SNAG's Metalsmith EIP, another disaster

Jewelry Discussion
101 
What seems to be (pardon the pun) issue? Metalsmith magazine not
living up to its metal standards? Does the name Metalsmith imply
that the magazine should only represent metal or is the MISSION of
SNAG and Metalsmith represent pushing the envelope of jewelry
ornamentation?

I think the issue is that Metalsmith, but more particularly EIP
seems to be focused on conceptual “jewelry” and pushing the envelope
to the exclusion of most other approaches and involvement with
jewelry. While that may be a valuable intellectual exercise, there is
more to the metalsmithing world than what is presented in this
publication. Should every issue be everything to everyone? No. It
can’t be. But by repeatedly discluding the myriad of jewelers and
metalsmiths who do more traditional work, by not focusing on
technique at all, and by promoting the “conceptual” to being the
only thing worth printing, SNAG has alienated itself from much of its
base.

The first time I remember the arguement about SNAG being “too
academic” was in the late 70’s. I find the complaints about academia
vs. bench jewelers misguided. For starters it leaves out all of us (I
dare say a majority of its membership) who are neither. I teach, but
not at a university. I produce work, but would not consider myself a
bench jeweler. Many of us make a living by quietly piecing together
teaching, selling work, commission work, and other avenues of making
money. It doesn’t mean that I am not interested in the more avante
guarde work going on in my field. But I am interested in more than
just that.

Ideally SNAG should be an organization who can speak to all of us at
one time or another. I rather enjoy the intellectual challenge of
seeing things that are different, materials I don’t usually work with
and approaches that are things I never would have thought of. But
what happened to the rest of what it takes to be a jeweler /
metalsmith / instructor? I think a lot of the frustration with SNAG
and it’s publications are that there is little offered between the
more crafty “how-to” magazines and what is now primarily a
“conceptual jewelry” magazine. Metalsmith used to fill that gap, but
not so much in recent years. Maybe there is an opportunity for
another publication that speaks to the rest of us.

Deb

102

Gabriel,

Thank you for your thoughtful response. I am in agreement with many
of your comments but have a few where I disagree or feel the need to
comment.

It is truly the mark of a lazy and apathetic person to criticize
without participating. It is this mentality that has brought our
country to its current political state of affairs, one in which
the government can act with impunity, and without the fear of
accountability to its citizens. Don't be that guy.

FWIW

First, I sent a bcc of the original email sent to Orchid to both
Kris Patzloff and Dana Singer at the same time it went to Orchid. At
this time I have heard from neither of them.

Second I have in the past offered my time to SNAG in various ways
once as a conference volunteer which they accepted. Several years
later I offered to help get their website to a functional useful
state when it was in its infancy and to explore the creation of a
email list or forum for SNAG members. This offer was rejected, it
then took another 3-4 years before there was a viable SNAG website.
I co-submitted a proposal to do an EIP, that proposal was rejected. I
also have written an article for the SNAG newsletter (for which I
was paid the standard amount so it was not a volunteer effort.) I
would be more than happy to work with or on the board if there is an
interest in change but I have no desire to tilt at windmills so
running to be an opposition candidate on the board has no interest
for me.

So I have done probably more than 99.9% of SNAG’s members have done
to support SNAG.

These people, the editor, and the contributors are responsible for
the content of the magazine, not SNAG as an organization. If you
have a problem address it to the proper place. All of their names
are on page 3 of every issue.

I must disagree, The SNAG’s board is responsible for directing the
editor and editorial advisor board as to where they should focus and
the board is responsible to the membership to see than the needs and
wants of the membership are being well served by the publication.

EiP is an Exhibition in Print. Hold on now... That means that it
is first an foremost an exhibition. Each year it is either juried
or curated according to the vision of the juror/ curator. This
year's guest curators were Rachelle Thiewes (Professor at the
University of Texas - El Paso) and Kate Bonansinga (former art
historian and current Gallery Director at the University of Texas -
El Paso). How could you possibly be upset with Metalsmith for the
vision of a curator?

I am upset that the project was allowed to go to print with as little
metalsmithing and jewelry content as was presented. The
responsibility again rests with those that accept the curators
proposal and the review process as the Exhibition In Print went
forward. It is my belief that the responsibility is ultimately with
SNAG’s board as Metalsmith and the EIP are not independent entities
but the publications of SNAG.

