November 2023

DAVIDE BIGAZZI STUDIO

Website: Davide Bigazzi
Instagram: @davidebigazzistudio16

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

I started teaching jewelry and metalsmithing classes at Davide Bigazzi Studio in Menlo Park in 2007. I find that project-based, in-person learning works best, and so I devised an individualized approach that encourages each student to pursue their creativity and uncover their own style while learning the art of jewelry metalsmithing.

With only 5 individuals in each group class, I guide each student on their journey of creating beautifully finished pieces of jewelry and holloware. As they design and create their pieces, my students learn how to work with silver, gold, and various stones while utilizing a range of fabrication techniques, soldering, wax carving, basic stone setting (prongs, bezels, flash setting), chasing and repousse, Keum-Boo, patina creation, texturizing, and much more.

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

I have students from all walks of life and experience levels – individuals who’ve never touched a fire torch or jewelry saw in their life, as well as seasoned professionals with their own goldsmith workshops and jewelry lines.

I teach fine jewelry fabrication techniques employed by Italian old masters,  and I specialize in chasing and repousse.

In addition to group classes, I teach 3-day chasing and repousse workshops. I also teach private classes during which we typically focus on perfecting a specific technique.

Lastly, given my 35+ years of experience working for jewelry corporations in Italy as well as building my own business as a jewelry designer here in the States, I provide one-on-one consultations to metalsmithing professionals where we explore the many aspects of launching and expanding their jewelry lines.

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

Learning to forge jewelry from scratch is not for the faint of heart. It requires plenty of perseverance. You’re working with fire, metals, and stones all of which react differently to different conditions, so jewelry students have to allow themselves to make mistakes. I often tell my students “Don’t be afraid to start over. This time you’re not starting from scratch, you’re starting from experience”. I think this lesson applies to many things in life, not just jewelry making.

4. What are some of your student’s favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

Because my approach focuses on creating finished pieces from scratch, my students enjoy employing a full range of skills required to start and finish a piece that they felt inspired to create because of something they saw in nature, or something they saw one of their fellow students create, or in a magazine.

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

Sometimes students underestimate their abilities. As a teacher and mentor, I give them the tools and confidence to reach their goals. An important aspect of my job is to assess what’s possible for each student, and then guide them to pursue projects that allow them to grow and reach their personal best.

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

Just get started and keep learning. There are many ways to learn, so find a class, school, or instructor that encourages you to grow in the direction you desire.

 

October 2023

The Flame Within: Metal Artistry Unleashed

Website: The Flame Within
Instagram: ACCI Gallery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

September 2023

Sharon Zimmerman

Website: Sharon Z Jewelry
Instagram: @sharonzjewelry

1. Tell us a little about yourself.

Being a business owner and a professional jeweler wasn’t part of my original path – I was going to be a musician and performer. Even after 17+ years in jewelry and metalsmithing, I feel like I come at it with an outsider and observer’s view. But being a performer, I think that’s where my deep desire to communicate stems from – wanting to understand my characters in acting isn’t that different than trying to understand people in a classroom. Interpreting their needs, motivations, and desires is like researching the character in a play. Understanding people is central to how I work and teach.

2. What is your favorite tool and why?

My favorite tool is one of my hammers. I bought it used online 8 years ago, refinished it and it is one of my most flexible and trusted tools. Using it to transform and strengthen metal is such a magical process for me, even after so many years of practicing it.

3. Which materials do you create with most and what is your attraction to using them?

I use sterling, 14K and 18K gold as well as platinum. All have properties that I like to work with for different reasons. Silver allows me to be more avant garde and expressive, since the metal is both flexible and economical, 14 K gold is strong and beautiful, 18 Karat yellow gold is my favorite to work with for its density and flexibility and hello! to that gorgeous color. Platinum is so heavy and bright. I love polishing platinum and watching that glow reveal itself.

4. Where do you draw your inspiration from?

I draw my inspiration from all kinds of places. A lot of it comes from observing the world around me. Nature, sure, and architecture, and of course a reasonable dose of Sci-Fi movies. I love futuristic aesthetics — it feels optimistic.

