PARTICIPATORY SPORT FOR CRAFT ARTISTS
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Michael Romanik
- East Cleveland, OH
- United States
Michael Romanik's Page
Profile Information
- Where do you live ? City, State and Country
- East Cleveland OH
- Place of Work ? Example: Studio, College, Gallery, Museum, ...)
- The basement studio in my home in East Cleveland OH
- I am a .... Example: Student, Maker, Educator, etc.
- e-mail: maromanik@sbcglobal.net
BFA, 1989, The Cleveland Institute of Art
Major: Drawing
Minors: Printmaking / Glass
As a student studying enameling in art school, I became intrigued with the technique of cloisonne, creating linear designs and images with flat wire embedded between layers of colored granular glass. This was my first introduction to enameling. In my pursuit to
learn more about this medium and wanting to perfect my skills with it, I spent many years researching and experimenting with this art form that captivated me.
Becoming familiar with the relative immediateness of enamel, I wanted to use it in a functional manner. Making jewelry was a natural step in my early process of mastering the medium. I enjoy the intimate scale and proportion of jewelry and the satisfaction of seeing objects that I've made being worn and appreciated by those who wear them.
The seemingly endless variety of enamel hues that was available seemed daunting. I chose a limited palette so that I could master its qualities and properties. Each color has its own presence and technical merits. For strong contrast, I place light color enamel next to dark, emphasizing each one's boldness and brilliance. For a complimentary effect, similar colors overlap and blend into one other, creating harmonious transition. Additional colors eventually find their way into my color scheme as I explore new imagery and subject matter.
Some early inspiration for my work was derived from my interest in the objects and images of ancient cultures: the grandeur of ancient Egypt, the colorful painted relief carvings on Mayan architecture, the symbols of the Celts. Recent inspiration comes from nature: the vibrant plumage of a songbird, the delicate markings of a butterfly wing, the gentle curve of a small branch. A new interest is the repetitive geometric patterns and motifs of Asian and Indian textiles. The challenge of creating the intricate designs from gold and silver wire fascinates me and tests my technical abilities.
NOTABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
Photos and 1-page article, "Drawn Together"
"Glass on Metal" magazine, August 1999 issue
Cover photo and group article, "Swimming in Color"
"Lapidary Journal" Magazine, May 2005 issue
www.jewelryartistmagazine.com/archive/may05toc.cfm
NICHE Award / Metal - Enamel category
Philadelphia Buyers Market of American Craft, February 2007
www.americancraft.com/NICHE_Awards/NICHE_awards_W_07.html#
professionals
Commissioned to design and produce reproductions of an enamel pendant by African-American painter, Aaron Douglas, for the Spencer Museum of Art's gift shop in Lawrence KS,
September 2007
Visiting Artist, The Cleveland Institute of Art's Enameling Department
Slide Presentation and Lecture, November 2007
Gallery photo
"Art Jewelry" Magazine
January 2010, September 2010, and March 2008 issues
Art Jewelry Today 2 (published September 2008)
A book of contemporary jewelry by Schiffer Books
www.schifferbooks.com
500 Enameled Objects (published April 2009)
Book of contemporary enameled objects and jewelry by Lark Books
www.larkbooks.com
Recipient of a 2011 Creative Workforce Fellowship from Cuyahoga County OH in the amount of $20,000.
http://www.cpacbiz.org/business/CWF2.shtml
UPCOMING SHOWS:
Germantown Friends School 28th Annual Juried Craft Show
March 2 - 4, 2012
Germantown Friends School
Philadelphia PA
http://www.germantownfriends.org/parents/parents-association/craft-...
CraftBoston
March 23 - 25, 2012
Seaport World Trade Center
Boston MA
http://www.societyofcrafts.org/cbspring/springinfo.asp
The 30th Annual Smithsonian Craft Show
April 19 - 22, 2012
The National Building Museum
Washington DC
http://smithsoniancraftshow.org/
New Orleans Jazz Fest Contemporary Craft Show
May 3 - 6, 2012
New Orleans LA
http://www.nojazzfest.com/crafts
- Your website, DIRECT flickr or DIRECT facebook links where your work can be seen.
- http://www.ning.com/profile/michaelromanik
- Describe your media/materials you work with
- metals, Cloisonne jewelry hand-fabricated from a combination of enamel, silver, gold and gemstones.
Michael Romanik's Photos
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View an excerpt of the recently published Humor in Craft Book:
Featuring 12 +1 images of humorous craft artwork from around the world and the artists' commentary about the role humor plays in their work.
