Artist Highlight: Jennifer Walker, Natural Enamel Jewelry

Born in Heidelberg, Germany and raised bouncing between Southern Maine and Yonkers, New York, Jennifer Walker decided she wanted to be a jeweler at age 15 while taking a Metals course at what was then The Portland School of Art in Portland Maine. She attended Parsons School of Design in New York City for two years and then received her B.F.A. in Metalsmithing and Jewelry Making from Maine College of Art. In 1997 she moved back to New York and worked in New York City as a local One Plumber for 9 years.  She has lived in St. Louis, MO since 2008 where she resides with her family. She travels around the country doing juried art and craft shows and maintains a studio which is open by appointment.

Artist Statement

I aim to make jewelry for people who want to feel beautiful and unique but not look like they tried too hard . 

The work begins with raw stock materials; sterling silver, copper, gold and bronze sheet and wire, vitreous enamel, wood and semiprecious stones. The metal is cut, carved, hammered, formed and sanded by hand until the design becomes material. “I have always enjoyed the physicality and repetition involved in making things. It makes me feel like Gepetto and I like that. I’m most happy working with my hands.”

Like mostly everyone, I am inspired by nature. The colors, textures and forms found in just the plant world alone provide endless material for me to create from. Im also interested in works of art from antiquity and the way that humans have found universal beauty in certain shapes and how we repeat those forms over and over again into the present day. I love the sentimental and personal nature of jewelry and hope that each of my pieces can become a part of someones story.