Goldsmith and Metalsmith
Cathryn Jasterzbski L.L.C.
Jewelry & Fashion Design Instructor
Major:Metal; Visual Arts Education
Cathryn Jasterzbski is a goldsmith and metalsmith from the Mid-Hudson Valley region of New York. She completed a BFA in jewelry and metalsmithing and a BS in art education from the State University of New York at New Paltz in 2015. She graduated with her MFA in jewelry and metalsmithing from Rhode Island School of Design in 2019. Through jewelry, she explores her working-class upbringing as it relates to her contemporary jewelry practice. Her research is built upon theory relating to class construction, working-class identity, and repair. Cathryn’s attention to ethical metalsmithing drives her artistic practice — through her use of reclaimed metal, she welds steel in the format of jewelry and reflects on the collision of class structures present in her life. Cathryn has taught at Rhode Island School of Design, Snow Farm New England Craft Program, the 92nd Street Y. She was an artist in residence at the Baltimore Jewelry Center in 2019 and is the recipient of the Marzee Graduate Prize, Galerie Marzee - Nijmegen, Netherlands 2019 as well as the Ethical Metalsmiths Emerging Artist Award 2019.
In 2020, her work was featured in Munich Jewelry Week’s exhibition, Schmuck 2020. Presently, Cathryn is instructing a high school fashion-based program that incorporates textiles and accessories. Throughout COVID, she has been building the foundation of a jewelry curriculum for her students - ensuring they have access to diverse craft-based programs to equip them for their future in or outside of a collegiate setting. Her passion for education lies in working with youth – welcoming them into the world of making while emboldening the future of craft for the next generation.
