Materials: Copper sheet, enamel, steel wire, copper wire, glass beads

Statement: The natural world was beautifully represented in my books as a child. All my books had flowing, bleeding colors and illustrations with curved  shapes that seemed like they could jump off the page. One book in particular I can note was called The Trail of the Painted Ponies, a book that followed artists who would paint the same life-sized horse figure in endless, stunning combinations.  I’d stare at the book for hours, picking out my favorites and ranking them. When I started the enamel process I was not satisfied with the lack of bright colors and melted effects. With a painting background, I felt limited in the artistic effects I could achieve merely through sifting.  I began experimenting with beads, enamel chunks, and glass vitrigraph stems. In addition, I experimented with three dimensional shapes, popping up and out the leaves, branches, and the horse silhouette on my brooch. The back and front side of my brooch are entirely covered with melted, oozing enamel of rainbow assortments. My prong set is a panel that has been treated with a heat patina and wax to maintain a leather-like color, reminiscent of a saddle.