ARTIST INFO
JULIA HARRISON
Penland, NC
WOOD + METALS | Sculpture and functional craft
Penland Affiliation | Penland Instructor 2007, 2013, 2015, Penland Resident Artist 2020-2023
Artist Information | Studio artist; education: MFA University of Washington, MA Macquarie University, BA Macalester College; teaching: Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts (TN), Snow Farm (MA), Pratt Fine Arts Center (WA), Penland (NC), Phoenix Center for the Arts (AZ), Central Washington University (WA); exhibitions: Sweet Travel (Fresh Flours, WA), Choose the Mountain (Quirk Gallery, VA), A Lingering Sweetness (KOBO at Higo, WA), Rhizome: New Bamboo Jewelry (KOBO at Higo, WA), Lover’s Portrait (Souvenir, WA), Knock on Wood: 2014 Biennial (Bellevue Arts Museum, WA), The Earring Show II (Velvet da Vinci, CA), A Cut Above (Lakeshore Living, WA), The Meaning of Wood (Minnaert Gallery, WA), Yuma Symposium Presenters (Yuma Art Center, AZ)
Artist Statement | I’ve been making things for even longer than I can remember, and my parents have the archival evidence to prove it: salt-clay dachshunds, construction paper brooches, spool-and-tape sandals, Barbie clothes, and stuffed animals crafted from Dad’s neckties. Announcing that I needed some privacy, I’d shut the door to my room and spend silent hours hunched over whatever tools and materials I could get my hands on, trying to figure everything out.
Even after decades of doing it, transforming an idea into reality is still a powerful experience for me, a kind of alchemy. And although I do still spend a lot of time alone in a silent room, trying to figure things out, I also get the satisfaction of sharing my solutions with clients and viewers, and of watching my students achieve their own alchemical moments.
Technical Info | Teardrop earrings: Bent stainless steel strapping is welded together and repolished; can be shined as needed with a silver polishing cloth. Earposts and nuts are also stainless steel. Black Gifts: The aluminum is dyed black and sealed by anodizing, an electro-chemical process. The bow is held together with an industrial rivet.