I also feel compelled to elaborate on the comments made about SNAG
asking for money. The truth is that SNAG did send letters to all
of its members asking for donations to help keep the organization
afloat. The reason SNAG is in financial trouble is because they
hired a 3rd party consulting company to manage their subscriptions
of Metalsmith earlier this decade. The company did a horrible job,
which resulted in many years of free Metalsmith for many members,
and the loss of 10's of thousands of dollars. This is certainly not
the fault of the members of SNAG, but it necessitated the appeal
for donations. To their credit, SNAG has since consolidated their
offices, cut its annual budget dramatically, and brought
subscription management in house. They are using membership fees
wisely fo' sho'. The SNAG board now pays for all of its expenses
including travel to their own meetings cross country. I proudly
donated $30, about the price of a 1 year subscription.

The problems with the mismanagement of the Metalsmith subscriptions
certainly are not the fault of the membership but certainly the
problem is ultimately the boards responsibility for not having
appropriate auditing in place to see the problem before it got out
of hand. This possibly is the result of too many academics on the
board who do not oversee commercial contracts and therefore are not
familiar with appropriate oversight practices but this is
speculation.

Mr. James Binnion: Thank you for your thoughtful post that has
sparked this lively conversation. As a member of SNAG it is
important that you express your opinions, because without decent, I
honestly believe that academics would over run SNAG. Perhaps we are
on the verge of that. Perhaps it is you that should be leading the
charge for reform. I am not sure if limiting our organization to a
specific and traditional definitions of metalsmithing is the
correct course, but a cacophony of forceful opinions that diverge
from our current trajectory is surely the way forward. In the
future, this type of open criticism would be most effective when
coupled with direct contact to the people most suited to correct
your complaints.

I have conveyed my concerns in the past in one on one conversations
with a few of SNAG’s board members and never seen any changes come
from it so I thought I would bring the issues up on an open forum
not controlled by the SNAG board to see if there was any support for
the idea that some changes need to be made. I think it is obvious
that there is quite a bit of emotion around the subject and some
thoughtful comments have been made. It will be interesting to see if
any changes grow from this.

Regards,

Jim

James Binnion
@James_Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts

360-756-6550

103

I like Metalsmith. I look forward to each issue. I’ve been a
subscriber and member of SNAG since the beginning of the
organization. I don’t always find the work presented in each issue to
my liking, but I always find something interesting. I realize while I
may not like all the work in a particular issue, there are others
that do, and they may find inspiration in it. I’m not going to cancel
my membership or subscription just because one issue doesn’t meet my
needs.

I hear a lot of voices complaining, but very few voices willing to
spend their time to do something constructive. Write an article and
submit it to Metalsmith for publication. Get involved in SNAG. Write
a letter to the editor.

Complain once, then if you aren’t willing to work on a fix, it seems
to me that you want someone else to fix it, or you just enjoy
complaining.

Steven Brixner
www.brixnerdesign.com

104 
Look how many bears I had killed". To extend the analogy, a
necklace made of gun triggers signifies what ? Every trigger means
one dead body, two dead bodies,... ?

Perhaps every trigger signifies one dead bear, two dead bears.

Steve Brixner
www.brixnerdesign.net

105

Hello Steve,

So your sons want to follow your footsteps in the craft, yet you
would like them to have a college education.

May I suggest that they could find a degree program that has meaning
to them and use their electives to minor in art. Business
administration would be a very good degree choice for anyone wanting
to be in business for her/himself. I wish I’d taken a few courses. My
daughter who has a degree in international marketing, has given me
some very good advice on the business stuff, including what I should
be doing to better market myself. Even more important is that a
background in business should help in investing for retirement -
that’s just as important as the daily business stuff.

To keep costs down, the first two years can be taken at a community
college. Nearly all credits will transfer to the four-year
institution, but it’s wise to talk to advisers at both schools so
that there are no misunderstandings.

When the degree is complete, they will still need your “home
schooling”, but should have acquired some good skills in thinking,
researching, planning, and organizing. All are assets, regardless of
the career.

