Inside a charming brick building on Euclid Avenue, Jenny Walker fires up a handheld oxyacetylene torch. A blue flame appears, surrounding a smaller, sharper flame in the center that gives Walker more precision. Such torch-wielding is part of her training as a metalsmith. She studied briefly at the Parsons School of Design in New York City before earning a degree from the Maine College of Art. Walker has been using her metalsmithing skills in St. Louis for a decade. She crafts eye-catching earrings, cuffs, and rings for a long list of clients. We visited with her to discuss her work, future projects, and the “Zen of stone-setting.”
Why metalsmithing? In high school, I won a scholarship to take classes at a local art school. I made a ring and was amazed that I could create a product that was real and tangible. I was always into art, but I like the physicality of making something.
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Where do you find inspiration? I came up with the flower motif (see the previous page) when I moved here, 10 years ago. I wanted to make something fun and kinetic. Inspiration is literally everywhere. I go to the [Missouri] Botanical Garden. I’m always looking at botanical illustrations, what people are wearing.
How do you start one of your pieces? I draw a lot of pictures first, but I mainly think about the person who will wear it and what their needs are… how does it fit in with their lifestyle. It’s a lot of listening to what a client says in order to make it fit correctly, style wise.
Why do people invest in art jewelry? They buy it because it triggers something in themselves, something that they want to express.
What’s the biggest challenge? Getting everything done. I travel a lot for art shows, and I always want to make new things. It’s difficult to do all of that without sacrificing…I could have a dude in Bali making half of this stuff, which is what some people are doing, and that’s fine, but that’s not the kind of jeweler I am.
What artists do you admire? My favorite jeweler right now is Karl Fritsch. He’s doing amazing stuff that nods to traditional stone-setting techniques, but then he takes it in a crazy direction. He’s using those techniques, but he’s doing it in this animalistic way that’s so fascinating to me. It’s raw and beautiful at the same time.
What’s next? I just took a stone-setting class [at the New Approach School for Jewelers, in Tennessee] and the teachers were incredible. One had worked as a stone-setter at Tiffany’s for years. I’m making an engagement ring right now. Stone-setting is very Zen. You’re looking at stuff under intense magnification and you’re problem-solving, finding the right bur to get [the stone] in just right. There’s something relaxing about that.
This article was originally published in Design STL‘s May/June 2018 issue.
