You could say that art was my inheritance. My father was an architect and my mother was a decorator. From my student years studying sculpture at the College For Creative Studies to my current role as founder and chief designer at Elements Jewelry Studio in Royal Oak, MI I have anchored both my artistic vision and the work I produce around what I call the E.P.I.C. Principle – Design that embodies Engagement, Passion, Integrity, and Collaboration.

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I opened my business in 1989, a year after I graduated. I quickly realized that the life of a gallery artist just wasn’t for me. I’m more comfortable working with people directly through my studio, I feel it provides room for exploration and freedom on a large scale. What I have learned over the years is that engaging with individuals is how you judge whether your art “works” or not. If you create something and nobody else engages with it, you’ve probably made a mistake.

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To me Passion is the foundation of all art from the most abstract painting to wearables like jewelry and fashion. With no passion, you have no engagement and all you have is a product that no one cares about. Passion needs to express itself through materials whether we are talking about paint and canvas, film, music, bronze, wood, glass, stone, metal or any of the other artist mediums that are available.Each of these mediums has to be treated with Integrity, which begins by understanding their inherent qualities as well as their potential for transformation.

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And finally, Collaboration has always been a critical element of my approach to design – from listening to the critiques of my art professors, to interacting with other creative people, to working with clients in my store co-designing their memories and hopes and translating them into physical form.