About

Thank you for taking some time to stop and browse around. This work has been my passion since 2010. I am always eager to answer any questions you may have.

My love of creativity began as a child in the early 1960s, when I was surrounded by the elemental artworks of my father. He was a prolific young artist who often used found materials. A rustic necklace that he made in 1970 fascinated me. I never knew my father—yet the influence of his necklace would later become the foundation of my work as a jewelry artist.

The American West is my heritage and home. As a young woman in the 1980s, I spent a lot of time on horseback in the desert of eastern Washington. My mother and I rode our horses on trails through vast open range of sage and sand. How I treasure those arid landscapes! The summer sunsets over Rattlesnake mountain and the last free-flowing stretch of the Columbia are views that are deeply rooted in my life experience.

Today, my jewelry work is imbued with the essence of two loves. It expresses a feeling of freedom in the elements, like riding horses in the desert. And secondly, the jewelry evokes a memory of something special that has gone before, like the time-worn patina of the necklace that my father made in 1970.

The sense of touch is key to my jewelry-making philosophy. How the jewelry feels is as important as how it looks. Wearing my jewelry is an emotional experience. It is a way of being. The tack leather necklace is my specialty. The warmth and comforting feel of the leather is my signature. Each one-of-a-kind piece is an intriguing statement that can be worn anytime; by women and men as well.

A long career as a graphic designer and several years of residency and study of art and oil painting in Europe also greatly shaped my life and aesthetic views.

My work and studio have been featured in the magazines Where Women Create, Cowboys & Indians, and Western Art & Architecture. Many thanks to these magazines for being an inspiration to me, and to art lovers around the world.

My best, DH