Artist Statement & Resume

WELCOME!  My name is Theresa Kwong, and I make every piece of my jewelry in a small home studio in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Artist Statement:  My design sensibility comes from years of training and practicing as an architect. Shell and tensile structures have always fascinated me with their clean lines and sinuous curves. The eye wants to follow the curves, and each curve brings excitement. My works have tremendous visual movement, reminiscent of Frank Gehry or Zaha Hadid structures.

I use shell-forming and anticlastic raising techniques. Thin, flat sheets of silver, gold, or mokume gane are slowly shaped into 3-D objects using hammers, stakes, and an anvil. The hammer marks left from forming provide beautiful textures which are contrasted with polished highlights. Being a LEED accredited architect, I use recycled metals whenever possible.

Bio:  Originally, I received my Bachelor of Arts degree in architecture from the University of California at Berkeley. A career change has brought me to jewelry-making. As an architect, I create 3-D objects on a macro scale; as a metalsmith, I create 3-D objects on a micro scale. I studied under numerous masters at Revere Academy, a professional jewelry school in San Francisco.

RESUME:

AWARDS:​

• 2019 - Winner of MJSA Design Challenge, Striking the Right Note. 
• 2017 - Niche Award Winner, Silver Jewelry category
• 2014 - Future of Design Education Fund Scholarship.  See Press Release.

OTHER ACCOLADES:

• 2017 - Featured Artist, Art in the Square, Southlake, TX
• 2016 - Finalist in JCK Design Center Editors' Choice Award
• 2016 - Featured Artist, Mission Federal ArtWalk, San Diego, CA
• 2015 - Second Place Jewelry, Indian Wells Arts Festival, Indian Wells, CA

EDUCATION:

• Revere School of Jewelry Arts, San Francisco: Jewelry Technician diploma
• University of California, Berkeley: BA in Architecture

EXHIBITIONS:

• 2013 One of 4 Students selected to represent Revere Academy for 'Designers by the Bay 2013' event at Shreve & Co in San Francisco

• 2012 Manika Gallery, San Francisco, April 2012 (Don't Call It Frisco, juried competition)

• 2011 724 Studios, San Francisco, Nov 2011 (MoVEment Exhibit, juried)

MEDIA:

• 2013 KTSF Television Interview, Nov 8, Evening News hour, San Francisco.

PUBLICATIONS: 

• 2019 December 22, Southern Jewelry News, On The Move Latest News  

• 2017 March 22, JCKOnline.com, The One-Shoulder Fashion Trend Means You Need More Bracelets by Brittany Siminitz

• 2017 Jan 25, JCK Insider, Design of the Times: Guita M and TK Metal Arts by Monica Stephenson

• 2015 Art Jewelry Magazine, May issue cover and on page 34.  

• 2015 Rio Grande Blog post written by Marlene Richey on May 1 2015, "On the Road:  Tips to Increase Jewelry Sales"

• 2015 Art Jewelry Forum on Facebook

• 2014 Luxibition Magazine (online), August

• 2013 The Crafts Report, Sep Issue (Metals, page 10 full page feature)

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIP: 

• American Craft Council
• Carolina Designer Craftsmen Guild
• EtsyMetal Team
• Piedmont Craftsmen Guild