Aimee Petkus

Aimee Petkus Jewelry

"When I look at a mineral specimen, I see the millions of years it took to create a seemingly magical object, and it reminds me what a tiny, insignificant amount of time I will physically be able to experience it. "

Aimee Petkus's background in geology coupled with her desire to create manifests itself in the work that she makes. She combines inorganic and organic materials and forms to express this duality within her life. She finds inspiration in the vast canvas of nature, which contains not only living things with symmetry and geometric patterns, but also non-living minerals with haphazard, free-flowing forms. By blending art, science, and the play within such seemingly contradictory elements, Petkus seeks to challenge what we know in order to change the way they look at the world.

In Petkus's work, the stones, rocks, and minerals lead the design. Some of these stones have been dug out of the ground by the artist herself, and many of the minerals have been cut, shaped, and polished by her skilled hands. She creates the settings around the stones using either wax casting or metal fabricating techniques.

Aimee Petkus received her first bachelor's degree in geology from Colorado State University. She worked as an environmental consultant for several years before changing careers. Her second bachelor's degree is in metals and jewelry from the Savannah College of Art and Design.

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Selected Exhibitions & Awards
American Craft Council Show, Baltimore, MD, Baltimore Convention Center, 2015
American Craft Council Show, Atlanta, GA, Cobb Galleria Center, 2015
SNAG Confluence Juried Student Show, Toronto, ON, Canada, SNAG Conference, 2013
Smithsonian Craft Show, SCAD Booth, Washington, DC, National Building Museum, 2013
NICHE Awards, Philadelphia, PA, Buyers Market, 2013
Collections
Savannah College of Art and Design, Hong Kong Campus, Hong Kong, 2014