I don’t think anyone has regretted the effort to get a degree, Judy
in Kansas, who got into poison ivy on a field trip. (Itch, itch,
scra… NO! DON’T scratch!!!)

106 
The best judge of art, in my opinion, is a person who has no
training in it. If that person can see what you have created, and
appreciate it *instinctively*, then it is good art. Art which
requires special enlightenment is not art at all.

Paul, you are my hero!

It’s too bad that the self-proclaimed ‘artists’ of Little True
Talent have gained such power over the art world, and turned away
those with impressive talents, visions, and abilities. This has been
done by ignoring or belittling works of meaning and beauty while
embracing work that represents the visions of those who’s only desire
is to elicit a ‘reaction’, not caring whether the reaction is
positive or negative.

Lee Cornelius

107 
Nice to know I'm not the only reader of Orchid who's pretty
disturbed by this whole thread. A whole lot of people not looking
to learn from unfamiliar ideas, but rather, looking for any excuse
to dismiss the things they don't understand.

I’m not dismissing things I don’t understand. I “understand” that
issue perfectly, as well as the prior issues I’ve received.

I also “understand” that they have no relevance in my life right
now. I am not looking to push the limits of what other materials I
can use in my work, I’m still working on successfully using metals
and stones. I am also not looking to push the limits of “avant garde”
design in my work, I’ve got my target audience very clearly defined,
and their taste is decidedly NOT towards the “eclectic”.

As someone who’s just getting started in the business, I’m not
making any money on my jewelry yet. Right now, I’m just spending,
building up inventory for the time when I have enough to start
selling. So I’m spending, spending, spending, bleeding money earned
at my day job, on tools, materials, education, more materials, more
tools, magazines for inspiration, and I need to be sure that this
money is spent wisely. Art Jewelry and Jewelry Artist have given me
some inspiration that I can use. No issue of Metalsmith has, so far.
So far, the best stuff I’ve seen in that publication has been in the
advertisements. And I can probably see those on the internet, which I
already have to pay for to keep my day job.

Perhaps that publication serves some segment of the population.
Those people will continue to subscribe. The segments that it does
not serve will not subscribe. That is the nature of publishing. If
they are going to survive, they need to either scale the publication
to a size that their readership will support, or widen the scope of
what they publish to draw in a readership that will support their
publication. That’s basic business theory.

There’s no need to insult people who choose not to subscribe to a
publication that does not interest them, or no longer interests them.
Should I have joined the boards of “Seventeen” and “Tiger Beat”
magazines when I got too old for them, and tried to change them into
what I wanted them to be? Or should I allow them to be what they
are, suiting the needs of their target audience, and find
publications that suit my needs better?

108 
It is disappointing and I'm left wondering just how much Orchid
applies to my life in the field. I'm actually thinking about
cancelling my Orchid membership....

I appreciate the irony.

I think this whole discussion is invigorating. Very healthy.

I sit between the seemingly disparate groups. I appreciate the
academic world’s pushing the envelope and pissing everyone off. I
respect the anal workmanship of the gem and platinum jeweler’s. I am
influenced by both and believe in both voices, both extremes
defining the field.

Today I started a Sculpture class at the local junior college. I
like to take courses outside my comfort zone or field. My intent was
to use the influence to create contempory and elegant sculptural
earrings, yet I know to go into these classes with an open mind as
to the possibilities. Two years ago I took a 3D Design class there
expecting new work to emerge and instead got some fabulous torsos as
display for my wholesale booth. Today I sit here wondering if I
shouldn’t just have taken a metals class in Mendocino or a masters
class at Revere. Time will tell.

What I’m saying is that these discomforting or opposing concepts we
like or don’t like about SNAG, Metalsmith or Orchid move us forward
in ways we don’t realize until later.

Thanks for the invigorating thoughts.

109

Hi everyone,

I feel that I need to speak up FOR Metalsmith. Also, I wonder
whether everyone understands how the Exhibition in Print works. It is
an annual issue. Every other year, the EIP is guest-curated by
someone(s) who have made a proposal for a special issue about a theme
that interests them. The alternate years are competitively entered
and juried, so they generally show a wider range of work. The EIP is
completely separate from the quarterly magazines. I personally do not
care for much of the work in this year’s Exhibition in Print, but it
is simply one CURATED exhibition. The most recent issue of Metalsmith
has a number of articles about truly beautiful work—David Huang’s
work finally got the attention that it has long deserved, for
instance.

