Bio

Amy Tavern received a BFA in Metal Design from the University of Washington in 2002. She also holds a BA in Arts Administration from the State University of New York College at Fredonia. Amy has taught at the Penland School of Crafts and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Amy lectured about professional practices at the 2008 Society of North American Goldsmiths conference and has also spoken at the University of North Carolina Asheville, East Carolina University, and the University of Washington. She has exhibited at Velvet da Vinci Gallery and Sienna Gallery, among others. In 2009 Amy received several emerging artist honors including the American Craft Council Searchlight Artist. Amy’s jewelry has been published in numerous books such as New Rings (Promopress) and was most recently featured on the cover of Metalsmith Magazine’s 2011 “Exhibition in Print.” Amy’s work can be found in galleries around the U.S. and abroad. Originally from Upstate, NY, Amy recently completed a three-year residency at the Penland School of Crafts.

Statement

My work begins with formal explorations of line, shape, and negative space and extends to simple concepts of pattern, layering, and visual movement. I begin by making individual elements in wire and sheet metal and through intuitive combination I create new, interdependent and often interactive spaces and patterns. I strive for a visual interplay between elements, creating pieces in which positive and negative space are equally important. The often asymmetrical compositions are hints of aerial views, maps, simple drawings, and my interest in the spatial arrangement of objects.

In my current work I combine my interest in graffiti and antique jewelry. I am intrigued by the accumulated history graffiti conveys via layers of marks and how antique jewelry depicts specific time periods. In both cases evidence of the individual remains whether as graffiti artist, maker, or wearer. Although my work does not resemble graffiti in its purest form, I reference it by the way I manipulate the spray painted surfaces of each piece. I further reference graffiti by purposefully covering precious metal with paint like an irreverent tag on a statue. I show reverence also for the past by creating work that alludes both to traditional adornment, such as the teardrop, as well as jewelry that once belonged to my grandmother. My pieces begin with a personal vocabulary of formal elements including the layering of line, shape, and negative space. The intentional blending of the refined look of the antique with the urban feel of graffiti reveals a merged history and its significance to me.

Resume

Education

2000-02 University of Washington – BFA Metal Design, Post Baccalaureate
1992-96 State University of New York College at Fredonia – BA Arts Administration

Exhibitions

2012 Transformations 8: Contemporary Works in Small Metals, Rapheal Prize Finalists Exhibition, Society for Contemporary Craft
2011 Fresh: Exhibition in Print, Metal Museum, Memphis, TN
2011 This is How I Remember It, Solo Exhibition at Velvet da Vinci, San Francisco, CA
2011 SOFA Chicago with Aaron Faber Gallery
2011 In Line/In Metal, Aaron Faber Gallery, New York, NY
2011 Exhibition in Print, Metalsmith Magazine
2011 Earrings Galore, Heidi Lowe Gallery, Rehoboth Beach, MD
2010 Via Penland, Rebus Works, Raleigh, NC
2010 SOFA Chicago with Sienna Gallery, Chicago, IL
2010 METAL Inclinations2 (on-line), Society of Midwest Metalsmiths
2010 Sparkle Plenty 6, Quirk Represents, Richmond, VA
2010 Spectrum, Heidi Lowe Gallery, Rehoboth Beach, DE
2010 Strassen Kunst, Artspace, Richmond, VA
2010 Earrings Galore, Heidi Lowe Gallery, Rehoboth Beach, MD
2010 Fault Lines, Rare Device, San Fransisco, CA
2010 Fourteen Hands, Three Years, Caldwell Arts Center, Lenoir, NC
2009 Sparkle Plenty 5, Quirk Represents, Richmond, VA
2009 Plush Jewels, Fancy, Seattle, WA
2009 The Barns: Penland Resident Artist Show, Penland Gallery, Penland, NC
2009 Nuit Blanche, Metal Arts Guild of Canada, Toronto, ON
2009 Delicate Beauty, Penland Gallery, Penland, NC
2009 The Stimulus Project, Sienna Gallery, Lenox, MA
2009 Earrings Galore, Heidi Lowe Gallery, Rehoboth Beach, MD
2009 Penland Artists, Sparta Teapot Museum, Sparta, NC
2009 One and Only, Taboo Studio, San Diego, CA
2008 Multiples, Heidi Lowe Gallery, Rehoboth Beach, MD
2008 30 Small Works, Gallery Up, Rock Hill, SC
2008 21st. Century Jewelry, Bainbridge Arts Council, Bainbridge Isl, WA
2007 Handmade for the Holidays, Museum of Contemporary Craft, Portland, OR
2005 Wearable Expressions, Palos Verdes Art Center, Palos Verdes, CA
2005 Refined IV, Stephen F. Austin University Gallery, Nacogdoches, TX
2004 Exaggerations/Understatements, Free-Thinking Residency Show, Vain, Seattle, WA
2004 Receive and Transmit, Fancy, Seattle, WA
2003 Big Little, Craft and Cultural Arts Gallery, Oakland, CA

