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About the Artist

Bethany Wood was born and raised in West Texas. She earned her BFA in Jewelry design and Metalsmithing from Texas Tech University and her MFA from the University of Iowa. She is now a working artist and Studio Technician at the University of Iowa.

Artist Statement

I have always been interested in the way informal, gestural lines of sketches provide selective and sometimes abstracted information by describing notable or emphasized qualities of their subject. My work explores how these selectively descriptive styles of mark-making can be interpreted from one medium to another (as from drawing to metal, metal to print). In this translation, sketch marks relay specific information that not only describe, but also transform into a material that embraces the abstraction of line and may be used alone or alongside natural and found objects within each piece.

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My work also recognizes the importance of individual interactions between a person specific place or experience, allowing the viewer time and space for introspection and a clear sense of how they exist in relation to that specific object or location. In the same way place is experienced and becomes unique to each person, adornment and small objects generate or emphasize a unique sense of intimacy with the maker, viewer and wearer.

CV

Education:

2017                       

  • MFA in Art, May 2017, University of Iowa, School of Art and Art History, Iowa City, IA, Emphasis: Jewelry and Metal Arts; Secondary Emphasis: Printmaking.

  • Graduate Certificate in Book Arts, May 2017, University of Iowa Center for the Book, Iowa City, IA, Emphasis: Bookbinding, Artist Books.


2016                        

  • MA in Art, May 2016, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, Emphasis: Jewelry and Metal Arts.


2014                        

  • BFA in Art, May 2014, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, Emphasis: Jewelry Design and Metalsmithing.


2009                       

  • BA in Humanities, May 2009, Lubbock Christian University, Lubbock, TX, Emphasis: English. Honors Program Member 2005-2009.

 


Residencies, Teaching Experience, and Related Employment:​

  • Instructional Services Specialist, August 2018 - Present, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA. Studio technician, safety guidance, student and faculty support.

  • Free Studio Artist in Residence, November 1, 2017 – April 30, 2018, Public Space 1, Iowa City, IA.

  • TA Position: Instructor of Record, 2016-17, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, “Elements of Jewelry Design and Metalsmithing”. Instructed students seeking non-arts-related degrees in foundations of jewelry and metal arts. Supervisor: Kee-ho Yuen.       

  • Shop Assistant and Monitor, 2014-2017, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.  Maintained tools and equipment, assisted students with processes and tools, enforced safety and equipment-care policies in the Jewelry and Metal Arts facility. Supervisor: Ben Anzelc.              

  • Assistant Studio Technician, 2016, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA.  Assisted in the set up, installation, and organization of Jewelry and Metal Arts studio workspaces in newly constructed Visual Arts Building.  Supervisor: Ben Anzelc.       

  • TA Position: Instructor of Record, 2015-16, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, “Introduction to Jewelry Design and Metalsmithing”. Instructed students seeking art-related degrees in foundations of jewelry and metal arts. Supervisor: Kee-ho Yuen.

  • TA Position: Instructor of Record, 2014-15, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, “Elements of Jewelry Design and Metalsmithing”. Instructed students seeking non-arts-related degrees in foundations of jewelry and metal arts. Supervisor: Kee-ho Yuen.



Exhibitions:
2018

  • Craft Forms 2018, December 8, 2018 - January 26, 2019, Wayne, PA, International Cometitive Exhibition. Juror: Perry Allen Price. Included work: Look-Out, Look-In (2017).

  • Materials Hard+Soft, February 2 – May 5, 2017, Greater Denton Arts Council, Denton, TX, International Competitive Exhibition. Juror: Perry Price (Houston Center for Contemporary Craft). Included work: Salted (2017).

  • Boundless, Jan 27 – March 10, 2018, Central Features Contemporary Art, Albuquerque, NM, Competitive Exhibition. Included work: Wood Family Album (2015).

 

2017 

  • Craft Forms 2017, December 1, 2017- January 28, 2018, Wayne, PA, International Cometitive Exhibition. Juror: Nora Atkinson. Included work: (Don’t) Let Go (2016); Special recognition: Award of Merit.

  • Solo Exhibiton, September 4- December 1, 2017, Fountain Lobby, UIHC, Iowa City, IA.

  • The Book as Art v. 5: Illuminated, August 11 – September 29, 2017, Decatur Arts Alliance, Decatur, GA, International Competitive Exhibition. Jurors: Anne Beidler, Daniel Essig, John Risseeuw. Accepted work: (Don’t) Let Go (2016); and Wood Family Album (2015). Special recognition: Best in Show.

  • Washington Print Foundation 2017 National Small Works Exhibition, August 3 – 27, 2017, Washington Printmakers Gallery, Washington DC. Juror: Scott Hutchison. Accepted work:  Look-out, Look-In: Impression, Plate 12 (Relief Print, 2017).

  • St. Tammany Art Association 52nd Juried Artists Exhibition, July 8 – August 19, 2017, Covington, LA, National Competitive Exhibition. Juror: William A. "Bill" Fagaly. Included work: Look-out, Look-in (2017).

