The Primordial Imagination

Fresh Metals

 

 

Five brooches by David Urso, who graduated from SUNY New Paltz in 1980, are the unifying force in "The Primordial Imagination." Each of these gestural, irregularly shaped pins was created by embedding herbs, spices, and other foodstuffs like cornmeal into hand-tinted resin on a base of metal. Urso's highly sophisticated handcrafted jewelry is a visual feast of color, form, and surface characterized by sensual organic shapes and a painterly use of materials. The resulting works are vibrant, earthy, and beautifully textured.

 

 

David Urso, Spiral Pin, 2005, gift of the artist, 2005.040.001

 

  

David Urso, O and X Pins, 2005, gift of the artist, 2005.040.005 & .003

 

 

  
David Urso, Hairlot and Sunburst Pins, 2005, gift of the artist, 2005.040.001 & .004

 

 

The following three pieces by Sayumi Yokouchi, Jamie Bennett, and Michael Owen O'Neill are some of my favorites in the exhibition. Their abstract, playful, and energetic shapes, lines, and colors remind me of the earnestly sincere imagination of childhood. They put me in touch with the kind of optimism, much needed in these times, that I suspect comes from a deep, primordial place in all of us. 

 

 

Michael Owen O’Neill, Fish Hatchery–San Marcos, 2014, gift of the artist, 2014.049

 

Japanese artist and educator Sayumi Yokouchi, who graduated from SUNY New Paltz in 1999, explores daily experiences and imaginations as a maker. Her work has been exhibited in museums and galleries in the US, Asia and Europe, and her unique interdisciplinary workshops offer both technical and conceptual approaches in the field of art, design and contemporary jewelry to engage individual voices and the meaning of handmade.

Sayumi Yokouchi, Brooch, 2000, gift of Velvet da Vinci Gallery, San Francisco, California, 2005.054

 

Jamie Bennett is Professor Emeritus of the SUNY New Paltz Metal Program, which he directed from 1986 to 2014.One of the pre-eminent enamellists in the world, Bennett’s work is known for its innovative use of color, matte surfaces, and deep engagement of material and process. His participation in many pioneering exhibitions such as American Masters at the Victoria and Albert Museum; Jewellery Moves at the National Museum of Scotland; New Times, New Thinking Jewellery in Europe and America at the National Museum of Wales underscore his influence and impact in contemporary jewelry.

 


Jaime Bennett, Red Site #6 (Brooch), 1982, gift of the artist, 2005.048

 

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