We were lucky to catch up with Joanne Marracci recently and have shared our conversation below.
Joanne, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
Since learning my craft in 2005 with Metalsmithing 101 class at Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle, I have been blessed with being able to connect with my customers through meaningful histories and heirloom re-make projects and even used cremains of loved ones in custom pieces. In addition to creating sterling silver and gemstone works to sell at our local farmers market and galleries, I have been trusted to recreate family heirloom jewelry pieces to breath new life into often vintage and antique gold and gemstones. Most of my clients will come to me with “this was my grandmother’s ring but it’s just not my style and I would like to honor her memory and have something made in my style.” The beauty of this partnership is that I can often use the existing gold and diamonds or gemstones so that new gold may not be needed which saves the client money, recycles the materials so no new mining is required, and they get a remade work of custom precious metal jewelry art from a local maker. I love a win-win!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
As mentioned, I began my jewelry journey by taking a metalsmithing 101 class and further learned my craft through industry magazines, YouTube and other online videos as well as just plain trial and error (lots of error!). I have always been a creative. My father was a builder of things and had us kids painting, sanding, nailing, and sawing on projects around the house at an early age. So I have worked with my hands as long as I could remember. If I needed or wanted something, I just made it. And it never really occurred to me that I couldn’t. As an adult, couldn’t believe anyone could do that for a living. I went to UC San Diego to study biology to become a veterinarian, since I love animals. But after my dad was killed in a plane crash at the start of my sophomore year, I didn’t have the brain capacity to cope with the grief and still pursue my studies. So I changed my major to what I knew best and got my B.A. degree in Art.
However, again, to make an actual living, for the next decade and a half I worked in offices in customer service and project management. Nights and weekends were for making stuff. Whatever I could get my hands on I tried so many mediums before settling in with jewelry making. Carpentry, pottery, music, sewing, sculpture, painting, photography, baking. I need to be creating or I am just not fulfilled. It’s always been a matter of “I wonder if I can make that…” and the only way to know is to try. In fact my credo is “Be Happy. Laugh A Lot. Make Stuff.” And that’s exactly what I do.
When I landed on jewelry, it satisfied my need to work with my hands but it also had an unexpected outcome. I never tried working in gold because it’s insanely expensive! So in 2016 when my own wedding ring with small diamonds and 14k gold kept losing diamonds (prongs wear away, get caught, and stones fall out), I decided to melt the gold from my dad’s wedding band together with my mom’s, who had recently passed away, and my grandmother’s and mom’s diamonds to make a new wedding ring for myself that was a more practical design. Since I work so much with my hands, I created a sleek simple but unique band and flush set the diamonds so there would be no prongs to catch on things and the ring would be low profile. After posting this on Instagram, an old friend had her grandmother’s gold and diamond ring she wanted reimagined and that started the ball rolling. Word got around and now it is something I am quite known for in the little remote valley I live in North Central WA. I never studied working with gold or setting diamonds, but it was just being able to be fearless and trying and practicing that set me on this path. And yes it is indeed terrifying working with expensive precious metals and diamonds especially if they belong to someone else or are family heirlooms! The beauty of gold is it is relatively easy to work with compared to silver. I can remelt and reuse and start again if a project goes south with nothing lost but time.
A note about my methods: I do not cast anything. Everything I make is hand fabricated from precious metal sheet and wire. I will melt scrap gold into a long bar called an ingot. I then have a shop tool that I can roll out lengths of various sized wire or flat sheet. I then take a jewelers saw and specialty pliers to cut out the shapes and lengths I need to design and fabricate everything from rings and necklaces, to earrings and bracelets, even tiny sculptures. I have made a tiny 3D silver violin and the tiniest gold orchids to adorn a handmade wood box.
I try to impart of bit of humor in my work especially if I am creating works for gallery exhibitions at our local gallery. One collection that I am particularly proud of was a series of sterling silver animal necklaces whose tails could move revealing a tiny diamond in their butts. I love taking a “serious” medium like fine jewelry and giving it a little cheeky lift.
I guess I would like people to know most about me is I revel in the imperfections of human nature. I don’t make anything perfect. I love to leave a bit of a “fingerprint” on my work. A scratch, a dent, a wonky shape tells people it is hand made, not machined or cast or otherwise mass produced. That is not to say I do shoddy work. My stones are set well, my rings are sized and made properly for extended wearability, my bails are straight, and my finishes are polished.
And I only usually make one. I like to say I have maker’s ADHD. I just can’t make the same thing over and over again. I find unique stones that are most likely not clear or perfect but have lots of character, color, and pattern. Though I will work with classic gemstones like brilliant cut diamonds, sapphires, rubies, and emeralds.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
Buying locally whenever possible is the best way to ensure creatives, artisans, and artists can continue to enliven your own community with creative expression and a sustainable local economy. Living in a small rural town, we are blessed to have an unusually high concentration of artists and gallery that supports the arts. If Covid taught us anything it’s that we can’t always rely on outside sources. The more we can produce locally, be it art, craft, or food, the more we can support each other when things get rough or other income streams become scarce.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
I think the most rewarding this is seeing someone react when they open that ring box. The gasp, the Oh My, the happy tears, make it all worthwhile. I like to say if I have made someone cry, I’ve done my job. It means we connected. It means they’ve been heard. It means I got it right.
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.marraccidesigns.com
- Instagram: @Marraccidesigns
- Facebook: Marracci Designs
Image Credits
Me.