Golden Reflection Choker

Bio:

Jill Baker Gower is a metalsmith, jeweler, and educator who resides near Madison, WI. She is originally from the Chicago area, received a BS in Art Education from UW-Madison and an MFA in Metals from Arizona State University. Jill's work has been in many juried and curated exhibitions nationwide and has been published in Metalsmith magazine and books such as 500 Enameled Objects, CAST, and Little Dreams in Glass and Metals: Enameling in America 1920 to the Present. Jill is a former resident artist of Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, TN. Jill is a recipient of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship. In 2019 she has a solo exhibition at the Metal Museum in Memphis, TN as a part of the Tributaries Series.

Artist Statement:

I create jewelry and sculpture informed by my female experience and how advertisements, popular culture, beauty products, and fashion trends portray what women need or want. Ornate mirror frames, tools used for beautification, faceted gems, and the human body, inspire the design of these objects. The surfaces of the work are often lace patterned and at times include actual crocheted elements. I include crochet for it’s lacey, frilly appearance, my interest in the technique, but also because it’s historically viewed as a women’s skill. I aim for my work to be both beautiful and playful and at times even absurd or humorous; it addresses my own repulsion, frustration, and at the same time attraction to gender based expectations.