It’s becoming more and more common to find artists who are
in the Second Act of their careers.
American Craft Week even sponsored a
contest and has an online gallery of artists whose craft career is their second
act. But usually when this happens, they have left or retired from their first
career. Not so with
Arden Bardol.
An architect with a degree from
Carnegie
Mellon University,
Arden is still active in the
architectural world, but about a dozen years ago she decided to branch out.
For
Arden,
architecture is art on a large scale. But her love of color led her to use
those same mathematical and design skills to create colorful art on a small
scale. Using polymer clay and metals,
Arden
sculpts jewelry that is inspired both by nature and the industrial world. Much
of her inspiration comes from the kaleidoscopic colors in the paintings of Gustav
Klimpt and the simple shapes of the mobiles of Alexander Calder. As you look
carefully at the skillfully designed jewelry of Arden Bardol, you will see the
repetition of simple shapes enhanced with a wonderfully complex array of color
and layers.
Arden uses only the primary
colors of polymer to mix all the colors you see in her jewelry. Each piece is
either an original or one of a very limited edition.
Not content with a two act career,
Arden
has recently embarked on a journey to learn metalworking skills. She has taken
blacksmithing classes and welding classes and has built a forge at her studio
so she can construct large scale sculptures. She recently was awarded an NEA
Artist Fellowship representing the state of Delaware. Her most recent work is
evidence of these new skills as she incorporates the carefully worked metal
into the graceful forms and geometric shapes that make her jewelry intricately
feminine yet playful. As
Arden
continues to study and learn new skills and techniques, one can only wonder if
there will be a fourth act to her career.
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| Pin / Pendant & Earrings |
Smith Galleries is located in the Village at Wexford, Suite J11 (UPSTAIRS), on Hilton Head Island. Gallery hours are 10 - 6 Monday through Saturday. 843-842-2280
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