Patina Gallery announces Line & Brush an exhibit of works in jewelry by artist Myung Urso, opening July 13. Twenty five new works will be presented. Urso has earned numerous honors, including the 2010"New Direction - Excellence in Design of the Future" award at the Washington Craft Show. Her work exudes a contemporary, Asian-influenced sophistication.

As a child in Korea, Myung Urso was part of a culture and time in which working with the hands was intrinsic to daily life. She helped her mother with cooking and gardening, and drying flowers and plants. She learned hand stitching and practiced the graceful brush work of calligraphy. Much of her world was created by hand, with craft centuries old. When she left her village to study biology at Hongik University in Seoul, she carried with her the rich aesthetic experience of her childhood. She went on to study fiber arts and then traveled to London where she earned a Masters degree in curatorship and gallery management. She now resides in the United States.

In Urso's jewelry we discover a culmination of her rich, multi-cultural life and work. It has an organic quality that is refreshingly straightforward and original. Her resourcefulness finds expression in the variety of materials she employs. Everything is fair game, from rubber and linen, to mulberry paper, sticks and occasionally precious metals. She frequently returns to the crafts of her childhood, incorporating stitching and calligraphy. "Materials have their own voice and speak to me in a way that I must listen and follow. I continuously endeavor to listen to their voice and bring them into my jewelry."

Urso will attend the opening reception, Friday, July 13, beginning at 5:00. Urso will demonstrate some of her jewelry making techniques throughout that weekend. The exhibit runs through August 5, 2012.