River Market ArtSpace

Kathleen Bearden

I have a degree in Art Education, but am self-taught in jewelry and metal-smithing. My studio is near my house on a mountainside in northwest Arkansas, where I work alone to create jewelry that my customers find to be “interesting,” “fun,” “organic,” and “so original and different.” I love all of that, but I feel that I have truly succeeded when they come back for more because it is comfortable and functional as well.

The metal-working processes that fascinate me the most are fold-forming and forging, which involve using heat and hammering to change the shape of the metal. I also employ all of the traditional fabrication techniques when constructing the boxes, and the more narrative work involving bezel-set gemstone beads.

Awards:

2005 Best of Show – Fayetteville Fine Arts Festival, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Merit award – Quincy Fine Arts Festival, Quincy, Illinois

2004 Award of Merit – Smoky Hill River Festival, Salinas, Kansas
Excellence in Jewelry Award; Two Rivers Art Expo, Des Moines, Iowa

Membership:

Society of North American Goldsmiths
The American Craft Council
The Mississippi Craftsmen’s Guild
The Arkansas Craft Guild