Barbara S Fernald Jewelry

Barbara S. Fernald

P.O. Box 57

Islesford, Maine 04646

Telephone: 207 244-5283

E-Mail: fernald244@gmail.com

Artist’s Statement and Background:

I live on a very small island where the main industry is lobster fishing. I make jewelry because it is the most fun way to provide a job for myself. I love working with my hands and having a wearable outlet for my art. Beads are a large component of my work, and I use handmade beads whenever I can. Much of my recent work is with silver in a form known as Precious Metal Clay (PMC). This is a moldable silver developed by Mitsubishi Materials, in Japan, in 1994. Microscopic particles of pure silver are suspended in a pliable organic binder. When fired in a kiln at high temperatures (900 degrees C), the binder burns out leaving only precious metal. With PMC I am able to create my own unique beads from silver without any tedious soldering. My goal is to keep expanding my knowledge of PMC to make beads that would be either too time consuming or impossible to fabricate from silver sheet.
I often notice the lines and angles in my surroundings before I see the color. Shadows and edges are eye-catching to me. The pattern made by an incidental placement of tools can inspire my next piece of work. My designs are influenced by this random simplicity, beaches near my home, my sense humor, and the latest techniques I have learned.

Jewelry education:

1965 to 1970 – Ruining more than one pair of my mother’s good eyebrow tweezers to make necklaces of beaded wire links, mussel shells and macramé. Rochester, New York.
1975 – Silver class, Earl Pardon, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York.
1979 to 1981 – Bench worker for Caswell Samuel, Islesford, Maine.
1982 – Silver granulation and reticulation course, John Cogswell, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts,Deer Isle, Maine.
1983 to 2005 – Self taught, Islesford.
1985 – Silver Wire workshop, Mary Lee Hu, Haystack.
1986 – Silver Casting class, J. Fred Woell, Deer Isle, Maine.
1988 – Forging workshop, Ronald Pearson, Haystack.
1989 – Stamping, Chasing, Tool Making, Tim McCreight, Haystack
1993 – Polymer Clay workshop, Steven Ford and David Forlano, Haystack.
1998 – Precious Metal Clay class, J. Fred Woell, Deer Isle.
2003 – Precious Metal Clay, Teacher Certification class, J. Fred Woell, Deer Isle.
2004 – Keum-boo workshop, Jayne Redman, Haystack.
2005 – Precious Metal Clay bead workshop, J. Fred Woell, Deer Isle.

Work on display and for sale at:

Archipelago Gallery, Rockland, Maine.
Alone Moose Gallery, Bar Harbor, Maine.
Winters Work, Islesford, Maine.
Whale’s Rib, Great Cranberry Island, Maine.

Publications:

PMC Guild Annual #3 Exceptional Work in Metal Clay: 2009

The Working Waterfront  ”Cranberry Report”   (monthly newspaper column)

Memberships:

Maine Crafts Association
Precious Metal Clay Guild

Awards:

Saul Bell Design Award 2006. Second place winner PMC category.

Saul Bell Design Award 2009. Finalist PMC category.

Shows:

15 Maine Jewelers at Shaw Gallery, Northeast Harbor, ME. 2006.

Maine Public Broadcast Network, 2009 Annual T.V. Auction, Juried Art Show