Instructors
Dana Cassara – Instructor and Founder
Dana Cassara began practicing the art of silversmithing at North Seattle Community College in 1992. She discovered her love for the craft after returning to school to pursue a teaching degree with a focus in social studies. She graduated from the University of Washington in 1998 with a B.A. in Comparative History of Ideas as well as Interdisciplinary Arts, because she just couldn’t stay out of the art department. She has been teaching jewelry design since 1999 and loves what she does.
Her aim as an instructor is to guide individuals through the learning process offering solid technical information, personalized attention, and lots of fun. With the intention of setting students on the path towards transforming their ideas into solid form, she hopes students will take the experience they gain in this studio beyond the classroom into their everyday life where problem solving skills and a profound sense of achievement always come in handy!
Nanz Aalund
Nanz Aalund has taught jewelry and metals classes at the University of Washington under Mary Lee Hu and at the Art Institute in Seattle. She has served as a fine jewelry designer and consultant for Nordstrom, Rudolf Erdel, Neiman Marcus, and Tiffany & Co. and as the associate editor for Art Jewelry Magazine. Some of Aalund's many professional jewelry design awards include: 2009 Jewelry Arts Awards, an AGTA Spectrum Award, two Platinum Guild International Awards, and two DeBeers Diamond's Today Awards. Ms. Aalund can be contacted through her website: www.nanzaalund.com
Maru Almeida
Maru Almeida was born and raised in Mexico surrounded by a rich silversmithing tradition. Her interest as an artist has been mainly focused on the ideas of wearablility and tactile experience. Non-traditional materials have also led her to an exploration of various techniques which she incorporates into one-of-a-kind pieces. She received her BFA from the University of Texas at El Paso and her MFA from the University of Oregon. Her work has been exhibited in her home country and in various national galleries as well as in the publications Metalsmith magazine and Lark Books 500 Wedding Rings.
Ken Bova
Ken holds a BFA in painting and drawing and an MFA in jewelry and metalsmithing. Both areas of this training are important to his work and he combines the two in one-of-a-kind mixed media wearable assemblages that are made of colored, painted, patterned, and textured bits of unusual materials combined with silver and gold.
His jewelry has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is found in private and public collections including the permanent collections of the Smithsonian National Art Museum and the Tacoma Art Museum.
As an educator Ken has been teaching for more than 25 years. He has presented workshops on jewelry and metalsmithing in schools around the country including Penland, Haystack, and Arrowmont. After nearly 20 years teaching at Montana State University Ken resigned his position in the spring of 2007 to pursue and teach full time studio work and workshops. He now lives and works in the historic smelter town of Anaconda Montana in a newly remodeled home he shares with his wife, dog, and five cats.
Sandra Caldwell
A number of years ago, I met a woman in a drawing and painting course who was from a family of jewelers. She created the most interesting things. It aroused my interest so I enrolled in a metalsmithing class at North Seattle Community College and I was hooked.
I became interested in chain making over four years ago. It requires little space, few tools, and is relatively portable. There seems to be no end to the patterns we can make. I began teaching to share the beauty that can be created with simple tools and some patience.
I have found that chain making provides a wonderful break from my real life which can be quit stressful. I started my adult life as a registered nurse and along the way have acquired a lot of education and training. I completed a PhD in education in 2004 and continue to pursue teaching and learning.
Travis Conn
Travis has been a Maker of Things his entire life. He is a studio metalsmith specializing in raising and repousse techniques, teaching those techniques to other smiths, as well as teaching art to elementary school children. He recieved his B.A. from The Evergreen State College where he still teaches the occasional repousse workshop. Travis is a dedicated Iron Age historian and a skilled martial artist interested in the early development of metalworking as it parallels the rise of physical mastery. Travis practices meditation-in-action both with the arts of precision hammering and full-contact swordfighting, and routinely teaches them as one subject. You can see his work at The Craft and Art of Travis Conn.
