Harriete Estel Berman would never simply throw away a candy wrapper or a tin container. Instead, she might make a $14,000 chair out of it.

As a metalsmith, Berman uses simple materials to make jewelry, sculptures and furniture – a skill she learned and perfected in the College of Visual and Performing Arts as a jewelry and metalsmithing major at Syracuse University.

‘After taking a metalsmithing class one summer, I dove right into it and took several more,’ Berman said, recalling how she got involved in the major. ‘I felt like I found myself instantaneously.’

The course aims to teach students how to design jewels and metals for both artistic and pragmatic purposes. The major gives students the background to design pieces for major companies, produce their own exhibits or even make exhibits for movies and TV.

‘We teach students as artists, not as industrial metal workers,’ said Barbara Walter, adjunct professor for jewelry and metalsmithing. ‘Students learn how to make their own one-of-a-kind, limited edition pieces.’

Natalie Zadrozna, a junior jewelry and metalsmithing major, enjoys the creative aspect of her major the most, as well as all the freedom to pursue whatever project she wants.

‘I’m currently over the wall obsessed with using enamel, so I try to somehow incorporate it into whatever I am doing,’ Zadrozna said. ‘In the future, I want to know how to stone set, which is a class that is offered at (Syracuse), so soon enough I’ll be trying that out.’

Syracuse is one of 67 U.S. colleges and universities identified by the Princeton Review that offer the jewelry and metalsmithing major. Other schools include the Rhode Island School of Design as well as large research universities such as the University of Kansas.

There are currently 11 students enrolled in the major. Walter said that a lack of funding and a small workspace would make expansion difficult, but she believes that the program is thriving with the supplies and faculty it has.

Despite limited resources, Zadrozna believes that the small group is beneficial for learning the craft.

‘We have crazy brainstorming sessions together, stay with each other so the other person doesn’t lose their mind,’ she said. ‘If we were a larger ‘community,’ I think we’d know and help each other on a different, maybe even more competitive level. I mean, being small also makes us a wee bit competitive, but in the end, it’s all love.’

The 126-credit major really begins in sophomore year when students take JAM 271, an Introduction to Jewelry and Metalsmithing. In higher level courses, students learn more intricate design techniques and good business practices to self-advertise and protect their work.

Upper-level classes also deal with the impact of mining gold, the cost of attaining diamonds, price control, as well as the sexism of jewelry making and giving.

‘They learn about issues that continuously affect the jewelry industry,’ Walter said. ‘They create their own portfolios and also learn how to design their own studios so that when they graduate they know how to set up a shop whether it’s a studio or a garage.’

Walter described the major as ‘learning advanced techniques as well as learning to advance personal ideas.’ For example, Berman’s art tends to focus on identity in a consumer society, which is why she uses recycled materials as her tools to do what she calls, ‘taking consumer packaging and reusing it as social commentary.’

‘Product identification is how we identity ourselves, so a lot of my pieces are about that,’ Berman said.

A visiting artist program was built into the curriculum, inviting accomplished artists to SU to teach workshops and to lecture. In the past, visiting artists have included SU alumnus Bruce Metcalf as well as European silversmith Valentin Yotkov and Berman herself.

Berman’s workshops mainly outline the professional process for up-and-coming artists, placing emphasis on networking, the importance of internships and an artist’s responsibility for exposing artistic ideas to the public.

‘I think the most successful students have a natural ability to think in three dimensions and can visualize that in their head,’ Walter said. ‘They also tend to be risk takers and try new things in their work.’

Berman believes that working hard, maintaining a disciplined work ethic and gaining experience through jobs, internships and even a graduate program are the keys to success in the post-undergrad world.

‘Education in itself should be constantly building,’ Berman said. ‘You should get the confidence. I encourage internships and work experience instead of making a few dollars, because work experience and hands-on understanding is so important.’

Although the program is housed in the ComArt building near SU’s South Campus, Walter encourages students to visit and see what their peers are doing.

‘If they walk through,’ she said, ‘they might learn something.’

kaoutram@syr.edu

Published on August 24, 2008 at 12:00 pm