In the Studio: Behind the Scenes with Brice Garrett

by Tiffany Lucke

On a warm, bright, Brooklyn Sunday, jewelry artist Brice Garrett welcomed the NYCJW team into his Greenpoint studio. He gave us an inside look at his workspace, process, and new works for his upcoming Baltimore Jewelry Center solo show, “Casting Shadows”.  

Each component of Brice’s work is steeped in process- a careful consideration of individual pieces that make up jewelry. Wall pieces, and installations reveal a jeweler’s eye. Although trained as a jeweler, Brice’s work has evolved into a multimedia expression of art that transcends the body and and the wearable, while never forgetting it. 

During our visit, we were fascinated by his jewelry journey, beginning with a family heritage of Goldsmithing that lead him to pursue a Masters in jewelry at Konstfack University College of the Arts, Crafts, and Design in Stockholm, and eventually continue on to a successful art and jewelry career right here in NYC. From residencies at institutions like MAD Museum, to exhibitions and workshops like the ones you may have seen at NYCJW18– Brice continues think through ideas of body, production, labor, value, and memory through wearables, sculptures, installations, and participatory projects.

Q: What was it that initially interested you in learning to make jewelry?

A: “I’m very fortunate as I didn’t have to look very far to learn about jewelry. Growing up in Southern California, I spent my summers visiting family at the beach where my uncle works as a goldsmith. Spending time in his gallery and workshop led me to understand, at a really young age, the possibilities in hand-made jewelry. These thoughts steeped with me over the summers until one year I apprenticed with him. During that brief time, I was immediately enticed with the scale of the work, the tactility in both the making and wearing, and the shift to thinking and working dimensionally. The first piece I made (with lots of help) was a cast silver ring with a Tahitian pearl. Between the challenges of carving that ring and the fascinating process of lost wax casting, I was completely hooked.”

Q: What is a typical day working in your studio like?

A: “My mornings are usually spent on the computer catching up on emails, planning class curriculums, applying to shows, writing applications, writing statements, rewriting applications, rewriting statements…etc. There is tons of computer work that needs to be done, and it comes easiest in the morning for me.

A lot of my studio practice requires some sort of curing, drying, or setting. If managed correctly, I can juggle different tasks throughout the day. I start off making the molds and casting as early as possible. This way they have enough time to dry while I work on fabricating or finishing other pieces. By the end of the day, I can go back and work on what I initially started with and prep it for the next stage. With this type of process there isn’t instant gratification, but the work slowly builds up over the weeks. I definitely didn’t plan to work this way, but I found my practice naturally evolved into this rhythm – I think partly because I live and work in NYC, and with the various freelance, commission, and teaching jobs that I juggle along with my studio practice, there is a lot of stop and go. “

Q: There’s far more to what goes in to making your cast porcelain pieces than meets the eye- can you tell us more about your process?

A: “In my recent work, I create the initial gemstone shapes with various digital 3d rendering programs. I make plaster molds from the 3d printed forms – this means creating a mold frame, making sure the model will release, and mixing and pouring the plaster…”

“I use stained porcelain and slip-cast into the molds. This technique allows me to create thin and/or hollow pieces, enabling me to push scale without compromising wearability. In between each additional cast, I continuously carve, reconfigure, and deconstruct the molds with various tools and methods. I have to work very methodically at this stage because I’m essentially destroying the mold, so going back is not an option. I oscillate between thinking about the positive form (the casting) and the negative form (the mold), and thinking how each mark will translate into the reverse form…”

“I try to work as little as possible on piece once it’s done, keeping the focus on the casting.”

Q: Your artistic practices have expanded beyond jewelry- can you tell us more about what has inspired your sculptural pieces and workshop installations?

A: “I would say my practice is centered on adornment, taking the form of jewelry, sculpture, installation, participatory works, and most recently, print. My sculptural and installation work uses the language of jewelry, but at a larger scale and within different contexts, like the built environment for instance.

My project “Workshop (2016-Ongoing)” – which I hosted an iteration of during NYCJW18 in the HQ space – is an interactive installation of plaster gemstones made collectively with participants. Taking influence from a workshop – a space for both working and educational purposes – I invite the community to help create and evolve the installation.

The social or relational aspects of jewelry are really interesting to me, especially within the production of it. Jewelry (and craft in general) has a long history of working collectively, and I’ve used this as a starting point for “Workshop (2016-Ongoing)”. When the making is emphasized, it’s easier to have important and interesting conversations about value, labor, exchange, community, the strengths of working collectively…etc. This project is an attempt at creating an accessible art project about contemporary jewelry and conversation while working side by side “

Q: What are some new things that you’re working on that you are excited about?

A: “Last fall I received funding from the Manhattan Graphics Center to take a silkscreen class and use the studios for a semester. I used this time to learn a new process and to explore ways of making larger, more immersive installations. I’ve always thought of my mold-making and casting process as a three-dimensional print. This opportunity allowed me to further explore this idea, and bring out the parallels between screen-printing and the casting process. There’s a lot of source material within this conversation, the tools, materials, the way of building up form, layering, capturing detail, texture, and mark making. 

I’ve approached the prints in a similar way to my casting process, I utilized the ability to offset and layer screens, distort the prints through scanning, and employing both analog and digital printing, complicating the hands-on processes. I envisioned a display or installation that navigated this shift between 2D and 3D forms and formal qualities, and I have just now materialized it for the first time.“

Q: You have a solo show opening this month- Congrats! When and where will that be? What can we look forward to seeing there?

A: “Thank you! “Casting Shadows” will be on view at the Baltimore Jewelry Center from July 19th– August 30th, with an opening reception July 19th from 6-9pm. Ultimately, the show is a culmination of my jewelry, sculpture, and prints, creating an installation that merges a lot that I’ve mentioned above. The work complicates the narrative of producing by carving out, reconfiguring, and deconstructing the process – reimagining and accentuating the methods that generate authenticity and form.

Along with the exhibition, I’ll activate my project “Workshop (2016-Ongoing)” on Saturday July 20th from 12-6pm.“