Alison Pack

Artist Statement: I express my views of womanhood and femininity through representational art. I use the traditional metalsmithing techniques of fabrication, shell- forming, and raising to create hollow constructions. I have been greatly influenced by the work of master metalsmith, Marilyn da Silva and the sculptor, Judith Shea. I had the privilege of working with Marilyn at Arrowmont and Penland during graduate school. What she offered me through technique and dialogue was a life changing experience. My greatest influence was being taught to become the stereotypical southern woman. My family taught me to be a “girly girl” with great importance placed on my figure, clothing, hair, make-up as well as, being properly trained in domestic duties. Older women around me taught me that the most important thing I could do would be marry a good man and raise a family; at most become a teacher, traditionally a female role.

It was obvious as a small child that my talents were in the visual arts. I thrived in art class, had private instruction and focused on the visual arts in high school. As an active leader in school organizations I had aspirations of becoming an art teacher. My high school experiences were primarily two-dimensional. During my first two years of undergraduate school, strict emphasis was placed on design and drawing. During my junior year I took a metals class as an elective. It was during this three-dimensional experience that I became so passionate about metal that I believed it chose me. This was my first three-dimensional experience. Being raised in the manner that I was, tools were considered to be unavailable and unfeminine. The development of my hand skills through sawing, filing and forming soon proved to be stronger works of art that than I had been creating two-dimensionally. The third dimension was and is the best way I have to make art, which reflects my observations about womanhood.

Extremely comfortable with my womanhood, I discovered in graduate school that I could embrace my femininity and celebrate it through female forms. It is ironic that by using traditionally male-oriented tools, I could make feminine art focusing on the beauty of the dress form. As a metalsmith, I work with the non-ferrous metals copper and sterling silver. Because of the precious nature of the material that I use and the experiences I draw from two worlds: jewelry and metalsmithing, I work on a small scale. I focus primarily on ornamentation and small scale. Miniature objects made with fine metals embellish the forms that I work with.

As a student my work focused on the innocence and beauty of the feminine form and female-oriented clothing. By creating these works I not only was able to re-live some of my life experiences, but certain pieces became surrogates for experiencing my fantasies of a glamorous and fashionable life style. As I have matured, my work now pursues stereotypes, misconceptions and clichés of womanhood.