Radical Jewelry Makeover promotional DVD available now!

Support Radical Jewelry Makeover with the purchase of the RJM promotional DVD, "Radical Jewelry Makeover: a traveling community mining and recycling project."

About the film: Video artists Dana Richardson and Sarah Zentz followed the project for the two-week class at Penland School of Crafts and produced a 12-minute film. It features interviews with artists, donors and jewelry from the Penland Makeover as well as others. The cost of the DVD is $15 and this price includes shipping!

Click here to order!

MAD Momentum

As a team of collaborators we do not stop often enough to appreciate how Radical Jewelry Makeover has evolved since it was piloted in Richmond, VA in the winter of 2007, but this blog entry is a celebration!

Yesterday (9/12/09), several people who have been significant contributors to RJM's momentum converged at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City for the museum's "Jewelry Study Day". RJM and Ethical Metalsmiths were represented in two ways. The first event was the second public screening of the new video, "Radical Jewelry Makeover: a traveling community mining and recycling project" and the second event, attended by over 75 people, was a panel discussion featuring Ethical Metalsmiths' Co-director, Susan Kingsley.

The line-up of panelists from left to right: Susan Kingsley, Robert Ebendorf, Ursula Ilse-Neuman (MAD's jewelry curator), Daniella Kerner and Thomas Gentille

As Co-director of Ethical Metalsmiths and RJM, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to bring the film makers Sarah Zentz and Dana Richardson as well as three-time RJM participant, Meg Roberts to NYC! Susie Ganch couldn't join us in in NYC, but she was with us in spirit!


Everyone that participated in the "Jewelry Study Day" had the opportunity to watch the new 12 minute RJM video. We took several orders for the film, many of which were made by educators in the jewelry and metalsmithing field who are already using Ethical Metalsmiths' materials in their classrooms / studios. Here we are taking in the first run of the film at MAD.

"Radical Jewelry Makeover: a traveling community mining and recycling project" is now available to order by contacting Christina Miller at mail@ethicalmetalsmiths.org. The suggested donation to Ethical Metalsmiths to receive a copy of the film is $15.00 and this includes shipping. If you support the project and can donate more, we will put your generosity to good use. The packing for the DVD is made from 100% recycled paper. Sarah and Dana found the DVD labels in the trash and the first several copies will be packaged in a custom designed and hand-made, 100% recycled folder.


As if this weren't enough to celebrate, I'd also like to share some photos from the first public screening of the film, which took place outdoors on September 4th in Lancaster, PA's Binn's Park.


Our thank you list to people who made the production of this film possible is LONG! Collaboration is an essential part of all of our work and I would like to personally use this moment to shout out an expression of appreciation and thanks to everyone that has been involved! If this computer screen had arms, there would be a hug for each one of you.

SO - let the MOMENTUM continue and we looking forward to bringing Radical Jewelry Makeover to its next host community!

Best,
Christina Miller

Behind the Scenes - Preparing for the Debut of the RJM film

Take a guess. How long does it take to produce a 10 minute film if you are working on it a minimum of 10 hours per day?


In the case of "Radical Jewelry Makeover: a traveling community mining and recycling project," months is the correct answer and after all that hard work we are happy to announce the first two screenings of the film with this electronic postcard.



Working along with the directors and producers of the film, Sarah Zentz and Dana Richardson, has been a real treat. They have been filming, interviewing, editing, re-filming, critiquing, and working diligently. Useful to the project has been simple internet communication software like Skype and Audacity. The following photo is a great example of sharing a screening and critique moment with co-director of RJM, Susie Ganch via Skype.


We look forward to seeing you at Binn's Park in Lancaster, PA from 8:00 - 9:30 PM on Friday September 4th for the debut screening and/or in New York at the Museum of Arts and Design on September, 12th. The special screening will take place as part of the museum's "jewelry study day" from 11:30 - 12:30 PM.

Feel free to contact Ethical Metalsmiths at mail@ethicalmetalsmiths.org with any questions.

Reflection on the Past and Keeping RJM moving!

Radical Jewelry Makeover IV - Penland, NC, specifically designed as a 2-week workshop for the renowned Penland School of Crafts, was a success! How do we know? Well, how could such a hard working and smart group of students, spell bound by the Penland mystique and handed beautiful jewelry donations from a community "mine" to create with come up with anything less than success?

Have a look at a few photos of students studying and sorting the donations, hard at work in the studio, and later, the final exhibition.



































The images below of the final exhibition in Penland's new letterpress studio are actually from Amy Tavern's blog (thanks Amy!). It is a good thing so many people are collaborating on each RJM, together we don't miss a beat! Enjoy these exhibition shots. We are waiting to unveil photos of the finished work until Ethical Metalsmiths launches its new website (getting closer to launch date!). Www.ethicalmetalsmiths.org will feature each edition of RJM with its own gallery.

