Growing up my parents fostered my creativity. Making things: conceptualizing, designing, creating has always been part of my life. My mother passed her passion for Fiber Arts on to me. She knitted and sewed. I learned both by observing her. My dad, an engineer, encouraged me to assist him with projects. He taught me how to hold a file and swing a hammer.
My career in metals, melding my aptitude for small scale and my interest in design, started with a friendship to a young goldsmith. My curiosity prompted an invitation to visit his studio. He introduced me to soldering, and I fabricated my first pieces of jewelry, 22 years ago. This euphoric experience led to an apprenticeship and my education in the metal arts field. Upon Graduation from High School, having passed the entrance exam for two Art Schools, I decided to go to the Staatliche Zeichenakademie in Hanau. The school’s curriculum combines classical training in the trade of gold-smithing with drafting, drawing and design. With the BA degree in hand, I found employment and had the opportunity to work side by side with a certified master jeweler.
Sterling Silver, 22kt Yellow Gold, Freshwater Pearl Pin
In 1990, I relocated from Germany to California, where I began to teach metal-smithing. Over the last decade, I have produced my designs and exhibited my work in Fine Craft Shows and Galleries throughout the United States.
For the past years, this has joyfully been my full time avocation and devotion.
Website: Kupke Peyla
