Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, only transferred or changed from one form to another. This is the Law of Conservation of Energy and one principle of ecological systems. This concept, however, makes me question the notions of building and destruction. Destruction is an inevitable, natural fate and I often feel that the items that I create must show some processes of deterioration. I attempt to find a balance between growth and decay. When I began metalsmithing this fall, I applied this idea to jewelry. My first project with metal see’s hand-made pieces take the form of unearthed hardware. Hammered brass cuffs are burned and tarnished with oil, while cuff rings are burned and oxidized with iron. Grotesque wire rings of nickel-silver and brass are delicately assembled with individual silver solder, burned, and oxidized with iron and acid.
