Three Cats and a Dog Design Studio

Beth Wicker

8628 Maple Ridge Lane, Montgomery, Alabama 36116

843-910-0317 sandhillltd@earthlink.net

www.bethwicker.com www.bethwicker.etsy.com

I have been a Southerner all my life, except for one aberrant year spent at Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan. My Southern roots inform my art - the love of the land, the nature, the repeating patterns - these show up in myriad ways even when they aren’t obvious. I started creating as a child, and have never stopped. I have worked in a range of media, and am applying to the Alabama Designer Craftsmen with my metalsmithing/mixed media work.

I have a BA in Fine Art and an MFA in printmaking, but as a metalsmith I have learned from a variety of workshops, books, videos and friends. I actually made my first jewelry as part of my creative work as a “tween”, and then started back big time when my daughter was about the same age, and said “Mom - can you teach me how to make jewelry?”. Off we went! This led to the aforementioned learning, then to setting up a studio in my home where we both could work.

I have a range of tools (I am an acknowledged tool-aholic!) including a hydraulic press, rolling mill, various shears, kiln, various torches, one of Potter USA’s brand new Quick Form Presses, many many hammers and other tools for working and shaping metal. I love the way the hydraulic press allows me to cut a shape out of steel tool once to make my own die, then quickly cut out the same shape multiple times, thus greatly reducing the cost. All of the shapes you will see in my work I made myself.

I had my own gallery for a few years before my daughter was born. Since they I have sold through numerous galleries and shops; at various shows; and at the American Handcrafted Show in Philadelphia. I have my own website, and shops on Etsy, eBay and Poshmark.

I am a past president of the SC Crafts Association, and the NC Society of Goldsmiths. I was on the Approved Artist Roster of the SC Arts Commission for decades, doing residencies in schools across the state, teaching on their Crafts Truck, and serving on various committees. I helped found the Cheraw Arts Commission in SC, the little town I lived in. I also helped found the Artisans of the SC Cotton Trail, and was President for a few terms.

I moved to Alabama during the pandemic, and am now working to get connected into the Alabama crafts and arts communities.