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(e) A heart-shaped
Peruvian opal centers a necklace of faceted citrine, green agates, and green
pearls. “I enjoy blending colors and textures in unexpected ways, and often mix
solid beads with ‘liquids’ (translucent stones).” She strings the beads on
durable, plastic-coated wire.
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The problem with sculpture, Barbera King discovered while majoring in art during
the 1970s, is that it tends to be cumbersome. “I used to weld found metal
objects into these enormous constructions, only to leave them behind,” she
recalls. “I guess I began designing jewelry so I could carry my work with
me.”
At first she made jewelry just for herself. But when someone bought
an amber and brass piece right off her neck, she knew she was on to something.
“I started selling homemade raisin bread and used the profits to buy beads.”
After college, she traveled extensively, including two years in Europe, selling
her jewelry to stores and galleries. Along the way, she married a man she wooed
by welding his racecar together, and they had two children. “Even when the kids
were young, I had a studio in my basement.”
Her workshop is a big, open room with a skylight. “I can’t work without lots of
natural light.” (a)
The window came from an old church. “I do all my
silver work down here and my beading upstairs. I have a bedroom known as ‘the
bead room’.” (b) Barbera’s dapping tools,
mushroom-shaped hammers used to beat sterling silver into cuplike
shapes. (c) Barbera with her
rolling mill, which imprints patterns on silver. (d) Barbera’s very
first pieces, crafted during her college days in
the early ‘70s.
romancing the stone page
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