Home 14 by Lisa Call

Without a doubt, one of the great joys of my work is meeting artists in their studios. The combination of actually getting to know an individual artist, seeing more of their work (including work in progress), and seeing them in their own environment allows me to develop a deeper understanding of them and their work and often see the work in a new light. This past weekend I was in Denver and Boulder, visiting with three Artful Home artists, each of whom works in a different medium.

The first stop was at the home and studio of Lisa Call. Lisa is a textile artists (and software engineer!) who often develops whole series of quilts around particular themes. Currently, she is exploring houses, strongly influenced by her recent overhaul of her own home and life, thus exploring what “home” means to her.

Lisa boldly explores her theme in multiple scales, from teeny tiny 3″ squares to large pieces. Seeing Lisa in her light filled studio with her larger pieces helped me understand her draw to the house structure, and notice the exquisite detail of her hand-dyed fabrics, her painterly color sense, and detailed, almost obsessive quality to her stitching.

Striations Cuff – River Blue by Julie Powell

The next stop was in Boulder, to the home and studio of Julie Powell. Julie is a former quilter (and outstanding baker!) who now employs her fascination with color and texture in amazing beadwork jewelry.

I got to see this Striations Cuff in person, along with many other pieces, and came to understand Julie’s process. She starts with a feeling, in this case, the desire to convey the motion and rush of a Colorado river. Working with a sketch that she uses as inspiration, Julie starts in the middle of the piece and lets the piece take form from there. The end result is dazzling, sculptural, and unique , so much so that a friend who had joined me for the visit, an avid fly-fisherman, had to purchase it on the spot – just because!

And in my hand is one which you’ll soon be able to find on Artful Home – and my wrist!

Teardrop Hall Table by Derek Secor Davis

My final visit was to the home and studio of Derek Secor Davis. He lives in the gorgeous foothills of the Rockies, and finding him required driving up and up and up along a breathtakingly beautiful road through gold mining country. Derek is a furniture artist whose elegant work employs sculptural elements, sophisticated whimsy, and masterful craftsmanship. Seeing work in progress revealed the painstaking carving, milk-painting, sanding, carving processes Derek uses to create his subtly textured surfaces and forms. Even more interesting was seeing Derek’s pieces in a home environment.

Sometimes it is easy to assume that a piece of contemporary furniture might be too “out there” for your home. Yet, in Derek’s home, the Teardrop Table lived perfectly happily next to the coziest of chairs, as evidenced by this photo of the artist himself. And yes, Derek built his home, and it is a thing of beauty!

After leaving these three artists, I was reminded of something I was taught in art school, that as an observer of art one should be willing to let the work “sink in”. Any one piece represents all the years of experience of that artist, funneled into a specific work. Meeting the artists, hearing how they think about their work and what inspired them, allowed their work to sink into my brain even more deeply, and I am grateful for their allowing me to experience that.

Jaipur Reversible Pendant – Arctic by Lisa Jane Grant

When beginning to find out more about this region, I was struck by the number of jewelry artists in New England, and went digging around to find out if there was a concrete reason or relationship. Indeed, there is! The Gorham company, dating back to 1831, established a tradition of silversmithing and fine craftsmanship in Rhode lsland. When Gorham closed the company, they made a significant donation of tools to the Jewelry and Metalsmithing department at the Rhode Island School of Design, helping to cement the foundation of this department. This contribution supported the growth of the strong community of jewelry artists throughout the New England region.

Maine historically has been a place of refuge for many artists, with Marsden Hartley, Andrew and Jamie Wyeth, Paul Strand, John Marin, and Winslow Homer among the most prominent. When talking to Artful Home painters, I learned that the environment plays a crucial role in their work.

Maine artist Heidi Daub has been working on a series of paintings, “To Hear The Forest Speaking”, which has been directly influenced from living within the forest and carving a home out of the woods. According to Daub, the coastal Blue Hill peninsula offers deep “island climate” evergreen forests, granite shorelines, clear salt water, and many sun filled blue sky days. It is far from a major city, but has a history of culture, possibly springing from old time shipping, and the wealthy who settled along the shorelines. The peninsula is home to many artists, craftsmen, writers, musicians, including Haystack Mt School of Crafts, Kneisal Hall Music School, Flash In the Pan Steel Band, The Blue Hill Contradance, the longest running contradance in the state.

Never Better by Heidi Daub

Furniture artist Gregg Lipton’s ties to the traditions of New England furniture making begin with his studio, housed in a restored 1860 water-powered lumber mill suspended over two rushing flumes in front of a 120-foot wooden dam. Here in this dramatic and inspiring workplace, Lipton uses intuition as his primary guide in creating designs with utility and grace. In many ways related to the simplicity of Shaker furniture making, Lipton’s work ultimately reflects a respect for the past, while reaching for the future.

Gramercy Counter Stool by Gregg Lipton

Spiral Earrings by Nancy Linkin

Sophia Pendant with Chocolate Pearl and Diamond by Britt Anderson

Sea Floor Ring by Victoria Moore

Scribble Tangle Diamond Pendant by Dana Melnick

Budding Branch Earrings by Judith Neugebauer

Beth Dress by Lynn Mizono

First, head for coffee at the Farmer’s Market and then brunch. Keep it comfortable, but have some layers to take off as the day gets warmer. Wear flats or some amazing sandals and a chunky watch with a splash of color. Wear a cute fitted jacket. Check out the “Immutable Jacket” from Anthropologie in white. Maybe toss on a scarf for some more color, grab big sunglasses, and then a big bag to hold everything (the Sun Bag by Jutta Neumann would work great.)

Later in the afternoon, catch a movie (preferably a romantic comedy). Wear Chuck Taylors for a really casual look and throw on a hoodie; Lululemon has great casual ones.

Of course, there is dinner and drinks after the movie…which would require another pair of shoes! Little booties would be cute and very spring appropriate: Wear lovely long dangly gold earrings (Dana Melnick Scribble Earrings would be great.) For another option, choose a thin feather headband; just don’t match the booties.

One dress – three events – three great looks!

Swirl Bib Necklace by Ellen Himic

I was just in New York on an unseasonably warm weekend, warm enough for women to dress like it was summer and preview what summer trends might be. What I saw again and again was the adoption of BIG necklaces, often looking like tribal collars or ceremonial neckpieces. These large pieces were teamed with strapless tops and dresses, drawing the eye away up toward the face and accenting suddenly bare shoulders. Now that my eye was trained to look for this style of necklace, I was delighted to find several examples on the Artful Home website, styles which had not caught my attention in the same way previously.

Ellen Himic’s “Swirl Bib Necklace” is a more delicate interpretation of this trend. The artist was inspired by an interpretation of the scrolling work found on Corinthian columns. The quartz crystals sparkling in the sun would be a perfect foil against bare skin.

Full Feather Necklace – Teal by Marna Clark

In a decidedly bolder form, Marna Clark’s “Full Feather Necklace” in Borosilicate Glass and Sterling Silver creates a stunning tribal-influenced neckpiece. Reminiscent of coral, these teal and blue individual glass feathers are lightweight, and have a surprisingly voluptuous feel and sound.

Danielle Gori-Montanelli’s “Lilypond Collar” is a fresh homage to spring, and can be worn as easily in the cooler months now as in the summer months ahead. Made of hand cut and sewn wool felt, this neckpiece lays gracefully on the neck and shoulders.

Whether inspired by flower leis, shell collections, or tribal neckwear, the arrival of a new approach to jewelry was so fresh – and made me start dreaming of my next “must” for summer.

Lilypond Collar by Danielle Gori-Montanelli