My Teaching Philosophy

Everyone can learn metalsmithing and develop his/her own unique art, given time and individual attention.   My goal as a teacher is to guide and support my students to achieve what they hope to accomplish in my class, be it making artwork as a hobby, becoming a master metalsmith or jeweler, utilizing the art form to reduce stress, relax and learn more about oneself, meeting new people, learning a new skill which keeps our minds alert and flexible, or any other goal. 

I believe art is an innate part of everyone.  If you asked 50 people to sit in a room together and they drew scribbles on paper, each one of those scribbles would be different than the others.  Ask those same people to repeat the activity for 30 days, then you would begin to see patterns, color preferences and symbols unique to each person emerging.  Massaging and staying in tune with this part of ourselves aids us in developing  a unique form, style and/or concept that separates our artwork from everyone else's.  With time, this style will become more pronounced to the point that someone previously exposed to our artwork could identify it in an instant.  Patience results in this design evolution, which continues over the journey of an artist's career; however, elements of the style may be evident very early in each person's pieces even before mastering the media.  

The purpose of classes is to learn techniques, processes for utilizing the media (metal, stones, patinas), to fine tune our craftsmanship as well as to learn to "bring out" and develop an innate artistic style.  Another great reason for group lessons is gaining differing perspectives, ideas, feedback and moral support from the instructor and other students.

Gallery

Classes and Workshops