Gilded Meadows

​Hand and Lock 2023 The Prize Finalist

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Alchemy, one of the oldest forms of spirituality, believes gold and precious metals are alive and living within the Earth. Any normal metal had the potential to become gold with the touch of the human hand. Inspired by landscapes at a bird’s eye view and focusing on the magic in metal, my piece Gilded Meadows turns the ordinary into something shimmering and full of life.  When I started learning gold work embroidery in college, I knew this technique was special and wanted to create a piece highlighting the different techniques and effects one can get with purl wire, beads, and thread.  I combined this whit my experiments with acrylic paint skins, created when dried paint is pulled off a surface creating a skin like material.  With gold work embroidery creating the ebbs and flows of valleys and paint skins becoming crystals, this series encourages the viewer to take a moment to view each small detail and meditate on the Earth and the magical materials it creates.