SNAG tries to have something for everyone, in a field that covers a
wide range----from experimental academic work to sculptural metalwork
to beautifully made traditional jewelry. Without the experimental
stuff, the field does not advance. After all, not every experiment is
beautiful, nor is it successful, but risks must be taken. Sometimes,
an experiment is a visual failure, but we still learn from it.

I think that it is wrong to judge all of SNAG, and all of Metalsmith
by one guest-curated issue.

Cynthia Eid

110 
If you have any awareness of the history of art, you know that
every icon that we now hold up as a paragon of art had to struggle
for acceptance when they did something new!

Praxiteles never struggled for acceptance. We have many ancient
references from his contemporaries praising his work. The Aphrodite
of Knidos serves as proof to this day of his skill.

Why did Van Gogh die penniless and early? My favorite example is
Rodin. His sculptures are now so widely known that they have become
cliche' (the Kiss, the Thinker) but when he was alive, his work
*literally* caused riots!

My recollection of Rodin’s work was that most of the contraversy
surrounding it was focused on his use of mass production.

On the contrary, work that demands no second look, no
understanding, that provokes no controversy, cannot be doing
anything new. There is always resisance to the new.

This is, in my opinion, a variation of the tu quoque fallacy. That
everything which provokes contraversy is intrinsically another Rodin
is surely an inappropriate extrapolation. Not all great art has been
contraversial in its day. Great art speaks to the nature of human
existence, and is indeed appreciated viscerally. Michelangelo’s
David evokes nothing that did not exist before he sculpted it. One
can appreciate it without a word of explanation. You could do so the
day it was sculpted. There is nothing new there. At its core, it
resonates with something deeply human, which the work that I have
seen in my(very limited) experience with Metalsmith does not.

New or old does not make a thing intrinsically better, either. Today
our culture is fascinated with res novae, but if we look to the
romans, for example, they culturally feared new things. Ovid’s
Metamorphoses very carefully details the descent from the glorious
golden age, even then considered ancient. Neither perspective is
superior to the other, and neither is necessarily correct.

There are some pretty old works of art as well that I doubt would be
commonly accepted for public display today. Specifically, L’Origine
du Monde comes to mind. A quick google should find an image of that
one, though bear in mind it’s hardly safe for work.

Paul Anderson

111 
Complain once, then if you aren't willing to work on a fix, it
seems to me that you want someone else to fix it, or you just enjoy
complaining.

I think, in my case at least, I will vote with my dollars.

Paul Anderson

112 
Would you feel better if Metalsmith was called "Conceptual
Ornamentation" and their mission statement changed to reflect the
evolution and changes in material choices for body geography?

I think it would be more appropriate. I am not opposed to
experimentation, but as with any experimentation, 99% of it usually
ends in failure. Thomas Edison spent years working on an improved
filament for lightbulbs, and him and many associates tried thousands
of different materials, and the vast majority of the time, they
failed. There is no problem with this. Much of my displeasure rests
with the branding of failures as successes, and the attack of those
who refuse to “see the Emperor’s new clothes” as uneducated and
closed-minded.

Paul Anderson

113

Try this site for some really interesting work. Go down the page as
the initial image is not indicative of the greater content.

http://tinyurl.com/6z4dxd

Then try www.marzee.org, click on artists.

Richard Hart

114

Good morning everyone,

Wow, I’ve never witnessed such amazing feedback! I must say that SNAG
is lucky to have such passion in its members. As one who runs a
metals organization, I rarely receive criticism, and it may only
come when someone doesn’t renew. I welcome input as to the way SAS is
run. When I decided to stop our hard copy of the newsletter and make
it an online version, I heard nothing. Not one word in over six
years! Members receive free exposure as to what they would like
posted, even images. As you can see on this page:
http://www.silversmithing.com/memnews.htm, very few individuals
participate. When I send out a member welcoming letter, at the end
it says: If there’s ANYTHING you need, don’t hesitate to contact me.
I even have a toll-free number for members. If I hear nothing, I have
to assume that member is receiving what they paid for.