5. How long have you been working in metals and what brought you into this field?

I started in 2003 with my first metalsmithing class. A couple of years later I picked up and moved to San Francisco to live here, but also to attend the Revere Academy. I met other passionate and motivated jewelers there (some I am still friends with to this day). I had spent a lot of time working retail and customer service jobs – a must for anyone wanting to run their own business! You learn so much about how to work with people. But even before picking up metalsmithing I was always keeping my hands busy – sewing, crafts, beading – but I was searching for more. A guidance counselor heard me say that I really liked making jewelry as a hobby and told me about a local community college metals course. I took a class where I learned that I could make my own rings and I was hooked!

6. What piece of advice would you give to someone just starting out in metals?

Try everything! Even if it frustrates you, even if you don’t think you’ll be totally into it, even if you think you won’t want to use a particular skill, try it and find out for sure. Also, try your hand at working in the jewelry industry. Nothing like having to do production work to find out if you want to keep doing it for decades. And working in the industry can teach you so much about how to work efficiently and consistently.

7. What has been the biggest challenge for you as a metal artist and have you overcome it, or how are you working to overcome it?

Figuring out the intersection of what I like to make vs. what people will want. There is a big push/pull of making work that is expressive and represents my aesthetic ideals, while also making sure that it connects with an audience. I do in-person shows and events to find out how customers interact with the jewelry, and to hear how they respond to and describe my work. This has helped me to be better at designing with the customer in mind. After all, if I don’t connect with people, then I don’t get to keep doing what I love.

The other challenge is that a lot of old ways of thinking and working pervade the industry at the upper levels. When I started my business, finding enough companies that provide transparency of their sourcing was a challenge. Overall, the jewelry industry has been so slow to respond to demands for greater ethical accountability, and it has been slow to realize that it has lost the younger generation of consumers because it didn’t provide traceability and accountability. I am happy that a number of organizations like Ethical Metalsmiths and the CRJC are shifting the conversation and putting pressure on larger companies to change their models, but it’s deeply unfair that it is falling to us as individuals. There have been real positive changes – Fairmined certification, a push for Mercury-free mining, thriving partnerships with mining collectives that benefit source communities and a dedication to providing mine-to-market transparency to name just a few. I am excited to see where this will take the industry over the next decade. Joining these organizations and learning from their forums or attending conferences and meetings has helped me discover better resources and has helped with actions like becoming a Fairmined Licensee.

8. Favorite resource/vendor or website.

Favorite resources! OK, so let me give a shout out and a follow to @metalsmithsociety on Instagram for creating an amazing and sharing community of jewelers and metalsmiths. So many good tips on there. For as long as I’ve been doing this, there is always something new that I can learn. Rio Grande is still my go to vendor for so many things, especially tools (their Rio Pro membership which is totally worth it!) and I love Hoover and Strong’s continued commitment to traceability for their raw materials. It’s where I get my Fairmined gold and silver from. Also my caster Jena Hounshell who has been an incredible resource for me over the years that I have worked with her. And her mold and sprue class last year was mind-expanding – I learned SO much.

August 2023

Palo Alto Art Center

Website: Palo Alto Art Center
Instagram: @paloaltoartcenter

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

The Open Jewelry Studio at the Palo Alto Art Center is such a special place for in-person metal smithing and jewelry making classes. The studio itself is packed with everything you need to make fine jewelry, which gives us the ability to teach a wide range of techniques that often require very specialized tools. Everything from Lost wax casting, stone setting, torch work, hydraulic and hand forming. Our classes often last 6 to 8 weeks and have between 10-15 students. We also offer weekend workshops for those who want to try primitive casting or PMC clay over a couple of days. It’s a great way to get a taste of the possibilities.

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

We offer a wide range of jewelry making classes for both beginners who are just starting and experienced jewelers who want to expand their techniques. Metal fabrication and lost wax casting are our primary offerings. We also periodically offer a number of workshops that feature primitive casting techniques, hand forming for 3D work, stone setting and even a three hour class on Wed. night that lets people make stamped metal pieces, work with resin and others that don’t require many tools or torch work.

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

In addition to making jewelry, one of our instructors, Kelly Harrison, always presents students with the history behind certain techniques and jewelry items. Humans have been making bodily adornment for over 150,000 years, so the reference material is limitless. In addition, we hope students learn to appreciate the fine skill and dedication it takes to make a beautiful piece of jewelry. Going through the process can really help them understand all the work that goes into something handmade.

