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November means GOTV where I live - not "Go, look
what's on TV tonight," but rather, Get Out the Vote. So,
we did, and we lost some, but we won some, too.
Land use is a big issue where I live, and I love the fact
that it's also an issue that's addressed by jewelry
artists like Lisa and Scott Carpenter - talk with them
and you'll learn they passionately want to see rural
landscapes instead of urban sprawl.
So does AJF member and artist Rika Mouw - she's
fashioned many pieces that speak to land and
resource preservation and conservation.
Art jewelry serves many purposes and initiates many
conversations. If there are topics you'd like to see
addressed here, please let me know via email:
janeshannon@taconic.net.
- Jane Shannon
Editor, AJFconnection
This month, you'll see our two featured interviews start
here in the newsletter, then if you just click where
indicated,
you'll see the full interviews on the AJF website.
In this issue:
- "Thank you all for loving jewelry" - by
Sharon Church
- "Attracted to texture and materials" - an
interview with Pat Rodimer, past president,
AJF
- "Contemporary jewelry is not a field that can be
pigeonholed by its function" - an interview with
Cindi Strauss, Houston Museum of Fine Art
- SNAG heads for Savannah in 2008 - and you
can
go, too! - a special offering for AJF members and
other collectors
- SOFA, So Good! - Glad to see so many
AJF members there
- Zoom Forward - What's on the Horizon
| "Thank you all for loving jewelry" |
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- quoting Sharon Church
"Whenever I walk along Walnut Street, I look up at what
used to be Helen's Gallery. I am reminded that even
without her gallery, she is still doing it - she is still
gathering us all into conversation and community
through projects like 'Challenging the Chatelaine.'
Though as artists we are spread across the globe, we
still talk to one anothern- in person, when we happen
to meet, or through the catalogue publications - about
how we are responding to her challenges and what
we are making.
"There are so many possible emanations for jewelry -
it boggles the mind. In studio, I am still carving away,
following my own path, thinking about beauty and loss,
and the great joy of being alive. Thank you all for
loving jewelry - for making it, showing it, writing about
it, wearing it and taking it to the street. In this, we are
all of us educators, helping to form an unknowable,
intriguing future."
- Sharon Church, Professor, Crafts
Department, University of the Arts, Philadelphia,
speaking at the Ruth K. Shartle symposium, Museum
of Fine Art, Houston, September 2007, at the opening
of the Helen W. Drutt collection. ("Challenging the
Chatelaine" is an exhibit Helen curated that is currently
touring in Europe.)
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| "Contemporary jewelry is not a field that can not be pigeonholed by its function" |
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- an interview with Cindi Strauss, curator of Modern
and Contemporary Decorative Arts and Design, at the
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, (MFAH)
Cindi recently completed the five-year project of
creating the Ornament as Art exhibit and catalog,
which showcase the avant-garde jewelry from the
Helen Williams Drutt collection. She holds a
bachelor's degree in art history from Hamilton College
and master's degree in the history of decorative arts
from Cooper-Hewitt/Parsons School of Design. Cindi
has been with MFAH since 1994. Here, she talks with
AJFconnection editor Jane Shannon about her work,
her wish list, and her advice for collectors.
Click
here to continue
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| SNAG heads for Savannah in 2008-and you can go, too! |
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"Midnight in the Garden of---" Savannah, and SNAG is
offering a one-of-a-kind program, Friends of
SNAG, for AJF members and other jewelry
collectors, at their annual conference in the heart of
historic Savannah, GA, March 5-8, 2008.
