Jessica Andersen was born in the small farming community of Audubon, Iowa. She received a BFA in jewelry and metal arts in 2009 from the University of Iowa. In 2011, Jessica started a new chapter, leaving the Midwest for the West Coast, to attend graduate school at San Diego State University, where she received her MFA in jewelry and metalwork. Jessica recently finished a six-month residency at Craft Alliance in St. Louis, Missouri, where she had time to experiment and develop her work as a studio artist. More importantly, perhaps, she was able to teach in the Mural Arts and Crafting a Future program, learning just how deeply individuals can be affected by close mentorship.
Jessica’s work addresses the affect of objects and defined notions of waste in relation to ideas of collection. In her work, she attempts to showcase the form and appeal of detritus in the construction and presentation of jewelry. She hopes to generate new interactions between the wearer and object and between viewer and cultural predispositions.
Jessica will be with HCCC through August, 2017. During her six-month residency, she plans to continue developing work and grow new ideas concerning the relationships between objects and the value and memory instilled upon them. For more information, please visit www.jessicanandersen.com.
