Rock: an installation by Amy Tavern

ROCK_AmyTavern-750

Rock: an installation by Amy Tavern

As part of the Closing Party celebration, Velvet da Vinci is pleased to introduce a new site-specific installation by Amy Tavern inside the gallery’s two-story elevator and garage. Rock presents ideas of permanence and stability and includes a 20′ sculpture alongside a series of drawings of rocks, cliffs, mountains, and faults.

June 3-June 11

Rock, 2017, Tyvek, silk suture thread, cotton darning thread, approximately 20' x 6' x 2'

Rock, 2017, Tyvek, silk suture thread, cotton darning thread, approximately 20′ x 6′ x 2′

Rock, detail, 2017, Tyvek, silk suture thread, cotton darning thread, approximately 20' x 6' x 2'

Rock, detail, 2017, Tyvek, silk suture thread, cotton darning thread, approximately 20′ x 6′ x 2′

Rock, detail, 2017, Tyvek, silk suture thread, cotton darning thread, approximately 20' x 6' x 2'

Rock, detail, 2017, Tyvek, silk suture thread, cotton darning thread, approximately 20′ x 6′ x 2′

Installation View

Installation View of drawings

Sounds Like, 2016, Tyvek, 45" x 55"

Sounds Like, 2016, Tyvek, 45″ x 55″

Rocks, Mountains, Cliffs, Faults, 2017, ink and powdered graphite on graph paper, 8" x 11" each

Rocks, Cliffs, Mountains, Faults, 2017, ink and powdered graphite on graph paper, 8″ x 11″ each

A rock drawing from the series, Rocks Mountains, Cliffs, Faults, 2017, ink and powdered graphite on graph paper, 8" x 11"

A rock drawing from the series, Rocks, Cliffs, Mountains, Faults, 2017, ink and powdered graphite on graph paper, 8″ x 11″

Rock_Side_Full-750

Rock, 2017, Tyvek, silk suture thread, cotton darning thread, approximately 20′ x 6′ x 2′

 

Velvet da Vinci is Closing

VdaVClosing copy-750

Velvet da Vinci in San Francisco is closing. After 26 years it has been a good long run! It has been a privilege to work with so many inspiring artists, first in Hayes Valley and for the last 13 years in the wonderful space on Polk Street. Heartfelt thanks to the many loyal customers, colleagues and friends who have supported the gallery for so long. To the hard working VdV team, Diane Komater, Nikki Couppee, Amy Tavern (and Sienna Freeman!) I will miss you more than I can say. The gallery will be winding down during May and June and will close by July 1. If there is a special piece that you have been thinking about… now is the time to get it!

Although the gallery will be closing, Velvet da Vinci can still be found online. You can visit the gallery archive on the website and I plan to develop the online business here at velvetdavinci.com in the future. Follow the gallery on Instagram and Facebook. There are a few projects still in the works that I would love to see through so there is a good chance that Velvet da Vinci will “pop-up” from time to time… I’m not sure what the next chapter will bring but I look forward to see what happens. Thanks for being part of the adventure.

A Velvet da Vinci Closing Party will take place on Saturday June 3, 2017 from 5-9 pm. Details to come. Hope to see you there!

xx Mike Holmes

NikkiCouppeeRing2017-750

MyungUrsoFloraBrooches-750

Myung Urso Flora Brooches

IMG_6664

LaFronteraImages-&50

Brooke Marks-Swanson

Brooke Marks-Swanson Necklace

Tom Hill installing Bird Sequence

Tom Hill installing Bird Sequence

JaneDoddPulpo-750

quasiapatheia(necklace)-750

Rodger Stevens Quasiapatheia Necklace

IMG_6643

KomaterJune2017-750

Diane Komater Tall Man wire wall sculpture

HelenaJohanssonLindellJune2017-750

StephanieDarbourne-750

Our wonderful neighbor, Stephanie, wearing a Rachel Darbourne Lovingly Murdered brooch

 

 

 

Myung Urso: Trans – Form

MyungUrsoFront

Myung Urso: Trans-Form

April 5 – May 7, 2017

Opening Reception: Friday, April 7, 6-8pm 

Thread, ink, wood, paper. Humble raw materials are venerated for their textural, structural, and visual qualities. Stitched, sculpted, stretched to join seemingly incongruous elements into inseparable jewelry forms. Myung Urso has an uncanny ability not only to interpret everyday materials in entirely fresh ways, but to elevate them in her work to stature typically reserved for precious stones and metals. Even when Urso uses sterling silver, freshwater pearls, or other more traditional jewelry matter, she gives cotton, wood, and, most recently, paper pulp, centerstage. And, in their leading roles, under Urso’s direction, these objects are radiant and mesmerizing. At the heart of Urso’s work are the exploration and transformation of commonplace materials into art objects that are ambiguous, enigmatic, and beguiling.

