2013 Penland School of Crafts Ornament of the Year
Created by Stacey Lane
This is the 5th in our series of annual Penland School of Crafts ornaments. We hope that each of these ornaments will capture and share the spirit of creativity that lives within the school’s community of artists and friends. So far we have had two ceramic ornaments, one glass, and one book. This year we are proud to offer the perfect ornament to represent our small metals studios!
Stacey Lane is a studio jeweler living in Bakersville, North Carolina. In addition to creating a beautiful collection of jewelry, she also works for Penland School as the Manager of Community Collaboration. She shares her life and home with husband/potter Michael Kline, two daughters, and assorted chickens and pets.
“I have a small studio in North Carolina where I create one-of-a-kind jewelry and production work. I make custom pieces for clients incorporating their stones, metal, and personal imagery and show my work in galleries.
“I have always loved making things and thinking about art. I studied Art History at the University of Georgia in Athens. While there, I took a jewelry course with Gary Noffke and was hooked. After college, my metals education continued at Arrowmont and Penland School of Crafts. I moved to Penland in 1997 to be the metals studio coordinator, and I am still here! I now work part-time at Penland as Manager of Community Collaboration, which provides perfect balance to my studio days. I love making jewelry and continue to find magic in converting wax to metal. When I began to make my living in jewelry, I started to pay closer attention to material sources and didn’t like what I found. I looked for ways to continue working while feeling good about the process and materials, and it has been quite a journey.
“I hope that my work conveys a sense of humor, warmth and elegance. I believe in jewelry’s potential to be symbolic, sentimental, superfluous, necessary, and even hopeful. In much of my jewelry, I use the remarkable lost-wax casting process. It enables me to transform soft, pliable wax into intricate metal objects. It also makes recycling metal a natural part of the process. I leave marks on my pieces that emphasize that they are made by hands. I work primarily in silver and gold, but have been using jeweler’s bronze more lately. I am inspired by Dutch still life paintings, children’s book illustrations, poetry, ancient jewelry, food garnishes, animals, and shiny things.”
Click here to visit Stacey’s website.
If you are a fan of Stacey’s jewelry, you will immediately recognize her signature use of cast elements, pearls, and semi-precious stones.
The bird ornament is cast bronze, champagne pearls, and a faceted red drop stone.
The floral bud ornament is cast bronze, white pearls, and a faceted drop jade stone.
The ornament is approximately 4-1/4 inches high by 1-1/2 inches wide x 1/4 inches deep. They cost $50 each, plus tax (when applicable), which includes gift box packaging.
Shipping is via USPS, $5.80 for one ornament (shipping cost adjusted for more than one).
To order: Please call the gallery at 828-765-6211 or email penlandgallery@penland.org. We accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover cards. You may also purchase an ornament in person at the Penland Gallery.
Click here to visit the Penland Gallery website.