fsg newsletter spring 2016 edition - florida society …€¦ · fsg newsletter spring 2016 edition...

Northwest chapter 2southeast chapter 2southwest chapter 3 south chapter 5westcoast chapter 7

Northeast chapter 10rememberiNg mary aNN scherr 11gia gogishvili 12wild acres evolves 15meet our members: Jim bioNd 17

inside this issueFSG NewSletter spring 2016 edition

WILDACRES 2016

June 18-24www.wcfsg.org

John cogswell patricia tschetter

FLORIDA SOCIETY OF GOLDSMITHS | spring 2016 | www. fsgmetal.org1

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Florida society oF Goldsmiths

the florida society of goldsmiths is a not-for-profit organization created by metalsmiths to aid and support other metalsmiths through meetings, publicity, workshops and exhibi-tions; to provide metalsmiths with opportunities for education and exchange of information; to broaden public knowledge, awareness, and appreciation of fine quality hand-crafted metal

work, including, but not limited to, jewelry. the florida society of goldsmiths is open to all. we welcome artists that work in all metals as well as other jewelry artists using other mediums. we strive to offer a friendly environ-ment where creativity is encouraged and sup-ported through social and educational events throughout the us.

fsgmetal.org | 719 ceNtral aveNue | st. petersburg, fl 33701 | (727) 822-7872 X2128

NorthweSt ChAPter


FsGse 2016 calendar of events

oct. 21-23, 2016 carol webb 3-d etching

visit www.fsgse.com for more information

SoutheASt ChAPter

Greetings from the Northwest chapter! things have been pretty quiet in the Northwest chapter lately, but we are slowly breaking out of our winter shells and starting to reach out to the community once again.

this spring we have joined with the tallahassee making awesome, and have set up a torch station and other equipment in their railroad square makerspace. fsg members can join making awesome and use the equipment along with all of the other equipment they have, including a 3d printer. check out their website, www.makingawesome.org/ for more information.

this year the Northwest chapter is taking part in the lemoyne center for the visual arts’ annual chain of parks art show, april 16 and 17, 2016. we are part of their newly created demonstra-tion row and several of our members will be demonstrating various jewelry techniques over the weekend, along with displaying some finished works.

spring is here at last, and we are planning another set of weekend workshops. we are also looking-forward to holding a set of weekend workshops in the fall.

please be sure to visit our website at www.fsgnw.com to keep up with all the latest chapter information.

CHapter news


SouthweSt ChAPterHere are some photos of our annual “ring of fire” exhibit with winners.


SouthweSt ChAPter

In march we had two great workshops by richard salley. we were all able to complete a spinner ring, a bezel set cabochon ring and a stone-on-stone ring in our first workshop of march 11, 2016. richard brought a variety of beautiful stones for members to use in their rings and everyone really enjoyed this class.

South ChAPter

at our april meeting michelle sandler gave a wonderful demonstration of wax carving. michelle brought samples of her beautiful creations and we

all left inspired to try wax carving again. to see more of her designs go to www.michellesandlerjewelry.com.

she shared the following tips:

• save wax filings for repairs.

• carving wax is hotter than candle wax so be careful not to drip melted wax onto your skin.

• when sawing wax, fill in the scribed lines with cornstarch to make them more easily visible. she had a small tin of cornstarch in a mint tin for handy transport instead of having to carry a large container.

• use drywall screen for sanding the sides flat after cutting a ring blank.

