Special Projects & Exhibitions
Plan B Project
The Plan B Jewelry/Metal Artist Project is a grassroots fundraising initiative for Planned Parenthood, organized by Shauna Burke. Each artist was given an Amphora bottle - historically used to contain herbs, medicine, perfume, etc - to alter, decorate or re-imagine while considering the threat women & persons capable of getting pregnant are under in a country where access to abortion and lifesaving healthcare is under attack.
Information about the piece I created for this exhibition can be seen below.
Traditional 21st Century Abortion Chatelaine, USA, 2022
AMEND Exhibition
AMEND was an online exhibition organized to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the adoption of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution, aka Women’s Suffrage. The goal of the exhibition was to promote and support initiatives that combat voter suppression and seek to expand voting rights while recognizing the work of the suffragettes. “To amend is to make minor changes in (a text) in order to make it fairer, more accurate, or more up-to-date. To amend is to modify (formally), to make better, to improve. To amend, is to put right.” Each artist was invited to design and create a piece of jewelry that used the “I Voted” sticker as a jumping off point. Proceeds from the exhibition were donated to Common Cause, Brennan Center for Justice and Fair Fight.
Information about the piece I created for this exhibition can be seen below.
…so strong was [she], with a woman’s strength, 2020
“To me, voting is freedom to choose. The freedom to make decisions about one’s own body is fundamental in a free society. This pin, made in the style of campaign buttons and voting stickers, represents women’s oppression being transformed into women’s liberation. By turning the Scarlet Letter “A” upside down to create a “V”, I’m rejecting a symbol once used to subjugate women and offering it up as a badge of honor to be worn when one exercises their right to vote - their right to choose.”
The Ladies Earrings
I made the first version of The Ladies Earrings in 2007 after looking through an old figure drawing book that my grandfather had given me. In the chapter entitled “Cashing In” there is a cartoon of a man drawing a portrait of a nude model. As a young woman I was struck by the blatant sexism and disregard for what a real female form often looks like. The issues of (mis)perception and body image were important to me then and feel very relevant to me now. There is a lot here but my intention with these earrings is to make something that is inclusive and about women supporting women.
All profits from were split evenly and donated to Planned Parenthood and the ACLU. I chose these organizations because this past week the state of Georgia passed an extremely aggressive and unconstitutional bill that restricts women’s access to safe and legal abortions. As a woman who has been to Planned Parenthood many times for many reasons throughout my life and as a woman who has had to face difficult realities and make very personal decisions about my own body, I am truly devastated by this and heartbroken for all the women whom this bill will affect.