Myung Urso is a sculptor working in jewelry, a textile artist by training, and a keen observer of the natural world’s permutations. Seasons of the year, growth cycles, the elements of water, fire, and earth, are recurrent themes in her bodies of work. Urso revels in soft, expressive organic shapes yet her approach is quite exacting and laconic. Consequently, her necklaces, brooches, and earrings can exhibit both, a minimalist architectural austerity, and an exuberance of form and surface.

Myung Urso has used jewelry as a medium of artistic expression for the past ten years. A decade is also how long she has lived in the United States. Her work reflects the abundant cultural and artistic influences of her former life in South Korea, as well as the challenges and rewards of navigating the American cultural landscape.

For years, Hanji paper was a material Urso utilized frequently in her work. More recently, she has turned to another paper product — recycled paper egg cartons and recycled paper fruit/vegetable baskets. First spotted by Urso in farmer’s market stalls in her current hometown of Rochester, NY, these humble objects, weathered by sunlight, use, and reuse, have come to symbolize, for her, the cycle of consumption and the grower-consumer relationship, Urso says. The recycled paper pulp containers carry the product of the farmers’ labor as well as nourishment for those who consume the fruit. In Urso’s hands, pieces of these containers are transformed again, their surfaces treated with marble dust or other substances, set in sterling silver, and recreated as jewelry pieces, to be worn and translated yet again.

Whether using calligraphy in novel ways, as Urso did in her early collections, or stitching through found wood debris, as she did later, or treating common paper pulp as precious commodity, Urso’s approach makes her metamorphic jewelry exhilarating.

– Elena Rosenberg, Independent Curator 

Site, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic paint, Sterling silver, 2017

Site, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Sterling Silver, 2017

Window, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Sterling silver, 2016

Window, Brooch, Recycled Paper Egg Carton, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Sterling Silver, 2016

Oneness, Necklace, Wood, Cotton thread, Acrylic paint, 2015

Oneness, Necklace, Wood, Cotton Thread, Acrylic Paint, 2015

Poem, Neckpiece, Cotton, Asian ink, Thread, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2007

Poem, Neckpiece, Cotton, Asian Ink, Thread, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2007

Oak Tree, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Wood Dust, Acrylic Paint, Sterling silver, 2017

Oak Tree, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Wood Dust, Acrylic Paint, Sterling Silver, 2017

Aquarius, Brooch, Recycled Paper Egg Carton, Sand, Marble Dust, Asian Ink, Sterling silver, 2017

Aquarius, Brooch, Recycled Paper Egg Carton, Sand, Marble Dust, Asian Ink, Sterling Silver, 2017

Torso, Brooch, Sterling silver, Fabric, Thread, Asian ink, 2009

Torso, Brooch, Sterling Silver, Fabric, Thread, Asian Ink, Loofah, 2009

Aquarius, Necklace, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Marble Dust, Acrylic Paint, Sterling silver, 2017

Aquarius, Necklace, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Pigment, Sterling Silver, 2017

Sign of Life, Necklace, Silk, Thread, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2012

Sign of Life, Necklace, Silk, Thread, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2012

Brood, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Egg Carton, Sand, Pigment, Sterling silver, 2017

Brood, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Egg Carton, Sand, Pigment, Acrylic Paint, Sterling Silver, 2017

Golden Silk, Neckpiece, Cotton, Thread, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2010

Golden Crest, Neckpiece, Cotton, Silk, Thread, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2010

Ancient, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Egg Carton, Marble Dust, Hair, Sterling silver, 2017

Ancient, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Egg Carton, Marble Dust, Hair, Sterling Silver, 2017

Modesty, Neckpiece, Silk, Thread, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2008

Modesty, Neckpiece, Silk, Thread, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2008

Infinity, Neckpiece, Antique Korean Book, Hanji, 23K Gold Leaf, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2011

