University of New England - Innovation for a Healthier Planet

The Lives of the Jewelers

Reception for The Lives of the Jewelers

July 1, 2022

4:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Portland Campus Art Gallery

Curated by Maria Wolff & Hilary Irons

July 1-October 9, 2022 

Join us for an opening reception on Friday, July 1, 4 to 7 p.m.

Kousa Dogwood Tree in Flower (photo: Christine Peters); Christine Peters, 18k Gold and Oxidized Sterling Emerald Bauble Ring

From the forms of the region’s plants and animals to global social and cultural histories, inspirations abound for Maine Jewelers, who use metals and other precious materials to embody their creative responses to their physical and cognitive environments. In “The Lives of the Jewelers,” Maine metal artists will display their work, in the form of both jewelry and extended applications of their chosen materials, alongside imagery and text describing the sources that inspire them. Like Vasari’s 1550 text The Lives of the Artists, which illuminated the practices of Renaissance visionaries, this exhibition will provide a window into the motivations and intellectual preoccupations of individual contemporary Maine jewelers, who bring their vision of beauty so directly into daily life. 

Featuring: Ebenezer Akakpo, Aminata Conteh, Shelby Goldsmith, Michael Good, Tim McCreight, Naomi Grace McNeill, J. E. Paterak, Kyle Patnaude, Christine Peters, Sharon Portelance, and Maria Wolff