As a young man, Pat Flynn was an anomaly among bench jewelers; he enjoyed doing repair work. Considered by most jewelers, tedious, at best, repair work can be frustrating and often risky, too. Flynn treated it as practice. That ethic, the one that values workmanship and the practice that mastery requires, continues to define his work.
Most of his pieces are mixed metal. Iron and steel are among his favorites, usually used in combination with platinum and 18k gold. He also uses diamonds, most frequently, dustings of them, though the occasional large stone may show up. Flynn’s work tends to be thematic. One series for which he is known is a group of brooches based on metaphors of the heart. Another series derives its central element from antique, hand-forged iron nails. For this show, Flynn has prepared an entirely new body of work.
Impeccable workmanship is just one hallmark of Pat Flynn’s jewelry. Refined, understated design is another. His work is comfortable, elegant and gracefully bridges the worlds of jewelry and sculpture. It is for this that Pat Flynn is one of the country’s preeminent art jewelers. This is why his pieces are included in numerous museum collections, including the Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery and the Rhode Island School of Design Museum. He is also a recipient of three National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship grants.
About Pat Flynn, curator and critic Bruce Metcalf writes: “In the end, it’s a quality of life issue. I think our culture hungers for objects in which we can still detect a human presence…. We need objects that have been carefully made, and come to us without hype and hollow fantasies, so that we can touch something honest. In doing so, we are reminded about the difference between what is real and what’s not. Pat Flynn’s jewelry can do these things.” from Pat Flynn, Master Metalsmith, catalogue for the National Ornamental Museum, 1998
Flynn brings some twenty new pieces to this event. Most incorporate forged steel, gold and precious stones. Describing his intention for this current group, Flynn states, “I try to build pieces that are meaningful, responsible and have power beyond their scale.” |
