One of the lessons I learned when I was in art school that has turned out to be invaluable to me was taught not by a jeweller or metalsmith, but by a drawing teacher. It was my first year of art school, during the torture training period of art foundation that all freshmen had to survive go through. This particular lesson was taught during a critique of our drawings of a model that we’d worked on during several of the preceding classes. I hated it at the time, but it taught me something that’s saved my sanity I have many times. In the end, I became grateful for the lesson, which applies to making jewelry as well as any other type of art or craft.
The story…
Once upon a time a girl named Robyn went to art school. She had a drawing class where she worked very hard on a drawing of a model. She spent many hours on this drawing, and was very proud of it when it was finished. When the class gathered for the professor to critique their drawings, the professor instructed them to lay them in a line on the floor where we could all see them. With just a bit of nervousness about getting her precious drawing dirty, Robyn placed it in the line on the floor. The professor commenced to critique the drawings at one end of the line. Much to the alarm of the student artists, as he moved down the line of drawings, he walked on the ones he had previously critiqued as though it were the most natural thing in the world. Eyes got round as the face of Big Ben, lower lips were chewed, fingers twitched, but not one student said a word. After critiquing and walking down the line of about half of the drawings, the professor stopped, grinned and said to us, "Yes, I’m walking on your drawings. Why? Because if you’re going to be a professional artist, you need to learn this now. Reviewers and galleries will disrespect your work and pick it to pieces verbally and publicly, in front of you and behind your back, without caring about your feelings at all. Customers will do as the reviewers will do, and worse. They will stuff it in closets, hang it upside down, break it, throw it away, and anything else they feel like. Get used to the idea NOW that your work is just an object to most people, a lot like tupperware. At least, until you’re dead or very famous for it."
Moral of the story: Your work isn’t precious to anyone but you (and maybe your mother). Get used to it. Now. It will save you a lot of agonizing heartache.
This little tool that I put together myself is just one of the handiest things I’ve ever had. I got the idea to use a needle to move coils and make room for coiling wire from 