4. What are some of your students’ favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

That’s a tough question to answer. There’s so many magic moments! From the smile when they first see solder flow using a torch is a big one. Its amazing alchemy right before your eyes. Another is patterning metal using our rolling mill. Lots of ooh’s and ahh’s. There’s also a lot of joy in the time savings of using disc cutters to cut circles on our hydraulic press. Knowing you don’t have to saw out a circle or oval, brings automatic smiles!

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

The biggest challenge with someone starting out is there is so much to learn, like a new vocabulary, tons of tools, and endless design possibilities. It can easily be overwhelming. So we like to start them out on the easily achievable basics that will be the foundation they expand upon. We also like to teach techniques that can get them making great jewelry right away without a huge tool investment. A hope that they’ll continue and start a home bench. Plus, over the years of teaching, our instructors have put together some great video support libraries, online material sources and group purchasing that really enhance the learning process outside of class.

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

Just dive in. Look closely at the jewelry you love and are drawn to. Ask instructors how it was made, then choose the class that’s right for you. Be wide open to experiment, hammer, saw, solder, make mistakes and get creative on how to incorporate them. Keep learning and looking. And most important of all…have fun!

 

July 2023

MISSION COLLEGE
(WEST VALLEY – MISSION COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT)

Website: Mission College Art Department
Flickr: Mission College Flickr Albums

 

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

Mission College was founded in 1979 as part of the West Valley-Mission Community College District that features Mission College in Santa Clara and West Valley College in Saratoga. Mission College opened a new Art Annex building that features jewelry and metalsmithing studios, a bronze foundry, as well as ceramics, furniture and woodshop facilities. West Valley College is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) and recently opened the Cilker School of Art and Design in a brand new 20,000 square foot arts facility. Classes in the 3D areas are taught in person on each campus, and the 2D art classes offer both onsite and online courses. Class sizes range from 15-25, depending on the medium.

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

Mission College offers a variety of 3D classes including 3D Design, Metalsmithing & Jewelry, Metal Casting, Sculpture, Ceramics, Woodworking and Furniture Design, taught by Cheryl Coon (MFA from San Francisco Art Institute). In addition to our regular semester courses, we also have a Community Education program of Metalsmithing courses taught by Brian Meek (MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art and owner of Knew Concepts). West Valley College offers 3D Design, Sculpture, Metal Sculpture and Ceramics courses taught by Mitra Fabian (MFA from California State University, Northridge).

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

The Mission College courses are designed to give students a strong foundation in developing concepts that explore visual language and personal expression. The classes emphasize the creative process from initial design (including material studies, maquettes, sourcing and budgeting for materials) to fabrication and finished craftsmanship. We emphasize how to safely use equipment, tools and materials with attention to sustainability practices. We have an annual student exhibition in the Mission College Art Gallery, so students also learn about professional presentation, pricing and selling their work. So, students learn to appreciate all the time and attention to detail that go into running a fine arts studio and business.

4. What are some of your students’ favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

Students really enjoy working with a variety of tools and equipment, and we encourage them to experiment and try out new techniques. So, we teach a wide range of metal arts including jewelry, sculpture, etching, enameling, and centrifugal casting. We usually work with steel and copper using forming and forging tools: hammers, texture tools, etching, enamels and patinas. We also have an outdoor studio with a forge for blacksmithing, copper forging & forming and a foundry for casting bronze and aluminum.

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

Time and Money are the biggest challenges that our students face. Being able to purchase equipment, tools and materials is always a struggle for most students. We try to provide a studio that is equipped with professional equipment, tools and basic materials so that students can focus on their creativity. Many students work full time, so it can be difficult to find time outside of class to work on their projects. So, our classes are designed with levels A-D (Introduction, Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced) in each area of the metal arts classes. Students in the beginning classes start by making small projects, learning a variety of fabrication techniques. Then they continue to develop their skills in the more advanced classes. This allows students to really master a medium over the course of 4 semesters.

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

Focus on the learning process, rather than the final product; this allows students the freedom to make mistakes and learn from the experience. So, our students are encouraged to experiment, take risks, and try out new ideas. This helps them to achieve a deeper understanding of their personal aesthetic.