Infinity, Neckpiece, Antique Korean Book, Hanji, 23K Gold Leaf, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2011

Presence, Brooch, Recycled Paper Egg Carton, Sand, Marble Dust, Asian Ink, Sterling silver, 2017

Presence, Brooch, Recycled Paper Egg Carton, Sand, Marble Dust, Asian Ink, Sterling Silver, 2017

Site, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Sterling silver, 2016

Site, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Sterling Silver, 2016

Scene, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Asian Ink, Sterling silver, 2017

Scene, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Asian ink, Sterling Silver, 2017

Flora, 2016,

Flora, Brooch, Sterling Silver, Sand, Acrylic Paint, 2016

Shrine, Necklace, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Pigment, Acrylic Paint, Silk Cord, 2017

Shrine, Necklace, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Pigment, Acrylic Paint, Silk Cord, 2017

Blue Combination, Necklace, Silk, Silicone bands, Hanji, Asian ink, Thread, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2014

Blue Combination, Necklace, Silk, Silicone Bands, Hanji, Asian Ink, Thread, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2014

Site, Brooch, Recycled Paper Egg Carton, Sand, Marble Dust, Asian ink, Hair, Sterling silver, 2017

Site, Brooch, Recycled Paper Egg Carton, Sand, Marble Dust, Asian Ink, Hair, Sterling Silver, 2017

Site, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Pigment, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2016

Site, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Pigment, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2016

In the Cloud, Brooch, Silk Organza, Thread, Found object, Sterling silver, Lacquer, 2013

In the Cloud, Brooch, Silk Organza, Thread, Found Object, Sterling Silver, Lacquer, 2013

Aquarius, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Asian Ink, Acrylic Paint, Sterling silver, 2017

Aquarius, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Asian Ink, Acrylic Paint, Sterling Silver, 2017

Rampart, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Asian ink, Sterling silver, 2017

Rampart, Brooch, Recycled Paper Pulp Basket, Sand, Acrylic Paint, Asian Ink, Sterling Silver, 2017

 

Suzanne Pugh: Post Pastoralia

Suzanne Pugh: Post Pastoralia 

February 24-March 12, 2017

Artist’s Reception: Friday, February 24, 6-8 pm

Artist Statement:

What do we lose when we lose language? If we lose our ability to communicate – in speaking, in writing, with language – how would we share our knowledge? What does the word ‘language’ encompass?

On a recent trip to Iceland, I found that almost everyone spoke impeccable English. There was no expectation that I would attempt to speak Icelandic and have to struggle with words, limiting my ability to ask even a simple question. In central cities all over the world, English is becoming a common language, for natives and visitors alike. What happens to a culture and a history when language dissolves?

Now, can we extend the word ‘language’ to encompass skill? The knowledge of our hands is similar to a language, passed down through necessity, experience, and exchange. I want you to see, as I do, the lateral relationship between language and skill, the parallel consequences of losing language and losing skill.

My pieces are form and material, but they are silent. The work is about forgotten language. It is about knowledge lost and found again, too late.

For more reading about the relationship between language and culture, this is a good place to start:

“Language and Culture” by Dr. Tengku Sepora Tengku Mahadi, and Sepideh Moghaddas Jafari, International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Vol. 2 No. 17, September 2012

About the Artist:

Suzanne Pugh uses traditional metalsmithing techniques to explore personal and social narratives. She maintains an active studio practice in Oakland, California, and is associate professor and head of the metal arts program at City College of San Francisco. She exhibits nationally and internationally, and her work is included in many publications. Suzanne received her BFA from The University of Georgia, and an MFA from Kansas State University.

Deadly Forearms, detail, 2016, copper

Deadly Forearms, detail, 2016, copper

Installation view

Installation view

Bounty, 2016, copper, rope

Bounty, 2016, copper, rope

Bounty, detail, 2016, copper, rope

Bounty, detail, 2016, copper, rope

Bushel, 2016, steel

Bushel, 2016, steel

Bushel, 2016, steel

Bushel, 2016, steel

It’s Too Far to Tell, 2016, copper

It’s Too Far to Tell, 2016, copper

That’s Just an Estimate, 2016, rope, wood

That’s Just an Estimate, 2016, rope, wood

Deadly Forearms, detail, 2016, copper

Deadly Forearms, detail, 2016, copper

pastoralia group 2-750

It’s Too Far to Tell, 2016, copper

 

Pierce Healy: Contemporary Jewellery Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me? The Musical!