Andy Cooperman
Andy Cooperman is a metalsmith, writer, and teacher who lives in Seattle, WA. His work is featured in galleries nationwide, including Patina Gallery in Santa Fe, deNovo in Palo Alto and Velvet daVinci Gallery in San Fransisico. He is a past recipient of a WESTAF/NEA Fellowship, and teaches seminars and workshops around the country, most recently as a visiting lecturer at the University of Washington. In addition to one of a kind jewelry pieces, Andy also works with clients as a custom jeweler and commission metalsmith. His work can be found in the permanent collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, Central College, Pella Iowa and appeared most recently in the exhibitions The Art Of Gold, Metalisms, Chess and The Ring Show.
Publications include the books Art Jewelry Today, 1000 Rings, 500 Brooches, The Craft Of Silversmithing, The Penland Book of Jewelry and Fundamentals of Metalsmithing.
Please visit his website at andycooperman.com or coopermanjewelry.com
Nancy Megan Corwin
Megan Corwin lives and works in Seattle, Washington. In 1983 she received her MFA in Art Metals at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she studied with Eleanor Moty and Fred Fenster.
Since leaving her position as Head of Jewelry and Metals at the University of Oregon-Eugene in 1994 to have a child, Megan has been teaching workshops and credit classes in metals around the United States. Her area of expertise is chasing and repoussé, and she is currently writing a technical and gallery book on the subject to be published by Brynmorgen Press, Portland, ME in 2009.
Megan has one-of-a-kind jewelry and metalwork in many private collections around the United States and in the following: The Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England, Washington State's Tacoma Art Museum's permanent collection and in the State University of New Mexico Art Gallery at Las Cruces Gallery's permanent collection.
Megan is represented in Seattle, WA at Facere Jewelry Art Gallery. View her work at www.nancymegancorwin.com.
Jim Dailing
For over twenty years Jim Dailing has dedicated his artistic senses to silversmithing and unique metalsmith design. Originally, he designed jewelry for Maui Divers in Hawaii and is currently designing and creating unique wedding rings of high karat gold and platinum metals. He is one of the faculty in the art department at the University of Portland and recently taught at OCAC (Oregon College of Arts and Crafts). This summer he completed his 8th season at Mendocino Art Center. He is former teacher at the Unviersity of Oregon, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and also teaches privately. Mr. Dailing holds a BFA from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and MFA from the Tyler School of Art. You can see some of his work at My Wedding Rings.
Bill Dawson
Bill Dawson came to art metals by way of blacksmithing at the University of Oregon. Since then he has been making a living with metalsmithing, both teaching and creating custom pieces for all manner of patrons. A close examination of metalwork of ancient cultures of Ireland has given Bill a deeper understanding of the character of the metal itself, as well as the aesthetics of the past. You can see Bill’s work at www.billdawsonmetalsmith.com.
Chuck Domitrovich
Chuck Domitrovich has been making and selling jewelry for over 12 years. He stumbled upon jewelry while at the University of Washington in the late 1980’s and was fortunate enough to take classes from both Mary Hu and Micki Lippe. Apart from the three classes he took at the UW he is largely self-taught through books and experimentation. He has sold at the Fremont Sunday Market, Facere Jewelry Art Gallery, and everywhere in between. He is also experienced with online sales and sees huge potential in it when done right. Chuck has a love of all things metal which has sustained his passion since that first class.
Molly Epstein
Molly Epstein received her MFA from the University of Washington Metals Department this past June. In her personal artwork she explores the areas where art and medicine collide and strives to make connections between emotional and physical homeostasis. During her time at UW, she actively associated herself with engineers and doctors in an ongoing quest to understand what an artist may contribute to medical science. She has literally narrowed the gap between the disciplines by collaborating with Doctor Richard Hopper from Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center on the Patent Pending SAM Device. The Seattle Alar Molding Device is a nasal molding device for children born with varying degrees of the cleft palate deformity. She was also a research assistant for Dr. Murray Maitland from Rehabilitation Medicine at UW and helped bring to life a modified prosthetic hand device.