June 2023

Kent Raible

Website: https://kentraible.com
Instagram: @kentraible

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

I started teaching jewelry-making part-time in the late 70’s in Adult Education at the College of Marin (my father also taught art there for 25 years), and after returning from a two year stint in Germany, where I learned granulation, I taught once or twice a year at the Revere Academy until Alan closed it down. My wife and partner, Lynn, and I started online classes in fabrication and bezel setting just before the pandemic started.

We also recently built a beautiful workshop on our 23 acres in rural Washington state, where I hold five day workshops teaching my 18k granulation, fusing and fabrication techniques to classes of 6 students at a time.

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

Our online mentored program ‘Unveil Your Mastery’ runs from January to April every year. These classes are taught in silver. The first part of the class, Going Tubular focuses on making and using tubes of many different shapes and wall thicknesses for everything from bezels for multiple calibrated stones, to hinges, swivels, and articulated parts. A lot of the focus here is bezel setting, mostly faceted stones, but also cabs. The second class is Architecture of a Ring, where we explore a specific style of ring fabrication that has a lot of creative possibilities, while focussing on important fabrication skills, like precision filing and fitting, sketching and planning out stock needed and fabrication steps, and setups for soldering.

I think our online offering is unique in that, while the core lessons of the program are pre-recorded, through our interaction with students we are able to expand on areas of interest. We work together through a Facebook group and live zoom calls, where I do demos, advance the teaching and answer questions. I enjoy teaching and Zoom offers a way to hang out together in real time, so there is a little bit of a social aspect to it as well. We have a very nice community of metalsmiths, ranging in skill level from advanced beginners and hobbyists all the way to award winning master jewelers, some of whom own their own stores. The great thing about online classes is that people from all over the world can share their knowledge, and we try to create an open and sharing dialogue, as I don’t know everything, and there is ALWAYS more than one way to peel an avocado…..

Two years ago we started an annual Mastermind membership for our students who complete the Unveil Your Mastery program. This just evolved naturally. Students learn so much about fabrication in the Unveil program and are ready to take on more advanced projects. We’re creating a library of advanced projects, such as making screw clasps, various kinds of step rings, pendant projects, which we can work on as a group, or members can choose a project to work on & I am available to assist them in the facebook group with every step. Members also troubleshoot with me or use me to help plan out the steps on their own projects or commissions. This group is very exciting to me. I really watch students master the skills they learn in our other programs and classes.

Going Tubular and Architecture of a Ring are also available as stand alone self-guided courses that can be purchased any time of the year. Students go through the pre-recorded modules at their own pace. If they want to upgrade to the January through April ‘Unveil Your Mastery’ program, most of the purchase price of the self guided courses is credited toward their purchase. This has been popular because students can work through some of the material on their own then be ready to go deeper during Unveil with my guidance.

Our self-guided chain weaving course, ‘Mastering the Spiral Loop Chain’, has also been quite popular. In this course I teach students all of my tips and tricks on the Viking chain, helping them to avoid pitfalls, and gain proficiency faster so their chains are even, smooth and professionally made.

Our in-person offering here in Washington is designed to be an ultimate jewelry-making experience, in a beautiful setting, with great food, incredible and well equipped work space, with small classes of 6 students. While the focus is on gold granulation, we also cover alloying, and making stock, stone setting and everything else I know, as anything in my brain gained from over 50 years of jewelry-making is basically available to the students. Some of our repeat students call it “Kent’s Jewelry Shangri-La”……… We’ve just had three spots open up in this summer’s classes, want to join us?

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

Hand fabrication is the basis of understanding good jewelry design. I want our students to understand precious metals and their limitations, as well as their possibilities in a way that is only possible through working with their hands. The hand-brain, 3-D creative connection is the thing!

4. What are some of your students’ favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

There are a few tools needed and others recommended for our classes, including specific draw plates for drawing down tubes, step ring mandrels and more. Once students begin using these they fall in love with them, like I did so long ago. Many students build their own draw benches, there are a lot of building plans being shared! The majority of our online students work in Sterling, but some work in gold, platinum or argentium, if they already have experience with those metals. Because we have so many students from all over the US and the world, everyone has different favorite skills and abilities. They certainly all have a passion for hand fabrication, for learning all the ways to add interest, depth, dimension and creativity to their own unique designs. The in person granulation classes are in 18k gold, and we teach the use of the propane blowpipe, which is my personal favorite torch….

