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This past week, after the craziness of my midterm projects and presentations, I decided to watch the pilot episodes of a number of newish TV shows. The two I decided were worth sticking with both happen to be set in Chicago—the US version of Shameless and Shawn Ryan's Chicago Code. A scene from the latter is shown in this photo, set in the bar that serves as base of operations for the Irish mafia. Assuming this is a location and not a studio set, I think it's a bar that was near to where Chris and Dave lived when Stef and I visited Chicago during wintersession break 2002. We drank there once or twice and took photos in the photobooth. I thought I had a scanned copy of the photos somewhere, but a cursory look through some old directories on my hard disks didn't turn anything up.
The Pearl Lab at the "Jewelry + Metalsmithing Triennial 2025" Exhibition
"Only With Agitation, Comes Growth
Like layers of nacre forming around a grain of sand, these works and samples emerged through the steady accumulation of research, experimentation, and creative risk-taking. Enabled by a significant pearl donation to the J+M department by Tiffany & Co. , students were provided a selection of pearls for both experimentation and conception of final work. These pieces, developed during the Pearl LAB wintersession course, examine the pearl as both material artifact and cultural subject, unearthing the complex biology, environmental impact, and historical narratives woven around it.
Students worked in specialized research clusters, guided by lectures from guest experts to challenge the pearl’s conventional status as a precious gem. Through hands-on testing, conceptual inquiry, and iterative making, they exposed the pearl’s many layers—biological, ecological, aesthetic, and symbolic—while probing its shifting cultural value.
Collectively, these works disrupt long standing assumptions about pearls and preciousness, offering new insights into how beauty and value are formed, performed, and questioned. Each piece testifies to the belief that “only with agitation, comes growth”—both in the natural creation of a pearl, and in our evolving understanding of what these lustrous, cultivated gemstones can signify in today’s world.
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Repetition, Seriality + Modular Units
Andy Guevara
Jonathon Zalakos
Saki Onoe
Yuqi Fan
Protective Layers + Interiors
Avalon Palmer
Frank Zwolinski
Jung Ki Min
Xinyi Li
Chance, Emergence + Unknown Qualities
Matt Freeman
Yuhao Li
Zelin Tao
Authenticy + Simulation
Helen Kwon
Jameson Enriquez
Yiyu Cao
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Protective Layers + Interiors
Xinyi Li - Jung Ki Min - Avalon Palmer - Frank Zwolinski
Consider a pearl within its oyster: the jewel is not simply a precious bead waiting inside a neutral container—it is formed, sheltered, and nurtured by the layered shell that separates it from the outside world. This cluster expands beyond the physical shell of a pearl to examine the broader idea of protective layers and interiors. How do enclosures—be they membranes, shells, skins, or wrappings—shape our perceptions, interactions, and assumptions about what lies within? From packaging and architecture to personal armor and biological skins, the notion of protective layers is everywhere. These layers regulate access, preserve freshness, define boundaries, and add a sense of mystery or reverence. By playing with the tension between concealment and revelation, can we reframe how value, fragility, and desire are constructed? Does the object gain new meaning, simply because we cannot directly see or touch it? Conversely, what is lost—or gained—when we breach that outer layer, tearing open the boundary to expose its secret core?
Chance, Emergence + Unknown Qualities
Matt Freeman - Yuhao Li - Zelin Tao
Pearls often form around a foreign body or “irritant,” but their discovery is uncertain until the oyster is opened. This cluster focuses on uncertainty, randomness, the hidden aspects of creation and the pearl as an embodiment of mystery. Let go of control to discover forms and patterns that arise without deliberate guidance. Rather than orchestrating every detail, incorporate unpredictable forces—gravity, weather, improvisational gestures, or randomized methods—to shape your work. By embracing the unexpected, you open yourself to that which would not otherwise emerge. Welcome the unknown as a collaborator—let unknown forces, hidden cores, or random interactions drive the creative process, much like nature yields a pearl around an unpredictable irritant.
Repetition, Seriality + Modular Units
Yuqi Fan - Andy Guevara - Saki Onoe - Jonathon Zalakos
Just as a strand of pearls derives its rhythm and elegance from the repeated, similar units strung together, this cluster explores the power of repetition and seriality in form-making. By working with modules—simple geometric shapes, pearls, or other units—investigate how repeating elements can create cohesive patterns, structures, and compositions that feel both unified and dynamic. The focus is on discovering how scale, spacing, orientation, and slight variations can transform simple units into intricate systems that transcend their individual components.
Authenticy + Simulation
Yiyu Cao - Jameson Enriquez - Helen Kwon
What defines a “real” pearl? Is it the biological formation, the rarity, the molecular structure, or the cultural narrative behind it? This group delves into how something artificial simulates “the real” and how perception and narrative create or undermine value. In a world where imitation pearls, digital replicas, and synthetic materials challenge traditional notions of value, what does it mean for something to be “authentic”? This cluster examines the tension between the genuine and the simulated. By exploring methods of making that blur the line between real and artificial, you’ll grapple with the complexity of authenticity. Is it rooted in material origin, craftsmanship, cultural narrative, or the viewer’s perception? By simulating qualities once tied to the authentic, you can probe how meaning, worth, and emotional resonance are constructed—or deconstructed—through imitation."
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