For $725, this exclusive offer gives you a year-long
membership in SNAG, plus entrée to special behind-
the-scenes events, as well access to the entire
conference program and social events including:
- Intimate invitation-only VIP Reception, hosted by
SNAG's Board of Directors welcoming the conference
speakers, who include Sheila Hicks, Keynote
Speaker, and Susan Cummins, AJF President
- Private tour of Telfair Museum of Arts and Jepson
Center for Arts
- Private tour of Owens-Thomas House, the finest
example of English Regency architecture in the United
States
- Private viewings of the exhibitions featured in the
conference Gallery Night tour
- Specially arranged tours of local artists'
studios
- Private tours of a prominent local collector's
homes
- Meet the artists who create the work that excites
you
To find out more, go to www.snagmetalsmith.org and
follow the prompts from the 2008 conference to the
Friends of SNAG section. If you have questions,
contact Kiwon Wang, SNAG board member and
coordinator of Friends of SNAG at
KiwonWang@aol.com.
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| SOFA, So Good! |
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"Will the people in the cheaper seats clap your
hands? And the rest of you, if you'll just rattle your
jewelry." -John Lennon
Gerd Rothman presented the above quote, and more,
as he instructed and amused us during his AJF
sponsored lecture at SOFA in Chicago. What was
most touching was his description of what he loves
most about his work-the interaction between himself
and his clients as he creates pieces with fingerprints
and other body impressions. He showed photos of
his work, followed by statements about his work or
process, and more quotes, such as:
"Someday, little girl, you'll have a diamond as big
as your shoe." -Bob Dylan
Some 50+ AJF members and guests stopped by the
AJF reception on Friday, November 2, arranged by AJF
board member Susan Kempin.
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| Zoom Forward -- What's on the Horizon |
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Briefly, events that may interest you:
January 2008
Edge of the Sublime: Enamels by Jamie
Bennett -- Jan. 19 - May 4, Fuller Craft
Museum, Brockton, MA.
For more information, see www.fullercraft.org.
Collect -- featuring 42 galleries from
Europe, Australia, Korea, and Japan, Jan. 25-29,
Victoria & Albert
Museum, London. For more information, see
http://collect.craftscouncil.org.uk.
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In the Forum |
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"Attracted to texture and materials" -- an
interview with Pat Rodimer, past president, AJF
Pat's career has taken her from suburban
Philadelphia to New York City to Chicago to San
Francisco, where she's worked in corporate
communications for companies as varied as Avon,
Kraft, and Pacific Gas & Electric. Pat currently works
as a communication consultant and also serves on
the AJF board as the past president. Here, AJF board
member Sally von Bargen talks with Pat about her
interest in contemporary art jewelry.
Sally: First, on behalf of all AJF members,
thank you for your many years service as AJF
President. You've done a masterful job. Let's go back
to how you learned about AJF and why did you
join?
Pat: Carol Windsor, a local jewelry artist and
AJF
member, invited me to attend a Metal Arts Guild panel
discussion with collectors and AJF members. As the
panelists talked, I found myself jotting down tons of
notes about "have they done this or thought about
that." Afterwards I went up to them and essentially
said, "Where have you been hiding? I've been looking
for a group like this." Next thing you know, I was not
only a member but also a board member. Classic
case of beware of what you ask for!
Sally: Art Jewelry lovers often have personal
stories
about how they discovered it, where and how did your
interest in art jewelry begin?
Pat: I'm not sure there was an "aha" moment.
Like
many people, my interest with craft began at a fairly
young age with street fairs and the like. I gradually
began to be exposed to higher levels of work. I still
remember my first ACC show in Northampton, MA,
and the feeling of having found some sort of Holy Grail
so perhaps that was the true beginning of my art
jewelry interest. However, none of my friends were
into this and thought I was kind of artsy/eccentric.
Click
here to continue
IMAGES
- Pat Rodimer, wearing the Ford & Forlano broach
given to her by members for her years of AJF
service
- Cindi Strauss
- SOFA - Jennifer Trask and AJF member Laura
Lapachin, Ornamentum Gallery
- SOFA - At the AJF reception (right to left) AJF
Emerging Artist Andrea Janosik, her friend Patricio,
and jewelry artists Sayumi Yokouchi and Jamie
Bennett
- SOFA - Ivan Bennett, Patina Gallery, at the gallery's
first SOFA appearance
- SOFA - Gerd Rothmann and Sondra Sherman at
her exhibit at Sienna Gallery
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