And so jewelry you ask? Molly is undeniably tied to the craft through her love of metal and its uses throughout time. Her interest in adornment makes it impossible for jewelry not to play a role in her creative experiments. Molly received her BFA in Metals from Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia then spent four years in the New York City jewelry industry and taught at Fredricka Kulicke’s Classical Jewelry School in Parsippany, New Jersey before deciding to attend graduate school.
Aran Galligan
Aran graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2000 with a BFA in metals. In 2006 she was accepted into the Core Fellowship Program at Penland School of Crafts. Using forms found in nature as a starting point, she creates wearable jewelry that conveys an idea of unconventional beauty. Her work was included 500 Enameled Objects by Lark Books, has been part of several exhibitions throughout the U.S., and can be found at the Penland Gallery and Quirk Gallery in Richmond, VA.
Liz Jones
After 7 years of teaching experience, Liz Jones brings a love of all thing metal to the classroom. Her first book, Jewelry Studio: Silver Wire Fusing was released in February, 2008 and has received an enthusiastic and warm welcome from the crafting community. An Ohio native, Liz now lives and works in Seattle.
Linnie Kendrick
With a background in Ceramics and Glass, Linnie Kendrick renewed her interest in Metalsmithing after moving to the Seattle area in 2004. Since then she has benefited from studying with many terrific local and national artists at Pratt and Danaca. Currently she is the Access Coordinator and a Monitor at the Pratt Jewelry Studio. Linnie received a BA in Ceramics in 1985 from the University of Dalllas and was awarded a Penland Core Fellowship from 2002-2003.
Linnie's goal as a teacher is to ensure that students achieve a clear understanding of material and process, while recognizing individual learning styles.
Micki Lippe
Micki Lippe is an internationally known artist who has exhibited her works throughout Europe, South Korea, and the United States. Her works can be found in the collections of the Racine Art Museum and the Tacoma Art Museum. Lippe has a studio in Seattle and has served the Pratt Fine Arts Center as a trustee and an instructor.
Jane Martin
Jane Martin is a studio jeweler producing work, which is sold in galleries throughout the United States. In 1978, she received a BFA degree in jewelry/metalsmithing from The University of the Arts (Philadelphia College of Art). In 1988, Jane was a founding board member of the Seattle Metals Guild and the program director for four years.
In 1994, she was the founder and a committee member for the Jewelry/Metals Symposium, Seattle Metals Guild. She has participated in The Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show and The Smithsonian Craft Show. Facere Art Jewelry exhibits her work locally. Photographs of Jane?s work have been published in The Metalsmith?s Book of Boxes & Lockets by Tim McCreight, Contemporary American Jewelry Design by Ettagale Blauer and Ornament, Lapidary Journal, Crafts Report and American Crafts magazines.
Suz O’Dell
Inspired by the beauty and mystical properties of silver, gold and gemstones, Suz O’Dell studied metalworking for several years from Richard Leaf at Sharon Arts Studio in San Francisco and from Hugh Powers, former Tiffany jeweler, at the Richmond Art Center. Concurrently, O’Dell learned the art of lapidary (stone-cutting). She became a certified PMC teacher through the PMC Guild in early 1998 and has taught for six years. She has offered courses and weekend workshops at Sharon Arts in San Francisco, Sonoma Community Center, and other venues such as the Mendocino Art Center, Palo Alto Art Center, and Capitola Parks & Rec Center.
O’Dell designs and fabricates jewelry, working in silver, gold and gemstones. Her work, whimsical one-of-a-kind pieces featuring precious and semi-precious stones, set in silver, gold and PMC, draws on ancient themes, interwoven with contemporary interpretations. To view a sampling, you can visit her website at www.tribalzonestudio.com.