Ethical Metalsmiths and RJM Directors Susie Ganch and Christina Miller would like to thank Penland School of Crafts for generously supporting the project beyond the traditional scope of the workshops and especially Adam Whitney and Amy Tavern. Our teaching assistants, Kaitlyn Evans and Gabriel Graig, did a fabulous job as our extra eyes, ears and brains, additionally, they made beautiful, responsible work. To all of the jewelry donors, we really can't do this project without generous support like yours. We hope that you feel confident that your jewelry is getting put to good use! And most of all we'd like to thank the participating artists. You brought real vitality, creativity and generosity to the 4th edition and it was an honor to work with all of YOU!

Thank you to:
Nina Dinoff
Peyton Kinnaird
Soyeon Kim
Erica Bissette
Betsy Rowland
Stella Schloss
Debbie Chapman
Perry Craven
Gabriel Graig
Allison Dahle
Renee Mendola
Nathalie Siman
Mary Tevington
Greg Owen
Pamola Powell
Nancy Kerr
Joshua Kuensting
Pat Nevin
Kaitlyn Evans
Elaine Butcher
Stephanie Voegele

Independent Jewelers
Amy Tavern
Adam Whitney
Matt Willig
Cynthia Rohrer

Finally, a special thanks to Florence Hardymon who through the simple act of donating some old jewelry catapulted Radical Jewelry Makeover over the wall and off on a brand new adventure.

Stay tuned for information about the new Radical Jewelry Makeover promotional film produced and directed by collaborators Dana Richardson and Sarah Zentz.

Radical Jewelry Makeover IV is Right Around the Corner!

Counting down to the Penland School of Crafts edition of Radical Jewelry Makeover!

We are really looking forward to the fourth edition of Radical Jewelry Makeover, meeting and working with all of our students and spending time at Penland.

This blog entry is especially for the generous folks that donated jewelry to the Penland edition of the project - Thank you! We have made a change to the dates and times that the Makeover work will be exhibited and available for purchase. The NEW date and time is: Thursday July, 2 from 10 AM to 6 PM in the Penland Metals Studio. Hopefully if you donated jewelry you will be able to make it to this exhibition / sale. We are working on an online RJM store and more information will be available soon at this blog OR at www.EthicalMetalsmiths.org. Our goal is to make Makeover jewelry available for purchase online both by donors with coupons as well as for non-donors interested in supporting the project.

Thank you for all of the support we have been receiving for this project. There is a NEW article by Beverly Sanders about Radical Jewelry Makeover on the American Craft Council blog! Check it out: http://www.americancraftmag.org/blog-post.php?id=8009. Enjoy.

Feel free to contact us at: mail@ethicalmetalsmiths.org with any questions that you might have.

Metalsmith Magazine Showcases Radical Jewelry Makeover

Radical Jewelry Makeover has already touched many people as it evolves in new locations around the country, but the March 2009 issue of Metalsmith magazine (Vol.29 / No.2 / 2009) is helping us to reach even more people.

Kate Dobbs Ariail wrote a two page article for the "View" section of Metalsmith magazine and introduced many of the readers to the project for the first time.

"Who but the pure of heart could get people to donate 150 pounds of jewelry, as they did in San Francisco, for the privilege of buying it back in another form, in service of the mission to clean up the planet? These ethical artists are not releasing a flock of peacock pinatas into the wider world, but they are sending forth gorgeous, funky, message-laden jewelry and objects, all made from recycled gold and other ornamental materials, by both students and professional metalsmiths who want their work to exemplify their green philosophies." - Kate Dobbs Ariail

We would like readers of the article to know that the next RJM is coming right up and will take place as a 2-week workshop at Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina. To learn more about the workshop and the project please visit the previous post on this blog.

Thank you for your ongoing support of our work!

Radical Jewelry Makeover IV - Penland, NC

Penland School of Crafts is home to the next Radical Jewelry Makeover!

You could be a part of RJM-IV as student in the workshop, as a jewelry donor and as a "makeover" jewelry wearer. Join us for the next RJM, here's how!

If you are interested in participating as a student here's some information about the course and Penland School:

Radical Jewelry Makeover WORKSHOP (scroll down to session 3). This 2-week class (June 21 - July 3, 2009) is open to ALL levels (beginner to advanced) and will be co-taught by Susie Ganch and Christina Miller.

Penland School of Crafts "is a national center for craft education dedicated to helping people live creative lives. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, Penland offers one-, two-, and eight-week workshops in books & paper, clay, drawing, glass, iron, metals, photography, printmaking and letterpress, textiles, and wood. The school also sponsors artists' residencies, community education programs, and a craft gallery."

If you are interested in donating your old, unwanted jewelry, precious metal scrap or gemstones here's how:

This link http://penland.org/makeover.html explains where to drop off or mail your donation, contains the downloadable PDF donation form (please include your email address on the form and tear off the bottom section for your records) and provides information about the discount coupons for donors.

If you are interested in purchasing a piece of RJM - Penland "makeover" jewelry:

There will be two ways to purchase RJM - Penland jewelry. If you are in the area, you can visit the Penland Metals studio on Wednesday July 1, from 9-11 PM (after Susie and Christina give a presentation about RJM at the Northlight building) and again on Thursday July 2, from 10-NOON. RJM "makeover" jewelry will also be for sale online beginning July 20, 2009 (details about accessing the online RJM-STORE will be available soon.)

