Bryan Hansen | Dreamer

Artist: Bryan Hansen, Maine
Materials: sterling silver, raw sapphire
Size: 9.5

Artist Statement: This ring has its head in the clouds, only opening its eye when it faces the vast and endless heavens. It turns its gaze from this world and wonders for the next, for what could be, for what could have been. Prays to some unknowable thing and finds comfort only in hope and longing.
I made this ring with my childhood in mind: deeply religious and laden with hypocrisy as it was. I wonder about the notion of unconditional love and the seemingly endless conditions we need meet in order to receive love in this environment.

Artist Bio: I have always had great interest in handleable objects and how they may augment the body. As a child I often felt small and weak and found myself longing for power and control I did not otherwise have. I couldn’t see myself finding this strength in my own being and so thought I might find it in the seemingly benign objects around me. I’d hoped these objects would change me and offer me a small gift of their strength. My jewelry has become a placeholder and an amalgamation of the design elements of these objects. For that reason, I always end up having a very metaphysical relationship with my work where it becomes more than adornment, but magical charms of a sort.

In my newest work, I use motifs from my religious upbringing to explore the expected and taught violence of masculinity. In some pieces I recreate especially dire narratives from the bible in an attempt to unravel my own religious trauma.

This ring is part of Battle of the Rings: Ring Smackdown 2024, an online exhibition and competition. Shop the entire collection HERE, view the matches HERE, and learn more HERE.

Rings from this collection will ship, or be available for pick up, after the competition concludes on March 29.