Intro to Southwest Silversmithing & Open Studio
Led by Jamie Halpern & Patte Ranney
Beginning students will learn the basic skills of Southwest-style silversmithing in the awe-inspiring Ghost Ranch jewelry studio. Experienced students who already have basic silversmith skills and wish to work independently will have open use of the Ghost Ranch silversmith studio, with optional silversmith and lapidary coaching. Beginners will experience hands-on work in sawing, soldering, stone-setting, and finishing beautiful jewelry, and they will learn to safely use the basic tools of silversmith work. Students will leave with multiple pieces of wearable jewelry art and a discovery of their own creative potential.
For beginning or experienced students. Serious-minded youth 14+ are welcome. Studio work may be supplemented by demonstrations, discussions and guest instructors. Lapidary and silver channel inlay instruction will be provided to interested students. Students will leave the class with wearable jewelry art. The fully-equipped Ghost Ranch jewelry studio provides a wonderful opportunity for students to learn the skills and techniques of advanced silver jewelry-making in a beautiful location with a long history in the creative arts. Ghost Ranch is a place of beauty and serenity that nurtures the creative spirit with a lengthy history in the creative arts. Silversmith students come away from this class with unimagined creations, a proud sense of accomplishment, and a personal connection to the arts of the Southwest.
The open studio will be staffed by experienced silversmith instructors who will be available for consultation, assistance, and demonstrations. The studio is equipped with all the needed tools, supplies and equipment. Students may bring their own hand-tools, stones, and silver supplies, if desired. Silver used in class projects can be purchased at the studio. Note: Students should expect to spend between $150 – $300 on silver for the week unless brought from home – this cost is NOT included in the class fee and will be paid at the end of class.
For beginning or experienced students. Serious-minded youth 14+ are welcome. Studio work may be supplemented by demonstrations, discussions and guest instructors. Lapidary and silver channel inlay instruction will be provided to interested students. Students will leave the class with wearable jewelry art. The fully-equipped Ghost Ranch jewelry studio provides a wonderful opportunity for students to learn the skills and techniques of advanced silver jewelry-making in a beautiful location with a long history in the creative arts. Ghost Ranch is a place of beauty and serenity that nurtures the creative spirit with a lengthy history in the creative arts. Silversmith students come away from this class with unimagined creations, a proud sense of accomplishment, and a personal connection to the arts of the Southwest.
The open studio will be staffed by experienced silversmith instructors who will be available for consultation, assistance, and demonstrations. The studio is equipped with all the needed tools, supplies and equipment. Students may bring their own hand-tools, stones, and silver supplies, if desired. Silver used in class projects can be purchased at the studio. Note: Students should expect to spend between $150 – $300 on silver for the week unless brought from home – this cost is NOT included in the class fee and will be paid at the end of class.
Program Details
Start Date:
End Date:
Categories:
Art
Ghost Ranch Program
Jewelry Silversmithing
Date & Time Details:
3:00 pm Check in
10:00 am Check out
10:00 am Check out
Location:
Ghost Ranch
Address:
280 Private Drive 1708, Abiquiu, NM, USA
Contact:
Programs
programs@ghostranch.org
505-685-1000
Email Us About Program
About the Leaders
Jamie Halpern
Jamie Halpern is an accomplished silversmith, lapidary artist and metalsmith instructor. His work reflects southwestern art and jewelry-making styles and is influenced by travels throughout the United States, the South Pacific and Europe. Working with silver and colorful semi-precious stones through metal fabrication and inlay, and through his teachings with beginning and advanced jewelry students and artists, Jamie celebrates creativity and personal exploration and nurtures artistic expression. His jewelry is sold through private commissions. He has taught silversmithing and lapidary art at Ghost Ranch for a number of years to rave reviews and testaments to how professional pieces can be crafted with focused time. Examples of Jamie’s work can be found at: Jehalpernjewelry.com.
Patte Ranney
Patte Ranney has been coming to Ghost Ranch since 2009 and has enjoyed a wide variety of workshops through the years. Admiring the end-of-week display of a silver class, about a decade ago, rekindled her long lost love of smithing – a craft she had dabbled with in high school. Actually, it lit the torch!
Since that awakening, she has dedicated nearly all her ranch time to the silver studio. She credits Jamie with teaching and guiding her to develop her smithing and lapidary skills. Though she once claimed that her trips to the ranch in both January and July were enough to quench her thirst for all things silver, she now has a complete studio at home. Her work is recognized for excellence in craftsmanship.
Patte spent her career as a licensed boat captain, interpretive naturalist, and environmental educator in the lowcountry of South Carolina. In her retirement, she has become a full-time artisan working in silver, leather, fiber, and paper. She is an exhibiting artist with the Art League of Hilton Head and sells her pieces at local markets and by commission.
You can find her at https://www.instagram.com/thesetwohandsstudio/
Since that awakening, she has dedicated nearly all her ranch time to the silver studio. She credits Jamie with teaching and guiding her to develop her smithing and lapidary skills. Though she once claimed that her trips to the ranch in both January and July were enough to quench her thirst for all things silver, she now has a complete studio at home. Her work is recognized for excellence in craftsmanship.
Patte spent her career as a licensed boat captain, interpretive naturalist, and environmental educator in the lowcountry of South Carolina. In her retirement, she has become a full-time artisan working in silver, leather, fiber, and paper. She is an exhibiting artist with the Art League of Hilton Head and sells her pieces at local markets and by commission.
You can find her at https://www.instagram.com/thesetwohandsstudio/