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Writer's picturePeggy Nichols

Artist's Post -- Robyn Nichols, Metalsmith, Wearable Art & Botanical Sculpture


Artist statement – Celebration of nature


Since childhood, I have been fascinated with flora and inspired by the architectural elegance of nature. I seek refuge in the awe, beauty and mystery of nature and it is here that I observe and collect inspirations for the pieces I create.

I borrow the design elements of nature beginning with drawings. From there I create the patterns to be cut from the metal. I begin forming the metal over various metal and wooden stakes with rawhide and/or metal hammers to complete the desired shapes I need, composing and fitting the pieces together. This requires the harmony of design and details to blend with the proportion of the object.

I design and create hollowware, vessels, tableware, body adornment, ceremonial art and sculptures. I also create awards that honor various groups and organizations. My technique is called metal fabrication. I create my designs from sheets and wire of sterling silver or 18-karat gold. I use old world techniques such as repoussé and chasing, forging down of wire work from thick to thin with hammers, filing, sanding and then polishing. I bind the pieces by welding the metals. I use silver and gold for their reflectiveness and apply my techniques to capture the light that shimmers across the surfaces so that my pieces appear to breathe or convey the spirit of growing.

When my art is to have a function, that purpose must function well. For instance, the curves and balance in my flatware are equally influenced by how it should feel in the hand and how well it fits the requirements of its use. Spouts of a vessel should not drip after the pour. There is flow and movement in each growing element or cycle of a plant; from the seed being nourished, a branch being formed, to the flower opening and closing, producing fruit, to decay. I continuously want to capture and preserve these movements. I call it the breath of life. Even though we don’t see nature actually breathing, it is always in movement or motion.

Another passion that I incorporate into my creations is my love of transforming everyday objects into embellished works of art. Examples are: Sling shots, feather dusters, pistol grips, door pulls or handles, rattles, etc. Interestingly, these particular pieces are usually created as commissions from many of my clients. Most often my interest in plant lore, folklore, mythology and the use of symbols are introduced into my designs and executed as a means of storytelling.



Sacred Heart Box with Pendant, sterling silver, 18k gold, copper, garnets, crystals & flesh colored pearls





Tableware


'Morning Glory Set', sterling silver






Wearable Art


Essentials - Wearable Art, sterling silver, freshwater pearls







Sculpture






Bio with List of Museum Acquisitions & Exhibitions





Robyn Nichols was born in Los Angeles, California and moved to Independence, Missouri in her early childhood.


In 1979, Nichols achieved a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Design from the Kansas City Art Institute (KCAI). While at KCAI, she acquired her own tools and taught herself how to work in precious metals since the Institute did not have a program in Metal Arts.


Upon graduating, she opened her first studio and gallery in a shared building in Kansas City, Missouri, and held her first One Woman Exhibition in 1980 at the Kruger Gallery in New York, New York.


In 1996, Nichols left the building she was sharing with colleagues, and moved a few blocks away to a building to house her own studio and gallery. She named the building, The Pearl (a found treasure), a dedicated space to create and showcase her work, and of other invited artists. Nichols is known famously for her jewelry and tableware, in addition to her grandiose, themed annual showings and performance art (a 28-year run) of her work each December. Some of the themes over the years included “The Clue”’ derived from the well-known board game; “One Day of the Naïve demure Woman;” “The Harley Wedding;” “Naughty and Nice;” and “The Dressing of a Geisha.”


In 1982, she incorporated her art business as Robyn Nichols/Personal Works of Art, Inc. At that time, she began showing her silver and gold work (wearable art and serving pieces) to the trade at the prestigious American Crafts Council Shows (various national locations); Museum Art Shows (Philadelphia Museum of Art, Smithsonian Institution); the JA New York and the Design New York at the Javits Center in New York City; and other prestigious art shows across the county.


Her participation in the aforementioned shows brought Robyn Nichols/Personal Works of Art, Inc. hundreds of accounts with galleries, boutiques, museum stores, specialty stores and corporations across the United States and abroad. To supply the orders of her art, all pieces are created by hand, and with assistants whom she taught to create her works of art.


Nichols loves to mentor and share her knowledge of metal arts. For 14 years, she taught metal-smithing in the Grand Cayman Islands while maintaining a studio there until 2006.


In 1991, The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Design – Cooper-Hewitt Museum acquired Nichols’ The Nasturtium Salad Servers for their permanent collection.


These museums follow:

1995, Morning Glory Sugar Bowl

1998, Brambles Vase; Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, Virginia Beach, Virginia.

2006, Fish Mezuzah; Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion Museum, New York, New York. 2010, Nyphaea (Water Lily) Rattle

2011, Thatch Palm Bowl

2013, Lupines and Lady Slippers Candelabra; Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri

2019, Sweet Offerings, Spice Box and Pomegranate, Mezuzah; The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah, The Klein Collection, Overland Park, Kansas.


From 2005-09, Nichols created a line of stainless-steel serving pieces licensed to Demdaco, Design for Home, Robyn Nichols of Demdaco and sterling silver jewelry pieces designed and licensed to QVC Online Shopping Network, Robyn Nichols Jewelry for QVC.


From 2009-13 Nichols lived in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico as a consultant to establish a Hollowware Department for the El Centro De Las Artes Contemporaneous do San Miguel. She moved back to the United States to establish a new studio on her rural wooded property outside Kansas City, Missouri.

Nichols works primarily by commission and through www.RobynNichols.com . She is represented by Swanky’s Interior Design Gallery in Kansas City, Missouri, where she is able to meet clients directly.



To see more of Robyn's works, please visit her website at: www.RobynNichols.com.




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