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

One of the big ones is filing – for me, the most basic fabrication skill and one key to excellent solder joints and proficient advanced fabrication. Many students think they know how to file well, but can’t get a perfectly flat edge on a tube blank. In addition to tutorials I just try to get everyone to practice, practice, practice!

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

Three things:

1. It’s all about focus, so I recommend doing one thing at a time, with full attention.

2. To be good at anything, you need to put in consistent time, and lots of it. Focus on one thing at a time until you have mastered it, then incorporate that into your work as you move on to your next adventure in metal, stone, or whatever material.

3. Be bold! Think big and try stuff that stretches you – work to the edge of your abilities and imagination, challenge your comfort zone, and let go of whether the result is perfect or good enough. It’s about the journey – so let yourself be excited!
Jewelry making is a huge field with so many materials and techniques to explore – so just
pick one area that interests you, and go for it! And if you aren’t having fun, try something else……

 

May 2023

California College of Arts

Website: https://portal.cca.edu/learning/shops/jewelrymetal-main/
Instagram: #ccajmarts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

April 2023

THE CRUCIBLE

Website: www.thecrucible.org
Instagram: @the_crucible

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

The Crucible first opened in 1999 in a West Berkeley Warehouse before moving to our current 56,000 square foot location in West Oakland in 2003. We have short-form classes (3 – 8 hours) for folks interested in getting their feet wet, but our most popular classes are the ten or five-week-long classes and our weekend intensive (15 hours).  The largest Jewelry classes we hold can support up to twelve students with a T.A. coming on to help once registration goes over seven enrollments. We keep our teacher to student ratio low so that students can get maximum attention from instructors. 

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

We offer a huge selection of classes in multiple mediums: Neon, Fire & Performance, Foundry, Woodworking, and many more, but of course Metalsmithing and Enameling hold a special place in my heart.  In Jewelry we offer a wide range of beginner, intermediate, and specialized classes. Students can learn the basics of ring-making and casting, study more complex techniques like stone setting or box and hinge making. We instruct on specialized skills like: chain making, metal clay, wire weaving, and more. Our newly remodeled Enameling department also offers a similar array of classes for students with any level of experience, from introductory enameling to cloisonné and grisaille.

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

They have the ability to create and shape something that is unique thier’s.  To find that spark in making that brings them joy and satisfaction.  And without a doubt, pride in doing something they previously thought was outside their abilities.

4. What are some of your students’ favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

We offer so many classes that cover a wide range of skills, it’s really hard to narrow it down.  Our most popular classes are casting classes (Wax to Silver and Organic/Found objects), Jewelry I and II, and Metal Clay!  For Enameling Cloisonne and many of our skill focused classes are most sought after.  Silver tends to be the most popular metal next to the more affordable copper. 

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

With most beginners it’s getting them out of their comfort zone.  The Crucible is all about meeting students where they are, but also creating a safe space for them to try something new.  With intermediate students, it’s more about setting expectations around their designs with the time we have.  For our advanced makers, it’s a community coming together and working to integrate and strengthen our skills. 

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

Being patient, calm, consistent with your work, it will lead to understanding the material and process. That is more important than making a perfect piece of work.

March 2023

CHIMERA ARTS

Website: www.chimeraarts.org
Instagram: chimera_jewelry_studio and chimeraarts

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

Chimera Arts is a member-supported nonprofit community maker-space located in Sebastopol, CA. We provide resources, education and community to creative people in Sonoma County and California’s North Bay & beyond. We offer training, tools and services to our community.

The jewelry program at Chimera has been an active and impactful program in the community since 2015. We have 8 benches in our fully equipped studio for in person classes. Most classes have a limit of 8 students so we can provide in depth individual attention to each student.

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

We offer beginning, intermediate and advanced classes in the craft such as Wax Modeling, Precious Metal Clay, beginning metal fabrication, intermediate/advanced skill building classes, metal etching, stone setting and casting. We are always working hard to improve & expand the classes and are always looking for guest instructors.

We provide affordable monthly memberships for members to work in the studio when classes are not in session but also provide information and support for students who want to create a home studio.

What makes our jewelry department unique is that it exists within a makerspace that includes laser cutters, blacksmithing tools, woodworking, CAD and more.

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

Our students learn that the metalsmithing community is a supportive one, whether you are coming as a beginner, a hobbyist or a professional. There are so many processes to learn in this industry and our students find the encouragement to take the next step from instructors and fellow students.