• michelle recommended wolf wax for touch up and repairs on wax.

thank you michelle!

south chaPter uPcominG eVents:

diane almeyda will be conducting a workshop on russian Filigree on saturday september 10, 2016.

this class will hone your soldering skills so come and enjoy a days of learning from diane. if you can solder this you can solder anything!

megan corwin will be teaching chasing and repousee on friday through sunday, November 4-6, 2016. see our website for more details! www.fsgso.com/

this three-day workshop will focus on the techniques of chasing and repoussé for beginners. chasing refers to detailing and texturing the front or presentation side of a piece of jewelry, hollowware or casting. repoussé means to push out from the back and refers to using metal punches from the backside of a sheet of metal to create raised


forms on the front. the two techniques are most often used together and result in low, medium or high relief art pieces created from sheet metal.

students will work primarily in copper. those with some experience may take this opportunity to work in sterling silver. the instructor will bring chasing tools and a few hammers for students to use during class, and will supply detailed handouts. the emphasis will be on making samples, although those students who wish to may focus on a simple piece of jewelry or metal art object.

suggested reading: “chasing and repoussé: methods ancient and modern” by Nancy megan corwin, is available through many jewelry supply companies and amazon.com. students who want this book should order it before class. other recommendations for books: “moving metal: the art of chasing and repoussé by adolf steines and “chasing” by marcia lewis (out of print but may be available from jewelry suppliers).

good news, we are going to continue meeting on the first thursday of the moNth at 5:30pm for meet and greet followed by a general meeting in the west dade library until september. we are looking for a more permanent meeting place.

reminder if you wish to submit any tips aNd tricKs, please send to marti at [email protected]

looking forward to the upcoming year and our exciting new creations!

south chapter coNtiNued


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weSt CoASt ChAPtereventsare you plaNNiNg oN atteNdiNg wildacres 2016? it’s going to be spectacular! June 18- 24 registeriNg Now!!

upcoming Workshopsdid you know that there is a wide assortment of jewelry making classes and workshops offered

through our partnered art center studios for all skill levels of jewelry fabrication? we invite you to check them out and take advantage of our beautiful jewelry studios! in your area, classes and work-shops are available at art center manatee, morean arts center and the dunedin fine art center. check them out on line to see what inspires your creative muse!

we continue to add more equipment to our studios to help make your jewelry making experiences all the better! we thank you for your continued support of this organization. your membership fees and donations enable us to continue our mission of providing quality education in the jewelry arts!

here’s what’s coming up.......more details available by going to www.wcfsg.org or www.wcfsg.com

aprilsaturday and sunday april 23- 24

flush settiNg gemstoNes w/ renee davis

dunedin fine art center stirling Jewelry studio

flush setting – gypsy setting – surface setting....a rose by any other name.... flush setting faceting stones the easy way! in this workshop you will learn how to set faceted stones in metal quickly with beautiful results in random and waggish patterns without the limitations of channel walls or prongs. with a few simple tools and a little bit of practice you are on your way. we will explore setting stones in various metal gauges. a great way to add gem accents to your designs.

there are only a couple seats available! don’t miss out!

Junewildacres fundraising auction get involved make a difference!

the florida society of goldsmiths is a not for profit organization created by metalsmiths to aid and support other metalsmiths through meetings, publicity, workshops and exhibitions; to provide metal-smiths with opportunities for education and exchange of information; to broaden public knowledge, awareness, and appreciation of fine quality handcrafted metal work, including, but not limited to, jewelry. every June, we hold our annual fundraising auction at wildacres. fundraising allows us to continue to sponsor studios and provide education opportunities. contributions are tax deductible would you like to contribute? art, jewelry making tools and materials, stays in vacation homes, gift certificates, cabochons, gemstones, etc. Just about anything that will generate interest, we would love to offer at our auction!

please contact, stacy perry at wcfsg [email protected]


Wildacres 2016! June 18- 24 the line up... five masters to inspire!

christopher timberlake moKume Gane: teXture and colorgia gogishvili FiliGree Braceletharold o’connor teXture and Form: GiVinG ‘liFe’ to metal surFacesJohn cogswell heart, hand and hammer: ForGinG For JeWelry aPPlicationspatricia tschetter Gold Granulation as comPonentgo to the wcfsg website for more details!