Pierce Healy: Contemporary Jewellery Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me? The Musical!

February 24-March 26, 2017

Artist’s Reception: Friday, February 24, 6-8 pm

Score

Artist Statement

Adornment and jewellery hail from pre-civilisation, as does humour. Hence the pairing of humour with the most intimate applied art form of jewellery is an obvious match. These days Pierce Healy can be found solving his world’s problems creating subversive objects and jewellery often layered with intricate engravings. He refers to himself as a human Swiss army knife; not in an Edward Scissorshands way but in the way he toils in an array of materials and disciplines in addition to the numerous skills he has acquired throughout his life so far.

Within his practice there is no “master plan” each piece is an experiment a study that informs the next piece. He is fascinated by the capacity of jewellery to develop into our most personal of vessels for our story’s and storytelling in addition he is interested in the idea that jewellery is our second skin and when worn becomes something bigger, something other worldly as it takes on the scratches, dings and stories of the wearers adventures. Healy combines his craze for the everyday, drawing, storytelling, mark making and hand engraving to create truly hand-made raw jewellery.

Healy is particularly interested in and the space between the artist and the non-artist and the role of humour in jewellery and how the harnessing of humour in his work can be use as stealth communication device in particular to invite everybody into the conversation.

rings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

rings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

do you realize how beautiful you are?, pendant, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, 2017

do you realize how beautiful you are?, pendant, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, 2017

rings and bracelet, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

rings and bracelet, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

the Stone Age contemporary jeweller asks his father and mother; are you dying for me to wear you?, pendant, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, 2017

the Stone Age contemporary jeweller asks his father and mother;
are you dying for me to wear you?, pendant, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, 2017

when a contemporary jeweller falls in a forest, who cares!, pendant, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather

when a contemporary jeweller falls in a forest, who cares!, pendant, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather

talismamulets (#1-5), pendants, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, 2017

talismamulets (#1-5), pendants, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, 2017

stable meal, hand engraved pewter and modified found metal and wood objects, 2017

stable meal, hand engraved pewter and modified found metal and wood objects, 2017

volcanic love #1-2, spinning rings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

volcanic love #1-2, spinning rings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

crustacean’s #4, earrings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

crustacean’s #4, earrings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, 2017

collection of earrings, pendants, and rings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, found objects, 2017

collection of earrings, pendants, and rings, hand engraved oxidized sterling silver, leather, found objects, 2017

Shared Concerns

SharedConcerns_MetalsmithAd_UP-768x875_DATES

Shared Concerns:  Melissa Cameron, Aran Galligan, Dan DiCaprio, Kaori Juzu, Jill Hermans, Caitie Sellers, Lynn Batchelder, and Vincent Pontillo-Verrastro

July 1-31, 2016

Artists’ Reception: Friday, July 1, 6-8pm

An exhibition documenting the meeting of eight international artists, brought together to work in the Penland studios in the mountains of North Carolina.  As a group, the artists were asked to share a word that encapsulated the main concern of their practice. Words were then swapped at random so that each person received a different word, and used it as a part of the inspiration for their new work, by interpreting the ‘concern’ of another group member.

The pieces begun during their Winter Residency at Penland and were finished in studios across the United States as well as in Australia and Denmark, where this diverse group of jewelry artists call home. Shared Concerns is curated by Melissa Cameron and Aran Galligan.

Vincent Pontillo-Verrastro, Tunne Brooch (Analogous/Control), PLA, decal, rare earth magnets, 2.5 x 2 x 2 in.

Vincent Pontillo-Verrastro, Tunne Brooch (Analogous/Control), 2016, PLA, decal, rare earth magnets, 2.5 x 2 x 2 in.

Caitie Sellers, Renovation # 2 Bracelet (Sprawl/Time), Argentium silver, copper mesh, 4.5 x 3 x 1.75 in.

Caitie Sellers, Renovation # 2 Bracelet (Sprawl/Time), 2016, Argentium silver, copper mesh,       4.5 x 3 x 1.75 in.

Kaori Juzu, In Between #5 Brooch (Inspiration/Sexual), Steel, silk, plastic, magnet, 5 x 4 x .75 in.

Kaori Juzu, In Between #5 Brooch (Inspiration/Sexual), 2016, Steel, silk, plastic, magnet,               5 x 4 x .75 in.

