Posted on January 20, 2017 by Penland

Photo of the Week: Here There Be Monsters

Adam Whitney is spending the month of January at Penland as a winter residency studio assistant in upper metals. His big project for that time is to make a pair of stirrup cups, the “parting cups” traditionally used to present mounted riders with wine or spirits before they left on a journey. Because stirrup cups were used on horseback instead of around a table, they didn’t need the flat base standard to almost all drinking vessels, and many were shaped like the heads of hounds, foxes, and other animals. Adam is crafting his in the shapes of mythical beasts.

The cups are inspired by fanciful renderings of sea monsters and other creatures on old maps and books. Adam started by making a model in copper, complete with curved teeth, horns, and a scaly chin. Next, he began the methodical work of transforming solid lumps of silver into cups, first by shaping and hollowing them with a hammer and then by adding details with finer tools like punches. The process is no small undertaking, but the results so far are a monstrous success.

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Posted on September 1, 2016September 1, 2016 by Penland

Creating Beauty with Kristina Glick

enameled pieces by Kristina Glick

“Beautiful things have always affected my life, and I believe beauty is a powerful force in the world.” So Kristina Glick introduces her body of jewelry and metalwork. Her pieces are indeed beautiful, but those expecting extravagant gold or jewel-studded creations are imagining the work of the wrong artist. Kristina’s beauty is all about appreciation, interest, and a keen eye. “I am often drawn towards the quiet and the subtle: the texture of a rusty nail, a discarded book, pieces of a magnolia seed, or the curve of a beach stone,” she explains. Her work masterfully combines found objects and traditional metalworking techniques into pieces that are rich with color, texture, and unexpected details.

This fall, Kristina will be bringing her dedication to beauty—and her sizable skills—to the Penland metals studio. From September 25 to November 18, she will be teaching the concentration Counterbalance: Enameling, Electroforming & Found Objects. The course will be eight weeks of exploring techniques, materials, and the qualities that make a piece uniquely beautiful to each of us.

“I hope that what I create may someday slip into someone else’s life and tip the balance of their world a little further in the direction of beauty,” Kristina says. If your world could use a bit more beauty in the everyday (and whose couldn’t?), then Kristina’s workshop might be the perfect thing. Registration is now open, and a couple work-study scholarships are still available. For more information, contact the Penland registrar at 828-765-2359, ext 1306.

found object piece by Kristina Glick

Counterbalance: Enameling, Electroforming & Found Objects

Kristina Glick—This workshop will start with the basics of liquid enamels including techniques such as layering, sgraffito, stamping, stenciling, and champlevé. Then we’ll explore electroforming to create organic, textured copper surfaces that will highlight and enhance the enamel. We’ll use found objects as inspiration and incorporate them into finished work. With an emphasis on process and experimentation, we’ll work toward the design and execution of jewelry pieces or wall panels. The workshop will include basic fabrication skills: sawing, soldering, cold connections, etching, and finishing. All levels. Code F00MA

Associate professor at Goshen College (IN); other teaching: Idyllwild (CA), Arizona Designer Craftsmen, Goshen Jewelers Guild (IN); exhibitions: JAS (NC), Touching Mystery (OH); work published in 500 Gemstone Jewels and 500 Enameled Objects (Lark Books); representation: Angelo (VA).

kristinaglick.com

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Posted on August 5, 2016August 5, 2016 by Penland

Photo of the Week: Gravity Casting

Juvana Soliven casting bronze using the awesome power of gravity in this session’s metals workshop taught by Suzanne Pugh. Suzanne decided to focus the workshop on gravity casting rather than centrifugal or vacuum casting because it’s cheaper to set up in a home studio and also opens the possibility of making larger-scale work.