Dare to Express--Meet the Artists #1

Marta Lacombe

Connie Lorig

Julia Wright

Leti Wesolowski

​…dare to express
cross lines, get out there, get out dare, dare to express
dare to cross the lines that tangle you and be different
dare to stretch limits, your limits
dare to cross fences, your fences
the barb wires, the barriers, your barb wires, your barriers
that keep you in, that keep you tamed
cross them, jump them, walk over them, break them,
the fence that ties you
the cord that strangles you
you yourself your freedom
the ropes that limit you and small you
the barb wires that hurt and bleed you
cross it, jump it, break it,
get out there, get out dare
dare to be
dare to own it
dare to express…
           Marta Lacombe, Feb. 19th 2016
 
Marta Lacombe is a licensed architect in her country of origin, Brazil and has worked as an architect here in Colorado since immigrating in 1997.
 
For a long time, she has felt the need to express her creativity in new ways, and in 2009 she started making jewelry which connects function and form, utilizing the antique beauty of objects she finds on hikes.
 
In Brazil, crime makes jewelry of precious metals and gems dangerous to own and wear. This led Marta to appreciate things that were not meant to be jewels, but possess a particular beauty in and of themselves.
 
Her husband, a native of Colorado Springs, is a lover of the wild, a hiker, and her best supplier of metal, scraps, and aged objects. He finds new possibles everywhere he goes, and brings home pockets full of amazing things.
 
Marta’s designs combine a variety of media, depending on the inspiration she finds in the objects with which she starts. The results are interesting, intriguing and unique, and no two pieces are exactly the same.

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Metalsmith and beader, Connie Lorig, is exploring new ideas in fabric for this show. Her new work highlights fun and playful earrings by displaying them on whimsical handmade cloth dolls. The earrings can be easily transferred from doll to human ears, depending upon the owner’s whims.  Connie sees this show as a way to explore unique ways of perceiving, displaying, and incorporating jewelry in unusual formats. “This will be a wonderful show for all jewelry lovers (and their lovers).”

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 Julia Wright has been expressing herself creatively for decades. She has done theater work, macramé, loom rug work with hand-dyed wools, photography, writing, and feather work. For “Dare to Express” she is focusing on creating statements with unique, exotic, and bold feathers. Her inspiration for this show is a recent commission piece—a feather collar that was worn for a special gala event. Her work for this show can be displayed as tiny pieces of artwork when not being worn.
 
“I love peacock eyes,” says Julia, “and the fact that peacocks molt them once a year and if not gathered swiftly, the peacocks will destroy them makes them all the more precious. So I played with them in many ways to showcase their beauty on masks, pendants and earrings for this show.”
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Leti Wesolowski has dared to design unique jewelry pieces in collaboration with two other potters, bringing both mediums into one coherent and captivating work of art. Her personal challenge was to explore new jewelry techniques while incorporating successfully into her design external variables set by the other two artists' displaying pottery.
 
Leti Wesolowski is a Colorado Springs jewelry designer whose goal is to create unique and elegant jewelry pieces intended to resonate with the wearer's feelings. All her artwork is one-of-a-kind handmade with most attention to craftsmanship, joining quality gemstones and materials with a variety of self-taught jewelry techniques. Her design process incorporates aesthetic elements shaped from her studies in architecture, her love of the arts and nature, and her personal travels.

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Husband and wife team, Curt and Robyn Elliott have worked together as potters, building and fine-tuning their skills as dedicated partner-potters. Known for their high fire functional stoneware, they jointly throw and develop shapes that complement the textures which are added to embellish the piece. Their current work includes, raku, pit fire, medium and high fire stoneware, and tiles. For “Dare to Express” they are presenting free form and wheel thrown Jewelry jars, tiles that can be used as stands or wall hangings, Raku and pit fire vases and jars, and handmade tile insets on lacquer jewelry boxes.