DID YOU KNOW? Simply neutralizing is not enough! Disposing of that old pickle may be causing damage to the environment! We were granted permission by Julia Lowther, of the Shoebox Studio blog to share her article. The scientific info and method came from Dave Waddell of the King county (Seattle) WA Hazardous Waste Management program.

Be Kind to Fish! disPose oF all sPent PicKle resPonsiBly

by Julia lowther

the sad truth is that the “safe” “organic” “natural” or “food grade” products sold as jewelry pickle are only all of those things before you use them. even after you use them they are still (relatively) safe for you and your drains, but they are Not safe for the environment. the retailers don’t have to tell you this because they aren’t selling you the used product, which is full of toXic copper. fresh, unused jewelry pickle contains no copper. it is just a dilute solution of an acid like sodium bisulfate (sparex®, rio pickletm, hth® ph minus – my favorite!), sulfuric acid, citric acid (pick-leittm), lemon juice, or vinegar. this changes dramatically after you use aNy type of pickle to clean your jewelry metals. all the different chemicals used as jewelry pickle are very effective at stripping copper oxides off your metal. as a result, pickle turns blue because copper molecules have been converted from solid metal into a contaminant in the liquid solution. even pickle that has not turned blue yet is loaded with copper. the bottom line is this: if pickle has been used to clean metal, it is contaminated with copper.

copper is extremely toxic to fish – 10 times more toxic to fish and other aquatic life than cyanide is to people!* this copper contamination is Not removed when pickle is neutralized with baking soda, so putting neutralized pickle down the drain is – from the perspective of a fish – like dumping cyanide into your local drinking water reservoir. if you dump copper contaminated pickle on the ground, it quickly leaches into the ground water, which is also very bad. it is extremely important that no matter where we live, we all dispose of this material carefully so as not to harm our fishy neighbors and further damage already beleaguered aquatic ecosystems!

weSt CoASt ChAPter


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luckily, you have two greeN choices for proper disposal:

1. take your spent pickle to a local household hazardous waste disposal site. if you are dispos-ing of your pickle at a hazardous waste collection site, be sure to mark the container with the actual acid used – not just “pickle” – aNd append “con-taminated with copper” to the acid named. you can see that the container in the picture above is marked

“sodium bisulfate – contaminated with copper”.

2. treat your spent pickle yourself to remove toxic metals and neutralize acid. this is remarkably easy to do, and science in action is fun :)!

(Note: this method can also be used to remove the copper from used ferric chloride solution.)

visit Julia’s blog and learn how

https://shoeboxstudio.com/2016/03/02/be kind to fish dispose of all spent pickle responsibly/

west coast chapter News coNtiNued

dunedin:dunedin fine art centerdfac for open studio on tuesdays, 10:00am 3:00pm. check it out online at www.dfac.org orcontact them at (727) 298 3322

st. Petersburg:the morean arts centeropen studio hours on wednesdays 10:00am 3:00pmcheck it out online at http://www.moreanartscenter.org/ or contact them at (727) 822 7872

Bradenton:artcenter manateethe days and times for the open studio vary and the art center sends out an email to members.please call acm for details.check it out online at http://artcentermanatee.org/ or contact them at (941) 746 2862

opportunitieswe currently have three gorgeous partnered jewelry studios for our members enjoyment!! Keep an eye out for upcoming workshops and soon to be schedule member meetings at our partnered studios and take advantage of their great 6 week classes, workshops and open studios! conveniently located throughout the tampa bay area, please stop by and say “hello!”.


