BmoreArt’s Picks: November 29 – December 5

Baltimore Jewelry Center Holiday Sale + Signs, Signals, + Symbols | Opening Reception
Friday, December 2 • 5-8pm | Ongoing through December 4
@ Baltimore Jewelry Center

Join us for this year’s Holiday Sale taking place Friday, December 2nd through Sunday, December 4th. The sale will continue online through December 16th. The BJC hosts a limited number of sales each year that provide opportunities for jewelry artists working in the studio to sell their work and patrons a chance to buy handmade jewelry while directly engaging with makers. Artists in the sale consist of instructors who teach at the BJC, working artists who utilize the BJC’s studio, students of the BJC’s educational programs, and other local jewelry artists. This is a juried sale and each artist will present a unique line of work. Included jewelry pieces are made of sterling silver, steel, brass, copper, gemstones, and alternative materials. Entry to the sale is free and open to the public.

The Baltimore Jewelry Center will host Signs, Signals, + Symbols, an exhibition which examines jewelry as a nuanced, visual communication device. Jewelry might play an overt role for its wearer as a signal, as in the case of political buttons, or act as a coded symbol of inclusivity, exclusivity, or social status. The pieces featured this group exhibition reference, among other things, political movements, gender and sexual identity, as well as cultural communication and practices. Signs, Signals, + Symbols will be on view in the BJC’s gallery in Baltimore’s Station North Arts District (10 E. North Ave.) from Friday, December 2nd until Friday, February 10th with an opening reception on the 2nd from 5 to 8pm. The exhibition is free and open to the public.

Every fall the Baltimore Jewelry Center hosts a symposium, featuring free workshops, demonstrations, and a speaker series, all related to a designated theme. This year’s focus was Signs, Signals, + Symbols, or how jewelry has been, and continues to be, utilized as a visual marker; indicating a wearer’s preferences, characteristics, attitudes, and beliefs. The same theme is also reflected in the annual community challenge exhibition, a charge proposed to the BJC maker community to create new work that speaks to the aforementioned theme. For Signs, Signals, + Symbols, artists were charged with creating jewelry and wearables that implicitly or explicitly act as signifiers, symbols, or classifications.

The artists participating in Signs, Signals, + Symbols include: April Wood, Aurea Sellmeyer, Beichen Guan, Cécile Maes, Chu Winnie Cheung, Daphne Ling, Eugene Ruhl, Eva Fernandez, Ho Oi Ying Valerie, Ildikó Dánfalvi, J Diamond, Korey E. Burns, Laila Marie Costa, Maria Konschake, Mercede Sheybani, Mercury Swift, Nadia Hewchuck, Navah Langmeyer, Shannon Kurzyniec, Xinyi Chen, and Zhipeng Wang.

In addition to Signs, Signals, +Symbols the BJC will host a holiday sale, taking place in person Friday, December 2nd through Sunday, December 4th. The sale will continue online through December 16th. The BJC hosts a limited number of sales each year that provide opportunities for jewelry artists working in the studio to sell their work and patrons a chance to buy handmade jewelry while directly engaging with makers. Artists in the sale consist of instructors who teach at the BJC, working artists who utilize the BJC’s studio, students of the BJC’s educational programs, and other local jewelry artists. This is a juried sale and each artist will present a unique line of work. Included jewelry pieces are made of sterling silver, steel, brass, copper, gemstones, and alternative materials. The sale will take place at the BJC studio from 5-8pm on Friday, December 2nd and from 12-7pm on both Saturday, December 3rd and Sunday, December 4th. Entry to the sale is free and open to the public.