4. What are some of your students’ favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

Torch work is usually the fire that draws new students to our metalshop and keeps people coming back. Wax modeling has become a popular class that we offer, as well as beginning metalsmithing classes, both of which are project-based. Students work in a variety of materials including various types of silver, bronze and gold.

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

Learning something new can sometimes be intimidating. But our program walks students through at their own pace to understand the foundations, the tools and materials needed and how to go from design concept to execution. We teach technical skills, provide samples, literature, resources and videos. Through learning jewelry & metalsmithing techniques our students gain self confidence while building new skills and exploring creative ideas.

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

Explore new things. It’s ok to make mistakes. You will get better the more you practice. Take the pressure out and have fun surprising yourself with what you can do when you have a supportive community showing you the right tools and techniques.

February 2023

ACADEMY OF ART

Website: www.academyart.edu
Instagram: academy_of_art

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

Academy of Art University was established in 1929 and the Jewelry and Metal Arts Department began in 2013 to help jewelry designers and metal artists find their unique voice. We focus on combining traditional and cutting-edge techniques for an innovative contemporary outcome. At AAU students can earn several degrees, Associate of Arts, Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts and Master of Fine Arts. We offer onsite classes in downtown San Francisco, asynchronous online classes and virtual classes that meet over zoom. Classes generally run for 15 weeks on a semester basis and are 10-20 students per class.

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

We offer a wide range of classes that cover traditional techniques like wax carving and casting, forging and forming, welding, stone setting, enameling and papermaking. Students can combine these techniques with contemporary technology in our laser cutting, 3D printing and electronics classes. Our students also have the opportunity to take classes in other departments such as fashion or industrial design. AAU offers the only accredited, fully online Jewelry and Metal Arts degree in the country.

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

Research is key for our students to understand how their own work fits within an historical context. Our students study the history of metal sculpture and jewelry and follow contemporary artists who work with similar materials and techniques. As our students learn a wide variety of new skills, we encourage them to gather inspiration in order to design and work conceptually, so their pieces convey a deeper meaning. The goal for many of the student’s larger projects is to create show-stopping pieces that they might envision on a runway or in a gallery.

4. What are some of your students’ favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

Copper, brass and bronze are great materials for beginning students to learn how to manipulate metal and build confidence for working with sterling silver and gold. Our raising stakes and planishing hammers get a lot of use. The 30-ton hydraulic press is a favorite for making hollow forms. In our welding classes students work with steel and aluminum on MIG and TIG welders. Many of our classes include a mixed media component involving, wood, plastics, glass, paper, recycled materials and found objects. We focus on the importance of using ethically sourced materials and upcycling materials like single-use plastics.

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

As students work on developing their technical metal working skills, it can be difficult to begin the design process, especially when facing uncertainty with new materials or techniques. On top of researching historical movements and contemporary trends, we encourage the students to do inspirational research in their journals and sketch every day. Sketches can be a quick and non-committal way to get out your ideas and often lead to something more complex and well thought out. With practice, legible sketches can help convey ideas to future clients.

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

Record your progress and seek feedback at every step. Group critiques are large part of our classes because it helps to see how other artists relate to same material, what they master quickly and what they struggle with. Instructors and classmates offer a new perspective on your work. Their feedback will help you gauge how other people react to your process, what questions they ask and what suggestions they might have. One of the greatest assets the students have is each other. We actively encourage our students to join MAG and other organizations like it, to get perspective from the larger jewelry and metal arts community.

January 2023

Silvera Jewelry School

Website: silverajewelry.com
Instagram: Instagram: silverajewelryschool 

1. Tell us a little about your school or program. When did it start? What format do you use (online/in person)? How many students per class?

Silvera Jewelry School offers both online and in-person classes, and many of our classes are both! We have 9 in person desks that are fully equipped, and our classes tend to have a maximum of 15-18 students so we can spend time with each student individually. They share live magnified demonstrations on our big screen tv with up to 9 more students online. Our classes include handouts, recordings of the live classes, and some materials.

It’s our mission to help students to learn traditional and contemporary jewelry techniques, using home studio friendly tools and chemicals, so that they can easily continue to work at home.