If you’re unhappy with the way SNAG is run and how it looks, don’t
talk behind their back, write a letter. Change will only happen when
enough voices are heard.

Jeffrey Herman, Founder & Executive Director
Society of American Silversmiths

115

Greetings All,

Having sat back and watched this conversation unfold, I think that
the issue is quite simple. You just have to ask yourself, “are you an
artist or jeweler?” No, no, no… not that you can’t be both, but
fundamentally, it boils down to the fact that either you make jewelry
to put food in your mouth and provide for yourself and family, or you
do it as a form of artistic expression. Metalsmith caters to the
world of artists. Whereas publications like MJSA cater to more
traditional jewelers. Since I’ve hardly ever seen anything that was
labeled as “jewelry” in Metalsmith that was commercially viable, the
publication holds no appeal to me. To somewhat paraphrase Paul
Anderson (hope I’m not putting words in his mouth), Metalsmith is to
Jewelry what Warhol was to Art. Those that consider the work of
Warhol “Art” will no doubt enjoy Metalsmith. It is just that simple.
If you are a jeweler because it puts food on the table, Metalsmith
has no meaning for your studio (yes, I am speaking in generalities),
but if you don’t need your work to sell, don’t need to appeal to the
masses, and like to experiment, then Metalsmith is right up your
alley. Oh well, just my 2 cents anyway

Have a great day all!

Erich C. Shoemaker
Erich Christopher Designs, LLC

116 
Maybe there is an opportunity for another publication that speaks
to the rest of us.

Actually, there is one. Brad Simon puts out a magazine called Bench
that deals with techniques and skills needed for today’s jewelers,
including articles on Cad Cam, casting, fabrication. Probably not for
some of the most experienced members of Orchid, and certainly not for
those looking for articles about art jewelry, but a helpful tool
anyway. You should all look into it.

Daniel R. Spirer, G.G.
Daniel R. Spirer Jewelers, LLC

117

As an academic I feel I can shed some light on the SNAG discussion.

Many “applied” programs have trouble getting respect in 4-year or
graduate universities. Therefore, art teachers in those institutions
focus on getting to and staying on the cutting edge. They are
rewarded through the tenure process for publication, research and
innovation, NOT for teaching or counseling students. These applied
programs struggle to maintain their academic standing. Oftentimes
their facilities are sub-standard due to lack of funding, while
science labs in the same universities are overflowing with unused
equipment. The faculty in 4-year schools mostly deal with young
folks straight out of high school who see college as an opportunity
to push boundaries and soar into the unknown.

Compare that with the faculty at Community Colleges and jewelry
schools. There teachers focus on technique and basic or advanced
skills while nurturing the individual student’s creativity. Their
facilities may be just as poor as those at a 4-year school. Many of
the students are “returning” or adult students who want to learn
more practical, basic skills which they can then apply to their own
artistic endeavors or work life. Publication and research mean
nothing to CC faculty… it’s all about teaching and nurturing
students.

I’m grateful for the talented teachers I had in art programs in both
types of schools, but I recognize that they had very different
focuses. Apply that to the SNAG discussion. Perhaps there is room
for both types of publication, just as there is room for different
types of education.

PS…I am a Librarian/Jeweler. I do not teach art.

Katie

118 
But, if you had gone to the university to study chemical
engineering you would have graduated with the abilbity to get a job
in that field.

I may be out of date, but I don’t think you can get an undergraduate
degee in Chemical Engineering that prepares you to work in the field
without further training. A BA or even a BS is just a foundation in
a complex field such as this-- my point exactly. No?

Noel

119

Hello again all,

I would like to address a couple more statements that have been
made.

James Binnion -

...running to be an opposition candidate on the board has no
interest for me.

I am on the nominations and elections committee, and as far as I
know there are currently NO candidates for the board in next year’s
election. There are obviously a number of people who would love to
see another Orchid participant elected to the SNAG board, and I
believe that you could make a strong showing. Despite the fact that
everyone in SNAG is given several opportunities to vote, turnout is
always low. You could even win with only mail-in ballots, provided
there were enough of them, which means that your supporters do not
have to attend the conference if that is not their thing.

