ABOUT

Renee Gaudet is an independent maker of bold and elegant yet minimal designs.

My hands and mind are my most valuable tools. Though I always wear a helmet; except for that one time, I have yet to figure out how to protect my hands from scars and bruises. Our hands tell stories and form a part of our identities. I enjoy looking at people's hands to figure out how they spend their time, clenching chalk in front of the classroom or pulling bread in and out of an oven. I also look at people's jewelry to understand how they want to be seen by the world. Jewelry has long been used as a form of currency, an expression of culture, religion, status, and self identity.  The link to this ancient trade and modern expression of self is one reason why I love what I do.

Through sawing, soldering, filing and other metalsmithing techniques, I construct hollow forms that reveal depth and dimension.  I believe in a continuous and evolving creative process, which is prone to improvisation and experimentation.  Some of my best designs have come out of this process, where a mistake is transformed into an opportunity to form a new idea. Since 2013, I have worked out of my North Carolina home in Hillsborough where I take care to produce quality work that is innovative, wearable and coveted. 

In the Fall of 2013 I studied at Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina to learn metalsmithing during a 2-month intensive course.  There I gained a broad but deep understanding of the materials and the metalsmithing process. This gave me a strong foundation to continue exploring and learning in my own studio.  As a student I learned a technique called hollow form, and as a class we all fabricated our first hollow form ring. I built a boxy, bulky brass ring that was hideous, but indeed hollow. My intention was to throw it in the scrap bin, but I wanted to destroy it first, so I started sawing away at the corners. As I sawed the inside of the hollow structure revealed angles, depth and dimension. Though, raw and undeveloped this mistake inspired the bold and elegant yet minimal aesthetics of Renee Gaudet Designs.

Thanks for your curiosity and support, it feeds my creativity.