Jerry was the first to “jump” into the creative skills and art of jewelry making in the late 1980’s. Fran, after a couple of years watching and working beside Jerry decided to try out her own journey into creative skills of Metal Art design. We thus began our joint venture into expanding our skills and designs for creations of “wearable metal art jewelry”.
For the most part our creations are asymmetry drawn around the “free form” art of the cabochon stones that we cut and polish ourselves. Our design styles are a mix of contemporary and classic and includes one or more precious or semi precious gemstones. Color is often an important step in a design also. These steps are what gives us a truly original expression and creativity in each piece. We primarily make our “wearable art” using milled wire and sheet of Sterling Silver, Platinum Sterling 3.5, 14k/18k & 24k yellow Gold, Platinum Sterling 3.5 and “Argentium” Sterling Silver. Also combinations of these metals are used for creativity and less tarnishing in the final creative outcome. All of our jewelry is designed and made by Jerry and Fran in our private studio in the Northern California mountains. Nothing is made from or with a mold.
Our art in hand fabrication represents many years of research, training, experimentation and of course “hands on” practice. We are both basically self taught learning new techniques as we can here and there. Using time honored fabrication methods such as forging, dapping, tooling, piecing soldering, texturing and many others.
Fran, delights in drafting all of our designs and doing commission work. She also specializes in working with our clients to create their own unique personal piece of “wearable metal art” jewelry.
Annually we venture to purchase our “rough” materials and some finished stones at the famed Gem and Mineral shows held in Tucson, Arizona. We find that this is like turning a kid loose in a “candy store” to select just a few things a-mid so many, many choices---it just can’t be done. So we usually return each year with more and more “goodies” to work with. Since Jerry is “color blind” Fran does most of the buying, however the search is a joint venture and often the stone itself will “talk” to one of us and give us inspiration of design while creating our piece or as we purchased it.
We feel honored that over the years of our journey in the field of Metals Arts we have been selected as artists to participate in some of the Bay areas most prestigious Fine Art events. To name a few...Capitola Art and Wine, Gilroy Garlic Festival, Connoisseurs’ Market Place, Menlo Park, Palo Alto Festival of the Arts, Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Festival, and Burlingame Art on the Ave to list a few. Also we have been honored with the “Hall of Fame” Artist award in 2003 at the Tapestry of Arts Festival held annual in San Jose, Ca. Over the years we have received many other First Place and juried awards in other fine art festivals held in California and other states and participated in many other Fine Art events in Oregon, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, New Mexico, Texas, and Louisiana.