If you have questions please contact Ethical Metalsmiths at: mail@ethicalmetalsmiths.org

Thank you to all of the artists who participated in RJM-SF

Thank you to the following people for making RJM III (San Francisco, CA) a huge success. The last blog entry was a general thanks, but we wanted to put participants' names in lights! Thanks again!

THE CRUCIBLE:
Aimee Golant
David Casella
Mark Wilson
Katie Leong
Brenda Hayes
Rosemary Dudley
Lori Kohlstaedt
Rodney Kessler
Katherine Joksch
Ilana Caplan
Jay Bulkley
Denise T. Taylor
Angela Fortain
Stephen Stark

CALIFORNIA COLLEGE OF THE ARTS:
Deb Lozier
Jenn Allender
Da Ye Kim
Soo Hye Park
Manon Bogerd-Wada
Helen Kim
Dean Schnelder
Dan Bortz
Justin Lum
Hanna Vogel
Zack Ewing
Tabatha Taraya
Brittney Zapor
Boin Kim
Kait Mooney
Anna Adair
Ariana Tordoff
Alexis Myre
Christine Meade
Cat Lyons
Aryanna Hirtler
Liz Meinert
Angela Jo
Susan Meier
Kim Bainum
Jenn Cornell
Taylor King
Jean Saung
Jlhee Moon
Kolle Kahle-Riggs
Katie Deierlein
Allison Beezer
Cory Lico Wolffs
Sarah Timmins
Reid Rodeen
Jae Hyun Kim
Kate Klingbeil
Crista Reid
Chloe Kim
Eva Chidester
Kristina Karageurova
Wonhee Lee
Jas Sung
Victoria Montgomery
Rachael Nyhus
Meghan Williams
Siewon Chung
Emily Choi
Annie Mc Night
Russell Larman
Erin Kang
Liqiao Wang

REVERE ACADEMY:
Alan Revere
Emiko Oye
Christine Dhein
Ronda Coryell
Vinit Koosolmanomai
Michelle Flynn
Christine Uemura
Greta Chiu
Jenny Reeves
Srikanth Rao
Elizabeth Wells Oppenheim
Nancy J. Wintrup

SCINTILLANT STUDIO:
Adam Clark
Sarah Breivis
Alexa Simpson
Diane Dewey
Thornton Throckmorton
Robin Lynn Weiss
Ann Lawson
Vanessa Gade
Alexa Simpson
Anna Andersson
Carolyn Tillie
Robin Lynn Weiss
Maria-Tina Karamanlakis

CITY COLLEGE OF SAN FRANCISCO:
Steven L. Smith
Suzanne Pugh
Hugo Laverde
Kalico Cameron
Magda E. Aguirre
Cindy Potter
Roxanne K.F. Quan
Keith Herman
Brian Triffet
Laurie Ransom
You Jian Huang
Margaret Wong
Chiha Moriyoshi
Donald Hayes
Cassia Soares Appel
Shizuka Abiru
Marta Lacerda
Kristina Martinez
Kaiya Rainbolt
Shane Case
Sarah Neiman
Melissa Rubin
Tracee Brugg
Ruoling Xiao
Kathleen Egan
Leanne Tomlin
Maria J. Morales
Gloria Kemp

RICHMOND ART CENTER:
Ed Lay
Antoinetta DiMeo
Cintra Harbach
Tess Pageau
Shabnam Bahmanian
Luana Coonen
Therese Key
Verena Tent
Ariel Phyliky-Lay
Reiko Miyagi
Mary Ellin D'Agostino
Mira Benoni
Diana Keevan
Michael Singer
Elaine Gerber
Shirley Rae Parini
Duane Fitzgerald
Gloria M. Sanchez
Wendy McDermott
Diana Shaio Keevan
Janice Macdonald Bolles

THE ACADEMY OF ART UNIVERSITY:
Charlene Modena
Patty Nelson
Kelly Nedderman
Melisande Inness-Brown
Pooi Boey
Kaori Chiba
Tania Kelvin
Kelsey Simmen
Myssi Christensen
Chrystal Powell
Kristi Frank
Emi Ando
Lauren Matsumoto
Lindsey K. Eisentraut
Tura Sugden
Genevieve Boisselle
Nimontra Sethi
Sydney Brown-Tarman
Elliot Gaskin
Heather Kenealy
Afra Lee
Jennifer Held
Brandon Rubin
Ching Lu
Bora Hwang
Shin-chi Chen
Gordon Silveria


INDEPENDENTS:
Raissa Bump & Jonathan Anzalone
Lynn Christiansen
Marilyn & Jack da Silva
Danielle Marie Henderson
Mike Holmes
Tom Hill

MILLERSVILLE UNIVERSITY:
Juleann Benkoski
Katie Zargiel
Heather Schlupp

VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY:
Meg Roberts
Olivia de Soria

(Please contact us at mail@ethicalmetalsmiths.org if you see any errors or omissions!)