Narrative Jewelry: Seeing the Invisible

Episode 117

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • What automatons are, and how Kimberly started making them
  • How jewelry helps us tell stories and access imaginary realms 
  • Why living on St. John influences Kimberly’s work in unexpected ways
  • How Kimberly connects to her intuition to make her pieces

About Kimberly Nogueira

Kim Nogueira is an automaton maker and art jeweler who received her education apprenticing as a production goldsmith for 16 years. Her BA in sociology from Smith College supports the multi-dimensional, thought-based yet intuitively-guided explorations that undergird her wearable narrative art practice. 

Kim’s work has been in juried and curated exhibitions both abroad and nationally, such as the Museum of Arts and Design’s MAD about JEWELRY, and her work can be found in periodicals and books, such as 1000 Beads, Behind the Brooch, Narrative Jewelry: Tales from the Toolbox and volumes 2 and 3 of the Society of North American Goldsmiths’ annual compendium Jewelry and Metals Survey. The Morris Museum recently acquired one of her automaton pendants for their permanent collection. Her home base for the past quarter of a century has been the tiny sub-tropical island of St John, in the US Virgin Islands.

Additional Resources 

Episode Transcript

Photos:

Title: “Salt is the Oldest Mystery”

copper, silver, vitreous enamel, antique buddhist immortal bead, african trade bead, cord

photo by artist

Title: “A Trio of Automata”

copper, silver, vitreous enamel, nickel silver, brass

photo by artist

Title: “Mundus Imaginalis”

copper, silver, vitreous enamel, antique buddhist immortal bead, african trade bead, cord

photo by artist

Title: “Vesica Pisces”

copper, silver, vitreous enamel, South Sea pearl, cord

photo by artist

Sharon Berman