Juan Reyes
Juan Reyes began studying silver smithing in 1995 at North Seattle Community College and since then has developed extensive expertise in a wide range of techniques including lapidary and goldsmithing. He is generous with his knowledge, patient beyond measure and well loved for his helpful, non-judging nature. Juan brings warmth and creativity to every class he teaches.
Jan Smith
I have a BFA from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University in Halifax, N.S. My teaching experience includes printmaking and enamel classes for both adults and children. I was a full time art instructor at the Brock Fahrni Centre and Canadian Red Cross for 9 years and taught part time with the Burnaby Art Centre, and Vancouver Parks Board for two years. I was studio assistant for Maria Phillips at fall concentration Penland School of Craft. My experience includes guest artist at Okanagan College and for at Pratt Fine Arts (for an enamel class taught by Maria Phillips).
I love the diversity and seductive qualities of the enamel and enjoy sharing an understanding of the material with students. I begin with a simple sketch, using the enamel as a printmaking or drawing medium, I work rather intuitively allowing the work to evolve. There is an element of assemblage or evolution in my process and composition, and I am excited about the imperfections in the surfaces.
I am represented by Facere Jewelry Art Gallery, Seattle WA, Velvet da Vinci, SF CA, and Galerie Noel Guyomarc'h Bijoux D'Art, Montreal Quebec. My work has been featured in the 500 Series by Lark, Color on Metal by Tim McCreight and Nicole Bsullak, Guild Publishing, Exhibition in Print 2003, Signs of Life 2008, and the Jewelry Artist.
Jennifer Stenhouse
Jennifer began her studies in photography and printmaking at the University of New Mexico. She did her graduated studies at the University of Wisconsin Madison studying with Martha Glowacki, who encouraged her in the use of mixed media as well as Fred Fenster and Eleanor Moty who gave her the opportunity to develop a strong base in metals techniques and design and a better understanding of integrity to one's craft. After college Jennifer developed the Metals and Jewelry Department at Savannah College of Art and Design. While doing so she maintained a small studio in the Savannah historic City Market. A native of Atlanta Georgia, Jennifer Stenhouse currently makes her home and studio in Seattle, Washington. She has been teaching art and jewelry classes and has lectured and exhibited throughout U.S. and Mexico for over 15 years.
"I have been making art for as long as I can remember. When I'm not making it, I'm teaching it. These are my two passions."
Allan Thorne
Allan Thorne has made jewelry most of his adult life. He studied jewelry fabrication at the Los Angeles County Art Museum as well as at North Seattle Community College. Energetic and enthusiastic, Allan is committed to the restorative and transforming power of art making. Aside from jewelry making, Allan also paints, draws, practices photography and makes clothing out of plastic bottles!
Cynthia Toops
Seattle artist Cynthia Toops has always been fascinated with beads. An ivory cicada bead carved by her father is one of her most cherished possessions. However, it was a copy of Lois Sherr Dublin's "The History of Beads", which catapulted this fascination into a passion and career. Falling in love with the Roman face beads on the cover, Cynthia was inspired to make her own versions. During a visit to her native Hong Kong, Cynthia discovered polymer clay and fell in love with the medium. Cynthia is inspired by 18th Century Italian micro mosaics, as well as the elaborate works of Mexico's Huichol Indians, who embed seed beads in hot wax. Adapting these styles to polymer clay, Cynthia developed techniques that work for her and are 'simple and very low-tech'. Using this technique of mosaic in her work, Cynthia is able to create tremendous richness, texture and subtle color variation on a single piece. Cynthia is widely published and exhibits and teaches throughout the United States.
Jessie Wylie
Jessie Wylie began making jewelry in high school and has pursued this passion with great enthusiasm ever since! She earned her BFA in Metalsmithing and Jewelry from the University of Oregon, and continues to explore her love for wearable art through teaching, working on the board for the Seattle Metals Guild and continual experimentation with materials. Jessie is also a graphic designer who enjoys using a combination of photography, line work and pattern, which is reflected in her metal work. Her jewelry can be found at Gilt jewelry boutique in Portland.