!

This is quite possibly the cutest video of a jeweler working away in the studio.

nabbed fro Ms. Sassy Silver Smith.

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There's a sea Creature in my Etsy shop!

Ammonite and black coral -
purchased on my visit to Taxco, Mexico.

Deep Sea creature!

I love it when jewelry and art pieces resemble funny lil' creatures. This pin came together beautifully, I made it awhile ago but finally uploaded it to my Eilisain Etsy Shop.

Would certainly make a lovely Holiday gift, no? Hope you like.
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Charm sale!

Next Wednesday and Thursday from 9am-5pm the ECU metals guild is hosting our 2nd Annual Charm Sale. Last year it was a great success and this year we want to continue that success, 1/2 of the proceeds from the sale will go to the metals guild and the ECU symposium. The Guild has some major plans to fund scholarships, field trips and visiting artists.

We've been working hard on getting the word out about the sale, and if you're in the area next week, I highly suggest you visit, purchase and lust after the amazing charms (some by our professors too, Ken Bova and Bob Ebendorf) on sale.

Oh and uh...Charms will be price $5 and up!!!
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Spray can fun

This weekend Uptown Art Supply & Gallery is hosting another fun live spray can event but this time there will be BMX riders and contestants will receive 6 cans of Montana gold spray paint.

If you're in town this Saturday from 11-9pm, come and check it out - should be a blast!! The live spray event will be from 1-5pm. I just might enter to create some cool wall art.
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Photogrpahy tips

These are great tips!

Great Product Photos from Etsy Inc. on Vimeo.

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Finishing my cube

Hallelujah!
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Pioneers

First women of the Bauhaus school in Weimar.

Ilse Fehling

1896-1982

Ilse Fehling

Abstract sculpture

1922

Marguerite Friedlaender-Wildenhain

Model of an airplane cup

1932

Marguerite Friedlaender-Wildenhain

At the wheel at Pond Farm.

1950

Lilly Reich

1885-1947

Lilly Reich

Thonet chair

1936

Before I even signed up for my courses this fall I'd bought the book, Bauhaus Women by Ulrike Muller, intrigued by how women studied at the school, in such male dominated fields: wood, metal, photography, ceramics and even textiles (as a whole regarded as a 'woman's field). It's not surprise I decided to write my paper (due next week -ack!) on the same subject.

I'm very intrigued at how the world was back in the early 19th century for these pioneer women. Despite the extreme sexism, even with the shroud of 'equality between the sexes' stated by Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius, these women became successful and unconsciously made a crack in the glass ceiling for female artists.

So here is another post on Bauhaus and putting faces and incredible work with the pioneers of that time and place.

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First Friday Art Walk

Tonight, November 4th - Downtown Greenville 6-9pm!

Come out and support local artists, shop for handmade goods, drink in amazing art work AND enjoy tasty drinks at Christy's Euro Pub (aka the Cheers of Greenville)

And don't forget to visit DirtyLamb studios.

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Lady of Life and Death

I'm so pleased to post photos of a new brooch I completed for an upcoming exhibition at Equinox Gallery, where my good friend and ECU metals MFA alumni, Laura Wood works at.

Lady of Life and Death brooch, 2011

Chased and repoussed coppper, powder coated copper,

spray paint, plexiglass, hand drawing of Catrina.

(Images not to be reproduced without consent of artist).

Lady of Life and Death brooch, 2011 - sideview.

Up close shot

Back of brooch, the roughness of the back

is in correspondence with death and decay of

what La Catrina represents.

Lady of Life and Death brooch was inspired by my trip to Mexico and the devotion and amusement of Mexicans for the Virgin Mary of Guadalupe and La Catrina (a symbol of death during the celebration of Dia de los Muertos/Day of the Dead).

Traveling through Mexico there is a church on almost every corner and the Virgin Mary charm or prayer hanging from almost every cab dashboard. When I researched references for my brooch I came upon a quote by Octavio Paz (Mexican thinker, writer and Nobel prize recipient) that had a lasting impression on me "When Mexicans no longer believe in anything, they will hold fast to their belief in two things: the National Lottery and the Virgin of Guadalupe. In this I think they will do well. For both have been known to work, even for those of us who believe in nothing."

I'll be shipping my brooch off soon - here is a brief description of the exhibition and idea behind it:

“The inspiration for La Noche del Broche came from an idea of having one night to commemorate the brooch and its art form in a festive atmosphere where Spanish Music and Dancers would collaborate to create an atmosphere of Celebration!!! Models would be colorful and adorned with brooches celebrating the human spirit. This exhibition is an opportunity for artists to honor and celebrate the art form of the brooch. For this vision to be appropriately achieved, we would need a large collective of brooches each one expressing the multiplicity and individuality of the creative essence. Equinox Gallery serves as a meeting place to showcase Jewelry and metalwork in San Antonio. Our Mission is to exhibit and educate the community by providing a Platform for the diversity in the field of Metalsmithing.” -Alejandro Sifuentes

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Welding

As I said in my previous post, I'm really enjoying my sculpture class. I'm going to go ahead and say it, I feel like such a bad ass welding! It's almost like soldering but you don't have flux the piece of metal (copper or silver) nor do you have to find the solder and ball it up - all the precision. With mig welding though you do want a straight line and good flow and most importantly your two pieces of steel need to be touching.

Our class assignment is to make a near perfect cube with 90 degree sides...which is much harder to do than you might think. The trick is getting two perfect size squares of steel to meet at the edges.

Me in my welding outfit

My welding station

My class mates gettin' down and dirty

My steel cube

Thank you for reading and visiting my blog!

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