James Binnion -

It is my belief that the responsibility is ultimately with SNAG's
board as Metalsmith and the EIP are not independent entities but
the publications of SNAG.

Believing this to be the case does not make it so. While it is true
that SNAG publishes metalsmith, if the board had any direct control
over Metalsmith, the magazine would lose the “neutrality” within
which it operates. Suzanne Ramljak and the Editorial Advisory
Committee, to a lesser extent, however, have responsibility for the
content of the magazine, but not the EiP.

Kevin P. Kelly -

Only academics have enough time and leisure to write for
publications like "Metalsmith".

Of the thirteen writers by-lined in Vol 28 No 2 (Spring 2008) of
Metalsmith (the one sitting by my desk), only one claims to be a
teacher, another is an art historian, and another is Matthew Kangas.
That is only three of thirteen writers who are “academics.” I also
think it is disrespectful to assume that anyone considers writing
for a publication as a leisure activity, especially a publication as
critically reviewed as Metalsmith. Look at the responses here in
this forum. Would you leisurely throw yourself into the critical eye
of not only these passionate goldsmiths, but all the other
constituencies the magazine serves?

Dennis Loss -

But, if you had gone to the university to study chemical
engineering you would have graduated with the abilbity to get a
job in that field...I still believe that a university does owe the
student a full knowlege of their chosen field.

You would begin with an entry level job in chemical engineering, but
only if you were a good student. I am sure that there are plenty of
people with degrees in chemical engineering who barely scraped
through and are now doing something totally different. They probably
applied for the big jobs and the companies lamented the fact that the
university programs were not properly training their students.
Another way to look at it is to ask the question, “Which field is a
BFA in Metalsmithing/Jewelry preparing a student to enter?” A studio
artist, a jeweler, a silversmith, a jewelry designer? All of those
fields have the expectation that you have on one 30 credit hour
concentration.

Another poster (I am sorry, but I cannot find the original anymore)
raised the question of how Metalsmith and SNAG are relevant to a
jeweler/goldsmith. I propose that they are relevant because they
provide connection, and context regarding the field you
are in. It may not be exclusively about jewelry or metal or any one
other term, but that does not make it irrelevant. For me, that is
worth $0.22 per day.

Bryan Park
www.bryanpark.net

120 
It's too bad that the self-proclaimed 'artists' of Little True
Talent have gained such power over the art world, and turned away
those with impressive talents, visions, and abilities. This has
been done by ignoring or belittling works of meaning and beauty
while embracing work that represents the visions of those who's
only desire is to elicit a 'reaction', not caring whether the
reaction is positive or negative.

I’m not an artist and have never claimed to be one. But I have
always appreciated art as I was surrounded by people in various
fields of art as a child. My older son, however, is an artist. Mind
you, the boy can do a perfect line drawing portrait of me and it will
look just like I do (just as Picasso was able to do with absolutely
minimal work involved). But that isn’t what drives him. Artists just
see things differently than most people do. It’s no surprise that so
many of them over the years have been neurotic, addicts, egomaniacs,
etc.

Currently my son is producing work based on an old book of opals
that I gave him. Well, actually it would take quite an eye to realize
that they have anything to do with opals (especially since the book
was so old that most of the colors had faded) but it is the basis of
his current oils. He works in layers, starting with the colors he has
taken from the book and adding more and more oil on top until he
creates a texture on top of the colors. Look deeply into the
paintings and you’ll see it. Just glance at them and you won’t. I’m
not sure I completely understand what he’s doing. On the other hand,
he just had his first gallery show in NYC, with 4 other artists, and
he sold all 7 pieces he put in the show (the others collectively
only sold 3 pieces) and the gallery owner (in London—they have two
galleries) wants to meet with him to talk about representing him all
the time. Art isn’t only pretty pictures. (I mean how many pictures
of sailboats can be painted anyway?) It won’t always be understood by
people (especially those living during times of change in the art
world), it won’t always make sense to everyone, and it won’t always
please everyone. SO WHAT?

By the way this is not a defense of Metalsmith. I stopped reading
the thing more than 20 years ago and never looked back. Can’t say as
I feel that I’ve missed anything either.

Daniel R. Spirer, G.G.
Daniel R. Spirer Jewelers, LLC