In January, the Ne chapter once again sponsored a successful winter workshop. so many of our Ne members gave countless hours in order to make this event a success. a special thank you to all of you that made this happen. the atlantic center for the arts came alive the third week in January with the happy sounds of chasing hammers, mokume forging, and sizzling metal. we are already in the planning stages for winter workshop 2017 so mark your calendars for the week of January 15th as we are sure to once again have world class artists teaching their specialties.

be sure to check out our fsgNe.com website to see some of the exciting classes and workshops we have scheduled for 2016. we already have many classes booked that range from beginning to advanced metalsmithing specialties. if you do not live in the central florida area and want to attend one of these classes please send us a note and we will make recommendations for lodging.

we would like to invite all fsg members both from the Ne chapter and from around the state to come visit our deland studio on any friday to experience our studio. each friday our alley, named artisan alley, comes alive from 6pm to 9pm with local vendors of fruits, vegetables, baked goods, and other various interesting items for sale. during this time our studio doors are opened and we show off our art work to the public. this is such a fun time and the more people we have come by the merrier we are!

facebook.com/fsgne

NortheASt ChAPter

upcomiNg classes:

GyPsy/Flush mount settinG with stefaN aleXaNdressuNday July 24, 2016

Basic Glass FusinG with carol zodrowsuNday may 15, 2016

sPinner rinGs With Pizzaz with mary ferraNtesaturday JuNe 18, 2016

PhotoGraPhinG JeWelry with Jim loguesuNday august 7, 2016

SAVe the DAte! wINter worKShoP JANuArY 15-21, 2017

www.fsgne.com

Remembering Mary Ann Scherrmary ann scherr, recognized as one of america’s most prestigious and influential designers, died at her home in raleigh, Nc on march 1st. she was 94 years old.

mary ann’s voluminous resume includes seven decades of work as a designer, metalsmith, jeweler, educator and studio artist. she created book illustrations, fashion designs, costumes, graphics, product designs, and jewelry. subsequent to wwii, she was the first woman to be hired by ford motor company’s automotive division, and she designed for other corporations, including goodyear, alcoa, and us steel. she owns patents for her design of body monitors, and copyrights for processes such as the instant photo etching of metals. she pioneered the use of exotic metals in adornment, stainless steel, rare earth metals, aluminum and mild steels.

mary ann scherr’s jewelry, and designs in metal, can be found in the permanent collections of major museums, including the vatican, the metropolitan museum of art, the museum of art and design in New york, goldsmith hall in london, the renwick gallery in the smithsonian, the u.s. National archives in washington, and the boston museum of fine arts.

mary ann shared ownership in raleigh’s roundabout art collective, where she exhibited her work. her jewelry designs have been featured in North carolina by the gregg museum of art and design, the mahler, the carolina designer craftsmen guild, and the penland school of crafts.

a companion career as an educator began in 1950 at the akron art institute. teaching was one of the greatest joys of her life. she taught at akron university, Kent state university, parsons, duke, meredith, penland, haystack, arrowmont, and the Ncsu crafts center, and in workshops both in america and abroad. she was beloved by thousands of students worldwide who referred to her as a master teacher. she said that teaching was “a design in itself,” and students were thrilled to be involved in her unique process of creation. mary ann’s joyful approach to life was dynamic and inspirational, and her observation that “design is everywhere” riveted both students and friends. she lived by her motto “create something everyday.” her longest tenure as an educator, 48 years, was at the penland school of crafts.

mary ann’s list of boards, community service, publications and awards, is extensive. she served as a board member for the gregg museum, raleigh fine arts, the contemporary art museum, and the visual arts exchange. she also served on the board of the society for North american goldsmiths and the penland school of crafts. she was a fellow of the american craft council, and an honorary associate of the worshipful company of goldsmiths in london. she was interviewed on the today show, good morning america, dan rather’s evening News, and Nbc’s that’s incredible, and has been featured in over 25 books and magazines.

in 2014, mary ann was a nominee for cooper-hewitt’s lifetime achievement award. she received many more honors, including the National medal of honor award from the society of North american goldsmiths, the college of fellows award from the american craft council, the “lifetime achieve-ment” award from the National museum of women in the arts in washington, dc, the North carolina medal of arts award, and the North carolina governor’s achievement in fine art award.

mary ann scherr’s life was a model of living and loving life to the fullest. she sought to maximize the creative potential in herself and in everyone she met. elegant, beautiful, unique, mary ann is deeply loved by those who walked on the path she traveled.


