Sarah Murphy

"I believe that jewelry is not a precious object due to its material value, but due to the invisible narrative connected to it."

Murphy has always been fascinated with the value placed upon a piece of jewelry, in which sentiment so heavily outweighs the monetary value. The concept of value is explored in her work by creating gems out of discarded plastic material to break the stigma that jewelry must be made purely of fine, precious materials. Through this body of work, she vividly reclaims emotional value by applying the kintsugi philosophy of finding beauty in imperfections. The kintsugi process of mending broken objects with gold adhesive demonstrates how empowerment can be achieved through one becoming aware, having desire, and making a change. It is this process of empowerment that drives her work—controlling the uncontrolled. Jewelry is the perfect form for this exploration as it not only acts as a connective device between two or more people, but it also holds immense value through the invisible narrative connected to the human condition.

Sarah Murphy has created her own unique jewelry making process that involves creating her own gems from discarded plastic material collected from her family’s steel cable manufacturing plant in Marion, Ohio. This process involves creating each flower-shaped plastic gem by hand, followed by a dying process to achieve the vast array of vivid colors.

Murphy began her jewelry training at Kent State University while obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Fashion Merchandising. She then went on to complete her Master of Fine Arts degree in Jewelry at Savannah College of Art and Design in 2019.

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