Fun for all!
Humor in Craft Online Exhibition.
You can purchase a mug like the one on the cover image. Nice gift!
The book has a website where you can look up exhibitions and other events around the book:
Listen to a fun 30 minute radio interview with the author on the Eclectic Author's Showcase!
Brigitte talks about what it was like working with the artists and reads some fun excerpts.
Call for artists....
"Behind the Brooch"
I have always thought that the back of a jewelry piece is as important as the front. If you feel the same way, consider sending images of the front and backside of your brooches to Lorena Angulo asap. Lorena is looking for images to place in a future crafthaus online exhibition!
Exclusively for crafthaus members
Crafthaus Project Grant Information
Australian Furniture Maker
Ross Annels receives 2012 crafthaus scholarship award.
Ross started blogging about his experiences on crafthaus!
NCECA Board member Sam Chung selected longstanding crafthaus member Kala Stein to receive the first NCECA/crafthaus Scholarship.
Kala has started her crafthaus blog: 2012 NCECA/crafthaus Emerging Artist Report!
Bifei Cao is 2012 SNAG/crafthaus Scholarship Recipient
A native of China, Bifei graduated from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, and received his MA degree at the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University, before receiving an MFA in jewelry and metals program at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania under Lynda LaRoche.
Follow Bifei on his crafthaus blog :"Self-doubt: Crossing the boundary of culture with personal issues".
Blog Posts
Earrings Up, Don't Take 'em Lying Down
Posted by Harriete Estel Berman on May 22, 2012 at 1:00pm 0 Comments 2 Likes
One of the questions that frequently comes up is: "What makes a good photo?" There are many possibilities of good photos ....too numerous to mention, so I would like to focus on…
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Mokume Gane Workshop at Genevieve Flynn Studio
Posted by Genevieve E. Flynn on May 21, 2012 at 10:12am 1 Comment 1 Like
ABOVE LEFT TO RIGHT/ Deb Weld, Jennifer Finley, Julie Van Hoecke,…
Call for Artists: ‘Suspend.ed in pink’
Posted by Brigitte Martin on May 21, 2012 at 9:59am 0 Comments 0 Likes
Call for Artists:…
Working at the Crafts Council UK: Trustee
Posted by Brigitte Martin on May 19, 2012 at 8:31am 0 Comments 0 Likes
Working at the Crafts Council: Trustee
London
The Crafts Council is the national development agency for contemporary craft; an independent charity established by Royal Charter and funded through a combination of earned and raised…
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Comment Wall (19 comments)
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this is such an amazing thing, we do. smithsonian yes, cottonwood, no. go figure, right? i applied to jazz last year and was waitlisted. accepted this year. i feel very fortunate, truly. i always would have had a week or two between my return from tx and jazz and didn't want to have to drive back, so i wasnt applying. and, i knew a number of artists that were being accepted, and had been for many years, and there work was junk--just assembled stuff. and they used to tell me, someone had to die for you to get in, so i figured it wasn't a truly blind jury. but a few years ago i started seeing people with excellent work getting accepted so i thought something had changed. that's when i started thinking about the possiblility of applying. so i gave it a crack last year, to see what might happen. i'm glad i did, but i cannot believe how pricey it is. i hadn't looked at that b4 i applied, so i got sticker shock when i saw the paperwork.
i was in brookside last year and only did ok. but the weather was not great at all. unseasonably cold and i was bundled up almost the whole time. i don't think it got above 60 the whole weekend (and mostly it was colder than that) and not very sunny. most of the artists i knew there said there sales were down by 1/2. so i'm hopeful for a much better year!
i got the first weekend, which is what i wanted, because i was hoping to get into brookside the next weekend. so that did work out, luckily. seventeen years of applying!! one must admire your fortitude. i barely knew what enameling was 17 years ago. i was so entrenched in the business world that i barely devoted time to the art world. i am jealous of all the artists that knew to follow this path early in their lives.
if you hear anyone looking for a roomie, let me know. janice ho was accepted, you, me. looks like enameling was popular this year!! janice is staying with a friend in a teeny tiny place so that's not an option for me. smithsonian.....
hey michael, congrats on smithsonian!! i saw it somewhere a few weeks ago and meant to send you a note.
you aren't by any chance in jazz fest and looking for a roomie or know anyone looking for one?
how has life been with "the grant"?
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Love your work Michael!
As you know, I love your work. I hope the fellowship gets finalized soon! What a great accomplishment.
All the best, B.
It is a sight like this for enamelists.
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your work and congratulations.
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