Archive for month: December, 2016

Collection: GET PUNK WITH IT!

Get Punk With It! means it’s time to break out, Get Punk With It! means it’s time to take out, That charge that’s in charge of pollutin’ yo mind Let go, don’t you know, the past is behind.

Statement: Anarchism in Spain has historically gained more support and influence than anywhere else, especially before Francisco Franco’s victory in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–39. While they were not ultimately successful with their uprising, these early anarchists planted a seed that remains important to this day, particularly to anarchists who look at their achievements as a historical precedent of anarchism’s validity.

Small anarchist groups still dot Spanish cities and countrysides, as they do in many parts of the world. They occupy vacant buildings, warehouses, abandoned farms and long lost homesteads. They believe in creating, community and art above the violence and social oppression of their country’s politics. They work tirelessly to create spaces of social interaction, cultural exchange, and abundance. They make do with what they have, and rely scavenging missions for their food, infrastructure, and other necessities.

Most of all, they reject the idea that jobs happen from 9 to 5, debt is inevitable, and authority is necessary.

Their style is unmistakable; mandated by the necessity of camouflage while on nightly missions, defense against the local riot police, and a desire to contrast the incessant consumerism of urban fashion.

This collection seeks to inspire the punk within; the inner voice that will not stop questioning norms, that impulse pushing us to go against the grain; whether it be with a style choice or a lifestyle decision.

Materials and Process: All pieces are made by hand. Bicycle inner-tubes, tires, Cables, precious metals, semi-precious gemstones, and bark-tanned leather (an Old World tanning process notable for the absence of chromium, a heavy metal, in the tanning process) are used in the fabrication of the designs.

Collection: CICLO DE FUEGO (Cycle of Fire)

Statement: It was my first holiday sales event; La Hoguera de San Juan. Scores of people packed the street in Leon, Spain for the annual holiday, a celebration of fire and light on the night of the summer equinox. All over Spain–and indeed, in countries all over the world–enormous bonfires burn through the night, based on an ancient belief that this gives power to the sun in its coming struggle against the inevitable winter. The fires are also believed to purify those who contemplate it, and worries, wishes, and other such sentiments are cast into the fire on small pieces of paper, thus liberating participants of their burden.

The pieces in this collection honor this “cycle of fire”. The world we live in revolves around constant cycles of dark and light, warm and cold, rain and sun. So too do we experience cycles in our personal lives: periods of work and play; of deep soul searching and joyous exuberance. It is imperative to be open to the regeneration happening within and around us, taking in to account that some parts need to be “burned” in order for others to grow anew.

Works in this collection have “regrown” from used chains, cogs, cables and spokes; the very heart of the bicycle’s drive. The addition of silver, gemstones and other adornments demonstrates that regrowth can take on forms beyond our imagination, and the results are as unexpected as they are beautiful.

Materials and Process: All pieces are made entirely by hand from re-worked steel bicycle parts recovered from bike shop scrap. After extensive cleaning and dis-assembly, the parts are combined with sterling silver using age-old south-of-the-border wire wrapping and soldering techniques. All ear-wires are hypoallergenic, all copper and brass bracelets are coated so as not to tarnish or mark the skin.