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Unconventional jewelry and humorous tote bags filled the Shaffer Art Building, along with an extensive display of colorful bowls, animal-faced cups and dynamic prints. But for Janice Sheridan, a graduate pottery student, the most important part of the Art Market was the students.

“It’s a private club run by the students, it supports the students, it goes back to their education,” Sheridan said. “It all goes back to the students.”

Tuesday was the opening day of the biannual Art Market, hosted by The Shaped Clay Society and Command Print. The three day market brings together students from the jewelry and metalsmithing, ceramics and print and illustration departments to sell the art work they’ve created throughout the semester.

Students in the jewelry and metalsmithing department created and packaged their individual pieces themselves. The artists in this department keep 100% of their proceeds, with buyers directly Venmoing the sellers.

Kai Blunt is a first-year Fashion Design Major who is currently taking introduction to jewelry and metalsmithing. He took the class to fulfill a requirement for his major, but enjoyed it so much that he is now hoping to add it as a minor.

“In high school, I liked making jewelry, and I started out with this wire wrap stuff,” Blunt said. “Then when I got to college, I had access to more materials. I’m working in sterling silver now, more precious metals, and more precious stones. I have access to new ways of finishing metals and materials like blow torches, that (I) wouldn’t have at home.”

Maddie Gage, a Studio Arts Major with a Ceramics Concentration, has been participating in the Art Market for years. She is one of two ceramics majors in the show, and has been preparing for it since September.

“There’s a lot of preparation… just preparing in time for firings because (pieces) go through for three phases but like there’s still time in between (phases) also preparing these pieces,” Gage said.

Any student who has taken at least one studio art class can participate in the market. Leading up to the sale, students reflect on what was successful in past markets and work on fine tuning those items. A successful art market benefits both artists and the Shaped Clay Society.

“I keep 60% of (funds), and the other 40 goes to the club,” Gage said. “It’s a lot of paying attention to what’s sold and what’s actually going to be worthy of putting out and thinking about what practically college students are going to buy.”

The jewelry and metalsmithing table at the Art Market had a very successful opening day, selling almost half their inventory, said Leah Bella Zinder, who is an adjunct professor currently pursuing her MFA in Studio Arts at Syracuse University.

“It really has been a pleasure to watch my students put all this work together, see all the components and then see it fly off the table,” Zinder said. “It’s so much fun and I’m so proud of them.”

Published on November 29, 2022 at 10:52 pm

Contact Shantel: sguzma01@syr.edu | @shantelguzman2