North Carolina designer and sculptor Ellie Richards explores the intersection of work and play in her eclectic creations. The artist: Born in Greenbelt, MD, Richards grew up outside of Erie, PA in the small lakeside town of Girard. She received a BFA from University of Dayton (Ohio) in studio art and art education and an…
Using local woods, North Carolina’s Steve Miller carves, burns and carefully applies layers of nuanced colors to create his highly textured hollow vessels and sculptures. The artist: Born in Miami, Miller graduated from Florida International University and served 33 years with the Miami-Dade Police Department before retiring in 2007. In the beginning: Miller started woodturning…
Georgia’s Ashley Buchanan draws on historical images when designing her contemporary, powder-coated brass jewelry. The artist: An Atlanta native, Buchanan, graduated from the University of Georgia in 2009 with a BFA in jewelry and metalsmithing. For seven years she lived in Tennessee, where she started her business, before moving back to Georgia. The company: Ashley Buchanan…
Tennessee’s Hope Bailey uses Mishima, a Korean design technique, to etch images on her often playful, but always unique, ceramic pieces. The artist: Born in Wilmington, DE, she grew up in nearby Hockessin, surrounded by pastures, streams and woods. After Bailey graduated from University of Colorado at Boulder, she moved around, living in NYC and…
For more than 30 years, Georgia’s Kipley A. Meyer has worked in wood. Originally, the self-taught artist made furniture. But 10 years ago, Meyer turned to wood wall sculpture in a style he calls organic contemporary. The artist: Meyer grew up in Decatur, GA, and attended DeKalb Community College. He first studied music, then business.…
In her sculptural jewelry, North Carolina metalsmith Anna Johnson balances raw and refined, edgy and elegant. The artist: Born in Charlotte, NC, Johnson grew up interested in nature and jewelry making. She graduated with a degree in studio art with a focus on metalsmithing from Appalachian State University. She lives and works in Asheville. The…
Sean Donlon glittering art looks familiar. Yet there is something odd — or — off about it. And that’s fine with the Virginia glass blower, who uses flame working to make his modern and misshapen teapot creations. The artist: Born in Springfield, VA, Donlon grew up with a mother who was a fiber artist and…
A lifelong interest in the natural world’s colors, forms and textures influences Kate Rothra Fleming’s glass jewelry designs. Background: Grew up in Miami, and as a child traveled around to remote areas of wild Florida with her father and mother, a nature writer. Fleming earned degrees from University of Florida and Rochester Institute of Technology.…