Corliss and John are two amazing and inspiring artists! I found them through Flickr and was immediately hooked on their use of materials, shape, color and concept.
Their work is simply exquisite, fun, and provoking, just stunning. I applaud their recycling of everyday use objects as new materials in clever way. It’s surprising how they are transformed into non-obvious pieces.
They have a fresh approach to what jewelry is supposed to be. There’s variety and versatility, and no constrains to a traditional mold.
Lets know more about them through their own words, which they wrote so eloquently!
2-Roses Studio, located in Southern California, is a life long artistic exploration and collaboration between metalsmith Corliss Rose, and lapidary John Lemieux Rose. Each is a master craftsman with a distinctive style and artistic vision all their own. Together the 2-Roses have forged a unique creative synergy that explores the boundaries of art, ornament, jewelry, social commentary and humor through the combination of wildly unorthodox materials and techniques.
The studio is typically working on 18 -24 separate projects at any one time, these include commissions for individual collectors and corporate clients, producing one-of-a-kind and series objects for galleries and stores, concept pieces for museums and shows, and educational seminars presented at Universities and museums.
If you’re in their area, you can even schedule a visit to the studio!
In addition to being accomplished craftspeople, Corliss and John are highly involved in the social and business community of California. Corliss is the current President of the Metal Arts Society of Southern California, and John is on the Board of Directors of the Small Business Development Council.
To you, what is jewelry?
Traditionally, jewelry is about status and power. We do not think this has changed much over time. What is changing is the criteria for conferring status and power. This used to be mainly a function of the rarity and value of the materials. There is still a significant portion of the public that sees jewelry in this light. But over the last 100 years there has been a slow movement towards higher value on concept. This has pushed a portion of jewelry design into the fine art category where the value of the materials are consequential only in as much as they support the concept of the piece. This is just one schism that has formed between “traditional” jewelers and “art” jewelers. Perhaps the largest contention is over form and function eg. If a piece is non-functional, is it jewelry? Your question is a very good one, because this is exactly what cutting edge jewelers around the world are asking themselves right now.
What did you do before getting into jewelry? And what brought you into jewelry?
John started working professionally at the age of 15. Corliss began her art career at the age of 7. We are both the product of a formal International art education in which we underwent rigorous classical training and apprenticed. We have both worked as professional artists all our lives.
Over the years we have worked in a broad spectrum of media and the art. In addition to metals and lapidary arts, we have made our living in fine art (painting & sculpture), commercial illustration, product design, furniture design, ceramics, fabric arts, leather, culinary arts, floral design, stage craft, retail display, motion pictures and multimedia. We continue to practice in many of these fields and aggressively cross-pollinate skills and techniques from one media to another.
Our current focus on jewelry was the result of a collision of several activities. We were very active in mining and prospecting, which led to the accumulation of large amounts of gem and mineral material. At the same time we were creating a lot of art objects from exotic woods. We began cutting the stone and incorporating it into the wood objects. At the same time, a new material called Polymer Clay caught Corliss’ attention and we began incorporating that into our work as well. Since we both had formal jewelry training it was a small step to move from objects d’ art to jewelry.
The early pieces sold well and it was a natural progression as more and more of our time was spent fulfilling demand for jewelry.
To you, what is the purpose jewelry?
The purpose of jewelry is deeply personal and is as varied as the number of people who wear it. Its purpose can be to make one feel happy, powerful, stylish, or connected to a group. Jewelry can express a mood, make a bold political statement, a wry social comment, be flirtatious, or defensive. Jewelry is almost never about the object itself, its about what it represents to the wearer and its impact on others who come into contact with the wearer.
What, or who, most inspires you and your work?
Corliss: My father was a florist. He taught me to observe and appreciate nature, flora and fauna. Sea life is also a big part of my work.
John: I spent most of my childhood in museums and studying picture books of art. The Renaissance artists had a huge impact on me because of their multidisciplinary approach to the arts. The narrative paintings of the Romanticists and Pre-Raphealites have also been a big influence. It impressed upon me the importance of story telling and understanding what was underneath the surface. Lastly, I have an irrational love affair with the machinists of the 19th century, for the improbable ingenious and elegant contraptions of the industrial age.
What do you love most about making jewelry?
Jewelry today is the artistic wild west of ideas and executions where everything goes and no one knows exactly where the boundaries and frontiers are. There is more change going on in this medium right now than any other aspect of the arts.
What do you try to express through your work?
We work on a number of different levels. What we are trying to express changes with each piece. Some are political statements, others are social satire, still others are about pushing the boundaries of form and/or materials. In most cases we are presenting work that addresses multiple issues.
What materials do you prefer to work with, and why?
We are creatively omnivorous and see everything as potential material for jewelry. Our interest is in exploring the possibilities of that which we find around us.
Do you have a work philosophy or concept?
The big concept is really the most ancient of traditions. That is, personal adornment is created from the things we encounter in our environment. Our job as artists is to really see our environment. This is what led us, for example, to use to circuit boards in our jewelry. We are surrounded by them, but we don’t see them.
What keeps you motivated to continue in this path?
Touching people. What we do effects people on many different levels. Can we make something that brings joy, changes a perspective, introduces a new idea, or maybe is meaningful enough to be passed on to another generation. Besides that, what we do is really fun.
From your own work, what’s your favorite piece and why?
Our favorite piece is the one that somebody just bought.
Which piece was the most difficult to execute, and why?
The most difficult piece to execute is always the one you are working on at the moment. There is an old saying, “No artist ever finishes a work, they merely abandon it at some point in time.”
Is there something else you want to add?
We’d like to thank Diana Lerias for allowing us to babble on about ourselves. Our own mothers would not have given us this much time. Thank you Diana.
Pay them a visit at 2Roses.com for more.
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| [ tags ] art & artists • contemporary • identity • jewelers |
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