Gia gogishvili’s story began in tbilisi, the capital of the republic of georgia, where he was born. georgia is located at the cross roads of eastern europe and western asia. the country is bordered to the west by the black sea, to the north by russia, to the south by turkey and armenia and to the southeast by azerbaijan. georgia is a country with a rich culture, distinct language and alphabet. the first written history of occupation of modern day georgia by the proto-georgian tribes dates back to the 12th century bc. archaeo-logical evidence of advanced metallurgy and goldsmith techniques being used also dates back to the 12th century bc.

his birth name is giorgi or george, however, he prefers to be called by his short name of gia. gogishvili grew up in an environment where working with metal was a way of life. his grandfather was a metalsmith and his father Jamal, a jeweler and master silver-smith. he expressed his artistic interest by drawing but was restless with other studies. his parents recognized that their middle son had artistic abilities and helped him begin his formal art education, at the age of 14, at the tbilisi m. toidze art college. at 18 years

of age he served the customary two years service in the soviet military. the military also recognized that they could benefit from his artistic and metal skills by assigning him to make insignias that were displayed on build-ings and other decorations.

after completing his military service, gia con-tinued his formal art education at the moscow National art university. as an advanced student, he had the opportunity to intern at the hermitage in st. petersburg. there he restored 400 year old russian treasures. he is an accomplished artist and had achieved the title of master silversmith at a young age.

he participated in two major exhibitions of his original work. he won second place in an exhibition in moscow that included entries from all 15 republics of the soviet union. this is also a significant achievement for a young artist. gia’s original art work reflects his interest in nature and often includes frogs, bugs, fish, vines, acorns leaves. he also uses elements of wood in some of his original artwork such as stumps, bark, twigs etc. he has been know to mount his artwork on a wooden background. his chasing and

WiLdAcres June 18-24 2016

www.wcfsg.org

GIA GoGIShVIlI


repousse works will often tell a story. in one of his recent original pieces called “two lovers in a vineyard.” the viewer can see the expres-sions in the faces of the lovers and imagine the emotions that the lovers must be experiencing. another chasing and repousse piece is of “seven hunters” returning from a success hunt. their faces reflect the expression of satisfaction and brotherhood. these pieces are done in a more traditional eastern european style. gia is often commissioned to design and construct church ware, such as crosses and chalices. he enjoys using filigree and chasing and repousse similar to those he saw in christian orthodox churches in his home country. later as he was exposed to more modern styles he gained an appreciation to simplicity and clean lines. he has incorporated the modern styles in some of his original work.

gogishvili is not a person to miss an opportunity to pursue his artistic interests and was excited when he was selected by the artists union of the republic of georgia to represent his home country by participating in an artists’ exchange in america. in 1991, at the age of 26, he arrived in atlanta, georgia for what he thought would be a stay for two weeks then return to his home. he had limited understanding of the english language and had very little money in his pockets when he arrived. Near the end of the artists’ exchange, richard mafong, a professor at georgia state uni-versity (gsu) and Jon eric riis, who hosted his stay, convinced him to stay and share his knowl-edge of eastern europeon metal techniques with the students enrolled in the jewelry and metal-smithing program at gsu. gia’s artistic specialties include sculpture, chasing and repousse, filigree, inlay, niello, hollow form, and restorations. he was impressed and thankful for the help that mafong, riis, the gsu students and others offered to help him get started in america.

marc antebi, the owner of estes-simmons silver-plating, offered gia a position as a restorer at his company. mr. antebi also assisted him so that he could continue his stay in america and he contin-ues to be a mentor gia today.

