Ode to Colors...

Chromophilia got reviewed!!!!

I'm excited to have Chromophilia get a review in one of our local papers, The Providence Phoenix. The article, by Greg Cook, highlights some of the work in the exhibition and touches upon the aesthetic of the show. Personally, I'm always so glad to have contemporary art jewelry written about, because it hardly ever happens and I appreciate that critics are willing to learn about this emerging field and present it to a larger audience. I've posted Greg's review below, or you can read it here.

Review: '10 Most Endangered Properties,' plus 'Chromophilia'
The title of the "Chromophilia" exhibit at Craftland (235 Westminster Street, Providence, through October 10) focuses our attention on the bright colors of contemporary studio jewelry, which follows the 1980s revival — a la American Apparel — throughout fashion. But the bigger trend that curators Devienna Anggraini and Islay Taylor identify is a Post-Modern, catholic use of a wide variety of non-precious materials.

Mike & Maaike, a San Francisco studio led by Mike Simonian and Maaike Evers, fashion flat leather necklaces and broaches based on pixilated photos of famous jewelry (Daisy Fellowe's "Tutti Frutti" necklace, Imelda Marcos's ruby necklace, the Hope Diamond) found via Google image searches. Mariana Acosta Contreras of Providence strings folded leather into scarf-like necklaces resembling strands of flowers or shelf mushrooms. They often have a neutral main color (gray, white) with bright hues (reds, greens) flaring from inside folds.

Islay Taylor of Providence crochets webs of thread to hold cascading strands of orange and red beads. San Francisco's Emiko Oye turns Legos into bright, blocky, fun bracelets. One cheekily puns on Mondrian's blocky early 20th-century abstractions. RISD-trained Jimin Park's broaches look as if she's fashioned bits of metal and fluorescent plastic junk she picked up off the street into Post-Modern tribal talismans. Oye and Park's work highlights a distinguishing characteristic of this jewelry: a spirit of play.

Chromophilia Installation Photos

Here are some photographs from the installation of Chromophilia at Craftland. This show, which I co-curated with Devienna Anggraini, features the work of Emiko Oye, Anthony Tammaro, Mike and Maaike, Jimin Park, Jenny Bradley, Amy Weiks, and Mariana Acosta.

I have to say that the final display looks wonderful. The work really brightens up the gallery with the highly saturated hues and tactile materials that each artist used.

Enjoy the pictures, and if you want more information about the show or artists check out the Chromophilia blog!

Chromo-Card

Originally posted on Evocative Objects.

Here's the show card for Chromophilia. Feel free to download it and email it along...

Getting Colorful at Chromophilia

Originally posted on Evocative Objects.
Devienna and I met today to install our upcoming show, Chromophilia, at Craftland. It took us only six hours to get a majority of the work done, and I'm very pleased with the results! Devienna was the brave one climbing up and down the ladder all day, while I laid out and secured most of the work... Clearly, we were a perfect team, and I'm honestly shocked at how quickly we worked together. I felt like a jewelry-installing zombie towards the end, but it was worth it! So many mono-filament knots.

Now that all the work is laid out in the gallery, the chromatic theme of the show is becoming brazenly apparent. Craftlands gallery has been transformed into a prism of color, texture, and material. Saturated reverberations coming off each artists work and just light up the space. All of the jewelry looks compliments each other nicely, and there is a good balance of styles of making and materials also.

Here are some preview pictures of the exhibition from when we were setting up today. I'll post more detailed images after the show opens.

The work has started coming in...

Yesterday I met with Devienna to talk about the fast approaching show. We visited the gallery at Craftland to check out the space, discuss display, and check out some of the work that's already started coming in. I think that we must have looked like two little girls in a candy store as we thoroughly investigated every little bauble that's arrived so far!

One of the artists that who we've received work from is Amy Weiks. She has sent us a series of exquisite brooches from a series titled Equal and Opposite, which I've always admired... But, finally getting so experience them in real life totally blows away my expectations! I was honestly kindof flabbergasted at her craftsmanship, her composition, and her unique hardware. The gallery was a cacophony of 'Oohs' and 'Aaahs' as we unwrapped one brooch after the next.

These brooches subtly investigate her explorations of material, form, and function. They also reflect her working process quite nicely, leaving her hammer marks as an honest portrayal of her method of forming. I really can't say enough about these brooches... I can't wait to see what else comes in the mail, and finally how the show looks fully installed!

Top image: Dev and Margaret fawning over a brooch

Bottom image: Equal and Opposite brooch by Amy Weiks

Jenny Bradley

With an emphasis on form, color and pattern, Jenny is invested in the question as to what jewelry can be in our world today. Dissecting her materials to then reconstruct them into new objects, she creates jewelry that explores structural and systemic elements. Her interest in non-traditional materials spark her investigations into the found object which she reformats to interact with elements constructed by her own hand. The work is a celebration of material and form meant to inspire curiosity, celebrate life, and create an appreciation for the little things.

Her most recent body of work focuses more directly on creating systems that move and therefore become interactive with the wearer. The jewelry is graphic and reflects an awareness of the way our world is built. The work is inspired by simple mechanics found in our daily surroundings. These same systems become the central element of her wearable objects. Her jewelry reminds that amidst structure and order it’s okay to get a little crazy and enjoy life at the same time.

Jenny is a recent grad from the SUNY New Paltz Masters program in metal and received her bachelors from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2005. She was chosen to participate in the 2005 Graduate Student Show at Gallery Marzee in the Netherlands and has subsequently shown at the Sienna Gallery in Lenox, MA, and the Heidi Lowe Studio in Rehoboth Beach, DE. Jenny also helped develop the jewelry program at the community arts organization, the Steel Yard, in Providence, RI where she has taught several classes.

Blue Mardi-Gras Earrings, mardi-fras beads, silver
Pink Mardi-Gras Brooch, mardi-gras beads, silver, steel