Fulfillment is on view at the Baltimore Jewelry Center from July 22 - August 26, 2022.
I will be giving an artist talk followed with a pop-up of my ready-to-wear jewelry on August 25, 2022 at 7pm. The artist talk will be available to attend via Zoom, details to come.
Fulfillment is an exhibition of jewelry and speculative objects by the Baltimore Jewelry Center’s inaugural Teaching Fellow, Andy Lowrie. While completing his Fellowship at the BJC, Lowrie has been reflecting on his work life in the United States. While this has most recently been as a jewelry and metals instructor, it has also included labor and production roles unrelated to his training; day jobs he took on to support his work as an artist. The experience of teaching a craft and sharing a passion sits in stark contrast to the extreme physical output demanded of American manufacturing and logistics. Fulfillment weaves the influence of these experiences together in an attempt to exorcize the difficult and meditate on the meaningful. The exhibition includes [surround] sound designed by Baltimore-based composer, Jason Charney.
From the Artist
Since relocating to the US in 2016 I’ve been thinking a lot about labor. My first job in the US was in an Alabama warehouse, mixing ink and printing t-shirts. While far removed from my creative practice, it provided some of the financial support I needed and helped me find my bearings in a new country. I eventually found my way back to making, as I connected with creative communities and replaced semi-skilled labor with graduate study (the similarities of the two surprised me). When the pandemic hit, my graduate studies were brought to an abrupt halt and I went into unskilled labor, this time in a shipping facility, disturbingly named a fulfillment center. My time in this field was short lived, a brief 3 months, as I soon accepted a position as Teaching Fellow at the Baltimore Jewelry Center, which also gave me the opportunity to create the exhibition in front of you now.
The word fulfillment sits so uncomfortably on my mind when I think about it in terms of product and labor. Most of my employment in the US has been grossly underpaid, based primarily on minimum wage standards and a negligent attitude towards mental and social wellbeing in American work culture and legislation. The cause for this is with institutions and ideals that are above and beyond the individuals I’ve worked (and commiserated) with. Through these jobs I’ve also experienced the use of digital technology to further dehumanize work life, with emailing, barcoding and biometric scanning, replacing direct (verbal, social) communication in the workplace. The imperative for this culture is reportedly economic growth. This can be a very seductive argument and is one that likely creates tension for most of us. Fulfillment is not a word that comes to mind.
When people ask me what my favorite tool is (a popular question for makers to ask each other), I now say my hands. I have come to identify strongly with the ability humans have to think with their hands. Aside from the obvious uses of the hand in jewelry making, I have found enjoyment in all of my work through the use of my hands and body. Through them, I problem make and problem solve. I lose time in the rhythms and repetition of the task at hand. I repeat, practice and perfect. This is true in the warehouse, the classroom and the studio. Fulfillment finds a place through it.
Andy Lowrie
Physical labor and music have always been companions. We naturally subdivide time into regular, rhythmic units to maintain focus and consistency, or to sonically coordinate action with a larger group. All the sounds in Fulfillment are generated from recordings of Andy’s laborious metalsmithing processes: heating with a gas torch, forming with a hammer, or polishing with a brush, for example. Thickly layered and stretched or compressed in time and pitch, these sources are often unrecognizable, but reflect the diverse sonic experiences and alchemic labor of a jewelry studio.
Jason Charney