as part of gia’s earlier years at estes-simmons,

he participated in two major projects. he was commissioned by the fifa world cup Junior championship and their sponsor, the coca-cola co, to construct a trophy that was a replica of their original trophy. he was provided photo-graphs of previous trophy and was expected to build the new trophy from scratch without measurement and specification that one would normally receive with a commission. he estimated that it would take him three month to complete the trophy. coca-cola and fifa said that they needed it in 20 days. because of the financial reward of the commission, he agreed to accept the terms offered and worked 16 to 18 hours each day at a studio at gsu. from time to time, gia was found sleeping on a table in the studio. he admits now, with pride in his accomplishment, that this was one of the most challenging projects he ever attempted and he realized how difficult it was to meet the deadline and how afraid he felt. with sheer determination and encouragement of friends and gsu students, the trophy was com-pleted and delivered on time.

the other major project that he participated in was the restoration of the southern open golf trophy. bobby Jones won the tournament in 1927 and his name was engraved on it as the winner. in 1975, it was on display at the atlanta athletic club. the price of silver was skyrocketing and someone stole the trophy with the intent on selling it. so that

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no one would recognize the historical value of the trophy, it was crushed and badly damaged. fortu-nately, someone could tell from the engraving that this was no ordinary trophy. the atlanta athletic club hoped to find a silversmith who could restore the trophy but most refused to take it on until they brought the trophy to estes-simmons silverplat-ing in 1996. after spending time studying con-struction of the trophy and determining the best approach to repair it, gogishvili began to restore the trophy. it took him one hundred man hours and over one-half of a million hammer strikes over a period of 4 months to restore the trophy almost to its original form. a more detailed description of the steps taken to restore the trophy can be found on the estes-simmons webpage.

after working for estes-simmons for nearly 15 years, gogishvili became the owner of the repair, plating and restorations part of estes-simmons silverplating. the new company was named estes-simmons silversmiths. he remains the primary silversmith while overseeing all aspects of the business.

in additions to his work as owner of estes-sim-mons silversmiths, gogishvili teaches classes in chasing and repousee, forging and hollow forms, and filigree to students at local arts schools and a university in the atlanta area. he has also been asked to teach at penland school but has not been able to work it into his schedule. he enjoys teaching and often refers to teaching as “his therapy” from the stresses of life including running of his business and raising two teenaged daugh-ters. he has agreed to teach filigree at wildacres

at the request of the florida society of goldsmith- west coast chapter in June of 2016. he dreams that one day he will have a studio where students would have a place to work and workshop space that can be used for visiting artists. he feels that having such a place would inspire his own creative juices to pursue his own original artwork. he has so many ideas of pieces that he would like to make but finding the time to work on this is not always possible.

silversmith and teaching are not the only activities for which gia is passionate. first on the list is his family in atlanta, his wife, tina and their daugh-ters sofie, 18 and miriam,15 and a sweet little dog named lacie. his mother, father, two bothers and the extended family of aunts, uncle, cousin, nephews and nieces still live in the republic of georgia. he does not often get a chance to visit his family in georgia. gia and his family are active in a rather large community of other georgians that reside in the atlanta

gia said that if he was not a full time silversmith that he would like to be a fisherman or a cook. he especially enjoys trout fishing in the North georgia streams and rivers. the writer can attest that he is definitely an excellent sushi maker. who knows, we may one day see him on the iron chef or some reality fishing tv show.

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www.wcfsg.org


Back in the year 1986, ed borow, his wife roselee, Nita london (my wife), and i took a vacation and we all went to asheville, Nc for a few days. my only request was that we visit two places that i had heard and read about, penland, the most well-known craft center on the east coast, and wildacres, the retreat that all the rock hounds choose to attend several times during the summer months.

we discovered that penland has an outstand-ing program and the physical surroundings are a bit on the rustic side, while on the other side of the coin, after our visit to wildacres, we found the physical surroundings excellent and their approach to programing unique in that all they provide is the physical plant. each group at-tending wildacres must bring their own program and must be a 501 (c )3 not-for-profit organi-zation. with this thought in mind, the wheels started spinning (which often happens to me). why couldn’t the florida society of goldsmiths put together a program? we fit all of the other requirements. it was suggested by the guide that showed us around the place that i contact phillip blumenthal, director of wildacres and whose family was responsible for the entire concept of wildacres as it is known today.