It’s very important to us that students feel comfortable and safe in the classroom, and now online as well. All of our teachers are patient, generous and encourage students to be passionate about creating and learning.

January 2023 is our 12 year anniversary. Our school was started by Joe and Anat Silvera, who have been teachers since 2002 and the 90s, respectively. Jenn Parnell Kirkpatrick joined in 2019 and we all became joint partners, running the school together, in 2021.

2. What range of classes do you offer? Does your program have a focus or area of special study that is unique?

We offer classes from complete beginner through advanced techniques for practicing jewelers. These include fabrication, casting, enameling, stone setting, jewelry business, and more. We’re especially proud of Jenn’s Jewelry History+ Technique classes that teach you about jewelry from specific periods of time and show you techniques or skills that relate or materials that were used during that time. For example, in our Ancient Egyptian Jewelry class, you make, sculpt, and fire faience.

We also expose our students to a wide range of teaching styles by bringing in so many new classes with amazing guest teachers. Every teacher offers their own perspective on the craft, which in turn adds to the resources students have to build their own voice as jewelers.

Silvera Jewelry School is unique in that we have always focused on green solutions for home jewelry studios, that include safer alternatives for pickle, torches, gasses and flux, for example. We also teach studio ergonomics and encourage students to make taking care of their health and bodies as important as making jewelry.

3. As an educational program, what do you hope your students learn about jewelry and metalsmithing outside of making it?

Jewelry has a long history and beautiful tradition of passing on the craft from master and teacher to apprentice and student. We want students to find their place in that lineage of makers. By showing them the wide world of jewelry, and how the materials and processes work, students can find the combination that works for them, and gain the understanding to experiment beyond what we show them, to find their own voice and style.

All of us at Silvera Jewelry School teach the value of patience, practice and the importance of making mistakes. It takes discipline, play and being open to learning from ‘failures” to grow. You can teach only so much during class, but if we can help them to become comfortable with experimenting, they can go on to become great jewelry artists.

4. What are some of your students’ favorite tools or skills? What materials do they work with the most?

Lots of folks love stones- in fact that is what brings them to the beginning classes is a desire to learn how to set them. Our basic classes in fabrication, casting and enameling start with base metals, and quickly move into silver alloys. As their skills develop, we introduce gold and palladium. But we also want students to learn about the role of alternative materials, like steel, plastic, etc, in contemporary jewelry.

Students love tools and stones. It’s hard to pick a universal favorite tool. It’s interesting that before COVID, most of our students had a lot of basic tools and maybe a small space to work.  During the pandemic, many students invested in bigger home studios and they were able to buy larger equipment like kilns, rolling mills and hydraulic presses, which normally they only used in the classroom. So they used that money that would have been spent on traveling to workshops to make a fabulous studio of their own!

5. What is the biggest challenge that your students face and how do you help them overcome it?

Two challenges for any student of just about any craft are building confidence and practicing. We promote the idea of embracing mistakes, imperfection and unexpected results as a valuable part of the creative journey. It’s all too common for beginners to be impatient with themselves and to expect professional results – even if it’s their first class!

It’s not going to be perfect the first time and reassuring folks that it’s okay and normal to struggle in fact, it’s why success is even sweeter. Many students haven’t taken art classes or took them a long time ago, and so they lack confidence in designing or drawing their ideas. A big part of our teaching is friendly support and encouraging students to figure out what they actually like and what they want to make.

Of course, what builds confidence is frequent practice, or you can’t develop your skills. We offer lots of classes and some open studio time, but we also show our students how to set up safely to work at home. Because they need that time in the studio and the discipline of practice to improve.

6. What piece of advice do you give students who are just starting out in metals?

We tell students that a lot of what you make will look very different from your initial idea or plan, and that is wonderful! Be open to unexpected results. They are often better than what you had in mind. If you can see beyond the sketch to appreciate the beauty of what is happening on your bench, you will get to some very interesting places. And take photos and notes so that you can reproduce it again.

Push the materials, push the technique. Once you understand where the breaking point is, you can do so much more with jewelry. A great example is soldering. Almost everyone is terrified of melting silver (or gold). So melt it! See how much heat that really takes, watch the metal as it starts to melt. You’ve now learned what to look for when the piece is in danger of melting. Plus, you can always hammer or roll that melted bit back out and use it. Or you may even love the form the metal takes on the way to melting!