Publications

2011 Exhibition in Print, Metalsmith Magazine, Cover photo and 1 interior image
2011 New Rings, ed. Nicolas Estrada, Promopress, 2 images
2011 500 Silver Jewelry Designs, ed. Marthe Le Van, Lark Books, 2 images
2011 Steel Wire Jewelry by Brenda Schweder, 1 image
2010 Jewelry Design Challenge: 30-Minute Necklaces, ed. Marthe Le Van, Lark Books, 1 project
2010 Trachodon Magazine, Issue 1, Author of memoir “Part of the Process”
2010 Jewelry Design Challenge: 30-Minute Earrings, ed. Marthe Le Van, Lark Books, 1 project
2009 Jewelry Artist Magazine, article by Sharon Elaine Thompson, September issue, interviewed, quoted
2009 500 Plastic Jewelry Designs, ed. Marthe Le Van, Lark Books, 2 images
2007 Modern Jewelry from Modular Parts, ed. Marthe Le Van, Lark Books, 2 projects
2003 Making Metal Jewelry by Joanna Gollberg, Lark Books, 1 image

Achievements

2010 4th Place Best-in-Show, Strassen Kunst, Artspace, Richmond, VA
2009 Emerging Artist, American Craft Exposition
2009 American Craft Council Searchlight Award
2002 Rabinovitch Scholarship Award, University of Washington
2001 Women’s Jewelry Association Scholarship Award
2000 Bob and Peggy Culbertson Scholarship Award, Penland School of Crafts

Artist Residencies

2009-12 Resident Artist, Penland School of Crafts
2004 Free-Thinking Residency, Vain, Seattle, WA

Teaching & Lecturing Experience

2012 Instructor, Spring Concentration, Beginning Jewelry, Penland School of Crafts
2012 Instructor, Material Topics Symposium, East Carolina University, Greenville, NV
2011 Visiting Artist, City College, San Francisco, CA
2011 Lecturer, “Meet the Maker” Lecture Series, University of North Carolina at Asheville
2011 Visiting Artist, Lecturer, University of North Carolina School of the Arts/The Kenan Institute, Winston-Salem, NC
2010 Visiting Artist, Lecturer, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC
2010 Lecturer “Making a Living/Making a Life,” East Carolina University, Greenville, NC
2010 Instructor, Core Fellowship Seminar, Penland School of Crafts
2010 Lecturer in Studio with University of Georgia at Athens
2010 Instructor, It’s the Little Things, Penland School of Crafts
2010 Lecturer-”Making in the Real World,” Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SC
2010 Instructor, Core Fellow Seminar, Penland School of Crafts
2010 Instructor, “Jewelry Design Workshop”, Penland School of Crafts
2010 Virtual Lecturer, SUNY New Paltz, New Paltz, NY
2008 Lecturer, Long Beach City College, Long Beach, CA
2008 Instructor, “Beginning Jewelry”, Penland School of Crafts
2008 Visiting Artist, Penland School of Crafts, Penland, NC
2008 Visiting Artist, Penland School of Crafts
2008 Professional Development Seminar Presenter, SNAG Conference, Savannah, GA
2007 Business of Craft Panel Discussion, Penland School of Crafts
2007 Lecturer in Studio with University of Washington
2005 Instructor, Jewelry I, Pratt Fine Arts Center, Seattle, WA
2003 Lecturer, University of Washington

Assistantships & Apprenticeships

2007 Studio Assistant, Raissa Bump, Penland School of Crafts
2006 Studio Assistant, Joanna Gollberg, Penland School of Crafts
2005 Studio Assistant, Joanna Gollberg, Penland School of Crafts
2002-06 Studio Assistant, Lori Talcott, Seattle, WA
2002 Teaching Assistant, Mary Lee Hu, University of Washington
2002 Apprentice, Lori Talcott
2001 Teaching Assistant, Mary Lee Hu, UW Summer Arts Festival Jewelry Workshop

Professional Affiliations

2010-present Toe River Arts Council
2009-present American Craft Council
2008-present Klimt02
2002-present Society of North American Goldsmiths