  • TRAHCs 29th Annual Juried Exhibition, July 14 – August 12, 2017, Texarkana, TX, National Competitive Exhibition. Juror: Lauren Cross. Included works: By the Overalls: Impression, 2 Plates (Relief Print, 2017); and Imitation: Remnant (Mixed Media Drawing/Print, 2017).

  • Sited: An MFA Thesis Exhibition, April 9-15, 2017, Levitt Gallery, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, Solo thesis exhibition.


2016               

  • Craft Forms 2016, December 4, 2016- January 28, 2017, Wayne, PA, International Competitive Exhibition. Juror: Stephano Catalani. Included work: I Used to Sketch Things (2015); Special recognition: Award of Merit.

  • The Fourth Iowa Metals Guild Exhibition: Iowa + Taiwan, October 10, 2016 – June 1, 2017, Cedar Rapids Museum, Cedar Rapids, IA, International Exhibition. Curator: Kee-ho Yuen.

  • Any Portmanteau In the Storm, April 2-22, 2016, Norfolk, VA. Juror: Christine Zoller. International Competitive Exhibition. Included work: Defensive: Pinecone Scale Maille; Special recognition: Kaleo Legal non-purchase award.

  • Given Time: Work By Stephanie Brohman, Trudi Starbeck-Miller, and Bethany Laranda Wood, August 2-November 3, 2016, Fairfield Arts and Convention Center, Fairfield, IA.  Group exhibition.


2015                       

  • Momentum: SNAG Juried Student Exhibition, May 20-23, 2015, Boston, MA, International competitive exhibition. Jurors: Efharis Alepedis and Loring Taoka. Included work: I Used to Sketch Things.


2013                        

  • BFA Studio Senior Group Exhibition, November 11-24, 2013, Landmark Arts, Studio Gallery, School of Art, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas. Acted as Gallery Coordinator for exhibition, assisted in exhibition organization and installation.


2012                       

  • 25th Annual TTU Juried Student Exhibition, March 24-April 15, 2012, Landmark Arts Gallery, Texas Tech University, Juror:  Arturo Palacios, Owner/Director, Art Palace, Houston and independent curator. 

  • Land Arts of the American West Exhibition, April 6-28, 2012, Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts, Lubbock, TX, Curator: Chris Taylor, Professor of Architecture, Texas Tech University. Assisted in installation of work.

 

Publications:

2018                       

  • SNAG JaMS: Jewelry and Metals Survey. Selected works: (Don’t) Let Go (2016), Look-out, Look-In (2017).


Collections:
Archive Collections, Center for Art + Environment, Nevada Museum of Art, Reno, NA.


Lectures/Artist Talks/Workshops:
2018                       

  • Artist Workshop, March, 2018, Public Space 1, Iowa City, IA.


2016                        

  • Artist Talk, August 5, 2016, Fairfield Arts and Convention Center, Fairfield, IA.      



Scholarships and Awards:
2017

  • Award of Merit, Craft Forms 2017, Wayne, PA, Juror: Nora Atkinson. Awarded work: (Don't) Let Go.

  • Best in Show, The Book as Art v. 5: Illuminated, Decatur, GA, Jurors: Anne Beidler, Daniel Essig, John Risseeuw. Awarded work: (Don’t) Let Go (2016).

​

2016                        

  • Award of Merit, Craft Forms 2016, Wayne, PA, Juror: Stephano Catalani. Awarded work: I Used to Sketch Things (2015.)

  • Kaleo Legal Non-purchase Award, Any Portmanteau In the Storm, Norfolk, VA. Juror: Christine Zoller. Awarded work: Defensive: Pinecone Scale Maille.


2013                       

  • Women’s Jewelry Association Scholarship, National competitive scholarship awarded by the Women’s Jewelry Association, Poughkeepsie, New York, juried by twenty-seven WJA members from across the country, representing all aspects of the jewelry industry.

  • Medici Circle Endowed Scholarship, School of Art, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, competitive scholarship.     



Art-Related Service:
2017                       

  • Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Adjudication, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, January 9-12, Adjudicator. Participated on a panel for selecting works by exceptional students in grades 7 -12 from Iowa and the Midwest Region to be recognized in the annual, national Scholastic Art Competition.


2014                        

  • Saturday Morning Art Project, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, Spring 2013, Workshop Assistant. SMAP is a weekly workshop designed to introduce promising art students from area high schools to aspects of Texas Tech University’s fine arts facilities and practice. Participants are selected from students who are recommended by local art educators and are given the opportunity to work in various media from paint and papermaking to ceramic sculpture and silver casting.


2013                       

  • “Color & Metal: A Workshop”, Monterey High School, Lubbock, TX 79423, March 2013, Workshop Assistant,  “Color & Metal: A Workshop” was designed to demonstrate basic metalsmithing techniques over the course of 3 days to more than 100 local high school students that might not otherwise be exposed to them. Responsibilities: Helping students develop concepts, instructing them on basic techniques including piercing, drilling, filing, sandblasting, and using prismacolor on metal.

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