i promptly contacted phillip, explained our situ-ation, and what i had in mind. he said he would take it under advisement and that if he had some open time to fill, he would get back to me. after several months of waiting, i received an early evening phone call from him at which time he suggested several dates. i then took the idea to the florida society of goldsmith’s board of

directors for approval and they settled for the last week in august, four nights prior to labor day in 1987. Now the task was at hand to obtain instruc-tors that needed the least amount of equipment to teach their field of expertise as there was no metal working equipment at wildacres. the first contract we received from wildacres called for a minimum of 80 enrollments. No way were we going to be able to obtain this number, more phone calls to contact phillip blumenthal, he fully understood the problem and agreed to forget the minimum. he also made me feel better when he said it would take three years to build this kind of attendance.

well the first year our attendance was 29, includ-ing 3 instructors. in order to obtain this number we opened the enrollment to pa. soc. of goldsmiths, sNag, and the washington guild of goldsmiths’ members. in 1988 our attendance grew to 40. in 1989 we added an auction of items donated by participants and it was a huge success. each year our attendance has grown and we have attracted metalsmiths from all over the country in-cluding the bahamas. in the year 1990, our chair-person and one of our founding members passed away (richard i. miller).

as a tribute to richard, the miami Jewelry in-stitute donated to fsg a scholarship which we auction off. mrs. ethel miller (his widow), donated his library to the wc chapter of fsg, which we promptly named after him. in addition, fsg pur-chased the equivalent of $10,000.00 worth of richard’s metalsmithing tools and donated the same to wildacres. in 1991 our 5th anniversary we had the largest attendance ever and our auction was fantastic. class size was limited to 16,

wIlDACreS eVolVeS by phil loNdoN copyright 1996

in honor oF the 30th anniVersary oF FsG at Wildacres, We haVe rePrinted an article By our Founder, Phil london


www.wcfsg.org

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ACC ConferenceOctober 13 – 15, 2016The KanekoOmaha, Nebraska

PRES–ENT

SETEN

American Craft Council presents

“Present Tense,” the 12th national conference of the American Craft Council, is a convening whose function is to locate, through the lively exchange of ideas, the place of craft in our time.

For more information or to register, visit craftcouncil.org/presenttense

we now have 6 instructors and we distributed to all participants a work apron with our logo. 1992 promised to be equally as successful as we had 6 nights, which is what everyone had been clamoring for, attendance continued to be open as usual.

however, in order to accommodate our mem-bership we have instituted two prices, one for our members and a slightly higher price for nonmembers which will include member-ship. we do not wish to grow any larger than our 1991 enrollment which was 100 – and we wish to maintain the highest level of instruction possible at the most reasonable cost.


Jim e. biond, a graduate if penn state univer-sity with an associate degree in engineering, had worked in different countries throughout europe for 13 years. when he returned to the us and became fascinated with gemstones and metal, he enrolled in jewelry training at rowan state college in New Jersey, then continued at the center of visual arts and college of arts in philadelphia. he has also attended many workshops. he told me, “after obtaining my silversmithing certification from the pa guild of craftsmen, i joined the pa society of goldsmiths and transferred to the florida society of goldsmiths when my wife lia and i moved to Jack-sonville in 1994”. Jim is also a past president of the Northeast chapter of fsg.

as a jewelry designer and fabricator using hand tools and soldering techniques, Jim feels “each piece of jewelry and sculpture is a one-of-a-kind fabrication”. with over 25 years of jewelry designing and fabrication experience, he has found his metal of choice to be “pure silver, which is the whitest of all the precious metals”.

