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 "Woven Wedding Set" Eileen Gerstein Ring,
"Woven Wedding Set" Eileen Gerstein Ring
 
 "365 Days: A Journal" Mary Donald Rings,
"365 Days: A Journal" Mary Donald Rings
 
 "Lighers" Mikiko Minewaki Rings,
"Lighers" Mikiko Minewaki Rings
 
 "Trophy Ring V" Judy Wenig-Horswell,
"Trophy Ring V" Judy Wenig-Horswell
 
 "Finger Loope" Andy Cooperman Ring,
"Finger Loope" Andy Cooperman Ring
 
 "Spoon Rings" Erin Gray,
"Spoon Rings" Erin Gray
 
 "Hunting Field" Kadri Mälk Ring,
"Hunting Field" Kadri Mälk Ring
 
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200 RINGS

November 12 - December 31, 2004

Rings from 200 International Artists
200 Rings is the inagural exhibition for Velvet da Vinci's new gallery space at 2015 Polk Street (between Pacific and Broadway) in San Francisco.

Based on the book 1000 Rings, curated by Bob Ebendorf and Marthe Le Van, published by Lark Books, Velvet da Vinci has organized a touring exhibition based on the inspiring and creative work shown in the book. The book is a top-notch survey of contemporary jewelry.

Using the book as a starting point, Robert Ebendorf of East Carolina University of Art in Greenville, N.C and Mike Holmes and Elizabeth Shypertt of Velvet da Vinci have curated an exhibition with 100 artists from the U.S. and 100 international artists, all making rings. The artists have used a wide variety of techniques and materials, some traditional, some not.

The exhibition will be the inaugural show for Velvet da Vinci’s new gallery space on Russian Hill in San Francisco from November 12 to December 31, 2004. It will then travel to:

• Obsidian Gallery in Tucson, Arizona, February 1 -March 31, 2005
• Gallery M, Cleveland, Ohio, June 1 - July 17, 2005 (during the 2005 SNAG Conference)
• Shaw Gallery in Northeast Harbor, Maine, August 1 - September 30, 2005
• Facere Gallery, Seattle, Washington, Feb 1 – 20, 2006


A special thanks goes out to Lynn Jones Ennis, Ph.D., Curator of the Collection, Gallery of Art & Design, North Carolina State University for making this exhibition happen here at Velvet da Vinci.

Also, special thanks to Robert Ebendorf and Marthe Le Van of Lark Books for their hard work.

The following is an essay about rings written by Robert Ebendorf:
The ring is universal. Many human interests feature at least one. In chemistry, there is the benzene ring; in anatomy, the inguinal ring; and, in astronomy one can find an assortment of rings, including the Ring Nebula and Jupiter’s rings. You can calculate a tree’s age by counting its rings, and you may even hear stories about crop rings that mysteriously appear in farmers’ fields. In sports, the ring is the venue for boxing matches, and in gymnastics, rings is an actual event. History has its various rings as well, like the Whiskey Ring, a Nineteenth-Century cartel of U.S. distillers. In the arts there is Wagner’s Ring and Ring Lardner. Even children’s games have rings, such as ring around the roses. Cigar bands are ring shaped and their smokers’ blow smoke rings.

But the subject here is jewelry.

The ring is the most widespread ornamental accessory, and its value does not always have a direct correlation to the materials that comprise it. A ring can be formed from valuable materials -- gold, platinum, diamonds, gemstones -- or it can be a humble string tied around a finger. A ring can be woven, kiln-fired, carved, poured, forged, whittled, extruded, or sculpted. It can be made of metal, glass, bone, plastic, or, once more, smoke. Beauty is always in the eyes of the beholder.

Whether a simple circle or a fancy frill, the ring has many associations: To the wearer and the observer alike, the ring symbolically can represent a variety of states of being: love and marriage, authority and station, accomplishment, fraternal bonds, or even moods. A ring also can be pure adornment. Fun. Vanity. As a result, the ring can communicate powerfully. It can evoke a memory, transmit a message, signal a rite of passage, symbolize social, political or religious affiliation, advertise status, and express personal style.