Lynn Batchelder, Stack Necklace (Control/Analogous), Steel, 2.5 x 2.5 x .25 in.

Lynn Batchelder, Stack Necklace (Control/Analogous), 2016, Steel, 2.5 x 2.5 x .25 in.

Melissa Cameron, Mirror Brooch (Body/Politic), Serving dish (chrome plated mild steel) titanium, stainless steel, 9.5 x 10 x 1 in.

Melissa Cameron, Mirror Brooch (Body/Politic), 2016, Serving dish (chrome plated mild steel), titanium, stainless steel, 9.5 x 10 x 1 in.

Jill Hermans, Sprawl #3 Brooch (Fuse/Sprawl), Shibuichi, 5 x 5 x .75 in.

Jill Hermans, Sprawl #3 Brooch (Fuse/Sprawl), 2016, Shibuichi, 5 x 5 x .75 in.

Aran Galligan, Connected #2 Brooch, (Time/Connection), Sterling silver, copper, steel, 3 x 5/8 x 1 1/4 in.

Aran Galligan, Connected #2 Brooch, (Time/Connection), 2016, Sterling silver, copper, steel,        3 x 5/8 x 1 1/4 in.

Daniel DiCaprio, Barm Brooch (Sexual/Inspiration), Ebony, 22k, 14k, 3 x 1.75 x 1.25 in.

Daniel DiCaprio, Barm Brooch (Sexual/Inspiration), 2016, Ebony, 22k, 14k, 3 x 1.75 x 1.25 in.

Shared Concerns artists Clockwise from back: Dan DiCaprio, Lynn Batchelder, Caitie Sellers, Melissa Cameron, Aran Galligan, Vincent Pontillo-Verrastro, Kaori Juzu, and Jill Hermans

Shared Concerns artists Clockwise from back: Dan DiCaprio, Lynn Batchelder,                               Caitie Sellers, Melissa Cameron, Aran Galligan, Vincent Pontillo-Verrastro, Kaori Juzu, and         Jill Hermans

 

 

Holiday Celebration 2016

vdv_card_xmas2016-600-cropped

Holidays at Velvet da Vinci
The 26th Annual Holiday Celebration December 1-31

Holiday Reception Sunday December 4, 11-5

Special Holiday gifts by gallery artists.

Holiday Hours: Monday-Saturday 11-6, Sunday 11-5

415-441-0109

vdv_card_xmas2016_back-750

Brooch detail, Nikki Couppee

Joanna Gollberg

Joanna Gollberg

Kat Cole

Kat Cole

April Higashi

April Higashi

David Huang

David Huang

Kath Inglis

Kath Inglis

Susanne Matsche

Susanne Matsche

Mike & Maaike

Mike & Maaike

Jo Pond

Jo Pond

Florian Ladstaetter

Florian Ladstaetter

Mark Hartung

Mark Hartung

Niki Ulehala

Niki Ulehla

Brooke Marks-Swanson

Brooke Marks-Swanson

Junko Mori

Junko Mori

Timothy Carson

Timothy Carson

Garry Knox Bennett

Garry Knox Bennett

Gateway Drugs Pop-Up Jewelry Event

Two Days Only!

Saturday November 19, 11-6 and Sunday November 20, 11-4

Opening Reception Saturday November 19, 6-8pm

Gateway Drugs Pop-Up Jewelry Event highlights jewelry from 25 international artists and creates a multi-faceted opportunity to introduce a new selection of artist-made, contemporary jewelry. Organized by Mariah Tuttle.

Participating artists: Farrah Al-Dujaili (United Kingdom), Lynn Batchelder (USA), LizClark (USA), Nikki Couppee (USA), Anna Davern (Australia), Linnea Erikson (Sweden), Kiko Gianocca (Switzerland), Adam Grinovich (Sweden/USA), Nils Hint (Estonia), Christine Jalio (Finland), Sooyeon Kim (Korea), Yong Joo Kim (Korea), Panjapol Kulpapangkorn (Thailand), Zachery Lechtenberg (USA), Heng Lee (Taiwan), Helmi Lindblom (Finland), Helena Johansson Lindell (Sweden), Tara Locklear (USA), Seth Papac (USA), Carina Shoshtary (Germany), Demitra Thomloudis (USA), Lauren Tickle (USA), Nelly Van Oost (France/Belgium), Sarah West (USA), and Mallory Weston (USA).