when we discussed his teaching, he felt, “i am an advocate of continuous education; however, most of my techniques have been learned through irre-placeable “hands on” experience. most of us begin making jewelry by following instructions, which is a safe place to start. the next step is to learn the art of creative design. every piece of jewelry starts out

meet our memberS Jim biond


as an idea which becomes a design.” he feels, “learning design theory, including the elements and principles of design, can be more challenging than learning how to crimp a bead or attach a clasp. you need to understand the materials you use and how they complement the wearer. the color, texture, and balance in the creative process must coordinate before you can successfully design great jewelry. they include balance, emphasis, rhythm, movement, contrast, harmony, and unity”.

he has taught a course for the Ne and se chapters on channel settings with very positive feed-backs from the students and looks forward to expanding his teaching curriculum. in discussing his design inspirations. “many come differ-ent aspects of life, such as boot laces, gears, folded forms, teapots, and irregular shapes. my wife, lia, and i go to whole-sale gem shows several times a year in search of special stones to make our jewelry pieces. we call it ‘treasure hunting’. sometimes it takes several years for me to get the design inspiration for a particular gemstone”.

he added, “i find i am most creative when i am in a true bind with time. some of my best collections were designed within less than 14 hours. the very fact that you don’t have time, or you don’t have all of the normal components you would like, gives you an excuse to liberate yourself, espe-cially when it comes to jewelry design”.


his favorite tool is the rolling mill because. “it enables me to start most projects with sheet and wire and to alter them to meet my specific needs. i am still using the same torch that i started with, which is a basic acetylene torch”.

his favorite tip was received many years ago was how to disassemble and re-assemble a spring loaded clasp so that it may be decorated in order to make it unique. this is one of the reasons he has won many awards throughout his 20+ years as a jewelry artist, such as 1st place 3-dimensional in tarpon springs and has had several newspaper articles written about him and his techniques, including a basket-setting presentation on January 23, 2006 at the fsgNe studio.

when asked about the future he responded, “my goal is to help beautify every woman who wears my creations”. his motto “craftsmanship + experience + passion” sums it up nicely.


FSG oFFICerS AND boArD oF DIreCtorSstate directors molly strader, president open,vice presidentcindi bateman, treasurerbev fox, secretaryJillian logue, Newsletter editorJean marie despiegler, Newsletter editoropen, web masteralan brown, hall of fame chairpersonarnold lasris, parlimentarianmolly strader, membership chairpersonJean marie despiegler, exec. director

FsG oFFicers and Boards oF directors:

at larGe (out oF state) chaPter rePresentatiVedon walker

north east chaPtermary ferrante, presidentdennis fair, vpcarol zodrow, treasurerJillian logue, secretary

north West chaPterstarr payne, president open, v.p.starr payne, treasureropen, secretary

south West chaPterrobert small, presidentdoug shemenski, vpcindi bateman, treasurerdixie dixon, secretary

south east chaPtercynthia abood, presidentJanice wiesler, vpcynthia abood, treasurerdenise delrusso, secretary

West coast chaPterstacy perry, presidentheidi enneking, vpclare leonard, treasurerJenaay brown, secretary

south chaPtermarti wakshlag, presidentmichelle sandler, vp catherine Kononoff, treasurer maureen Kaisischke, secretary


FSG NewSletter CoNteNtdo you KNow of aN fsg member that has aN iNterestiNg story that they would liKe to share with our readers? please coNtact JeaN marie at [email protected] submissioN deadliNes:JaNuary 15-wiNter editioN (feb)

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July 15- summer editioN (aug)

october 15-fall editioN (Nov)

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this bulletin of the florida society of goldsmiths is published quarterly in a pdf web format by fsg, inc. 719 central ave., st. petersburg, fl 33701; for its membership. all names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, trade names, or other identifications are for the exclusive use of the memnership and may not be used for commer-cial purposes without prior permission from the florida society of goldsmiths.

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