Pictures of the show and new gallery


Participating artists:
Abrasha • Pia Aleborg • Tomomi Arata • Shana Astrachan • Hratch Babikian • Anne Baezner • Kathleen Bailey • Boris Bally • Michael Bar-on • Ela Bauer • Melanie Bilenker • Sonja Bischur • Kristine Bolhuis • Elizabeth Bone • Elisa bongfeldt • Nancy Bonnema • Thierry Bontridder • Deborah Boskin • Janet Bowden • Andrea Brachthauser • Petra Brenner • Jana Brevick • Reina Brill • Kathleen Browne • Raissa Bump • Klaus Burgel • Kathy Buszkiewicz • Sofia Calderwood • Michael Carberry • Bridget Catchpole • Pierre Cavalan • Yuyen Chang • Ellen Cheek • Sarah Cilia • Adam Clark • Bruce Clark • Jude Clarke • Kirsten Clausager • Barbara Cohen • Patty Cokus • Lisa Colby • Robert Coogan • Andy Cooperman • Jim Cotter • Sarah Crawford • Johanna Dahm • Peter Deckers • Rian de Jong • Janice Derrick • Josee Desjardins • Christine Dhein • Mary Donald • Nick Dong • Sue Ann Dorman • Robert Ebendorf • Sandra Enterline • Tom Ferrero • Peg Fetter• Lisa Fidler • Arline Fisch • Jantje Fleischhut • Ida Forss • Karl Fritsch • Emi Fujita • Eileen Gerstein • Angela Gleason • Wesley Glebe • Robly Glover • Andrew Goss • Erin Gray • Ruthann Grazier • Katy Hackney • Belinda Hager • Asa Halldin • Castello Hansen • Pavel Herynek • Tom Hill • Dorothy Hogg • Peter Hoogeboom • Kath Inglis • Mari Ishikawa • Kristina Kada • Kimiaki Kageyama • Dahlia Kanner • Jiro Kamata • Jennifer Kellogg • Kimberly Keyworth • Beate Klockmann • Daphne Krinos • Yvonne Kurz • Florian Ladstaetter • Laura Lapachin • David Laplantz • Shava Lawson • Timothy Lazure • Dongchun Lee • Ju-Hyun Lee • Margrit Linder-Hintermeister • Terri Logan • Robert Longyear • Deborah Lozier • Kenneth Macbain • Fritz Maierhofer • Kadri Maelk • Thomas Mann • Hanne Eriksen Mapp • Owen Mapp • Robin Martin-Cust • Sharon Massey • Susan May • Edward McCartney • Karen McCreary • Bruce Metcalf • Christina Miller • Mikiko Minewaki • Noon Mitchelhill • Taweesak Molsawat • Susan Myers • Ben Neubauer • Mark Nuell • Miwha Oh • Harold O'Connor • Gina Pankowski • Tod Pardon • Inni Parnanen • Jennifer Parnell • J.E. Paterak • Jason Penn • Rudht Peters • Maria Phillips • Alexandra de Sherpa Pimentel • Anya Pinchuk • G. Phil Poirier • Katja Prins • Ramon Puig Cuyas • Robin Quigley • Todd Reed • Dianne Reilly • Alan Revere • Kaz Robertson • Tracy Rose • Kayo Saito • Yuka Saito • Vanessa Samuels • Anneke Schat • Rebecca Scheer • Marjorie Schick • Claude Schmitz • Anja Schonmeyer • Biba Schutz • Melanie Seiler • Sondra Sherman • Kristin Shiga • Helen Shirk • Kiff Slemmons • Etsuko Sonobe • Silke Spitzer • Tracy Steepy • Janet Teoh • Linda Threadgill • Erik Tidang • Cynthia Toops • Lou Ann Townsend and Mary V. Filapek • Erin Tracy • Julia Turner • Christel Van der Laan • Felieke van der Leest • Wim van Doorschodt • Serena van Rensselaer • Manuel Vilhena • Fernando Delaye Villalever • Luzia Vogt • Carol Webb • Karol Weisslechner • Judy Wenig-Horswell • Heather White • Brad Winter • Andrea Wippermann • Yuko Yagisawa • Mizuko Yamada • Christoph Zellweger • Alberto Zorzi

 
 
 
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