Chaya Studio Spotlighted by Niche Magazine
Local Jewelry Artist Selected as Finalist in National Magazine Competition
Portland, Maine — October 30, 2013 — Chaya Caron, owner of Chaya Studio Jewelry (www.chayastudio.com/) in Portland, has been selected as a finalist in two categories of the 2014 Niche Awards. Each year, NICHE magazine hosts the awards in recognition of both production and limited-edition craft works made in the United States and Canada, and Caron is among only five finalists in each category. Her Platinum Diamond Bubble Ring was selected as a finalist in the wedding jewelry category, and her Eastern Star Flower Ornament with Stand is competing in the Non-Jewelry Enamel category.
“Almost as important as the appreciation of my clients is the recognition of my peers,” said Caron. “It’s an honor to be spotlighted by such an esteemed publication.”
The competition includes art galleries and craft retailers with wholesale crafts, handmade gifts and decorative art objects made in artist studios, and winners will be announced in February at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia in conjunction with the Buyers Market of American Craft.
Caron continues to earn attention at the regional and national levels. Her work was recently featured in the July 2013 Crafts Report, a trade publication often referred to as “the Wall Street Journal for the crafts industry.” Caron’s Fern Cocktail Ring was spotlighted in a feature (http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/212c3326#/212c3326/13) about artists who work with environmentally friendly materials. Caron also earned first prize in this year’s Allentown Art Festival in Buffalo, N.Y., in the jewelry category.
Guided by Eastern principles, Caron uses a variety of traditional and modern jewelry techniques such as soldering, piercing, forging, casting, cutting, carving and CAD/CAM, creating designs that combine intricate details, depth, texture and color.
In 2009, she made the ecological decision to craft her work exclusively with “Harmony Metals,” 100 percent recycled precious metals, including gold, silver and platinum. Since that time, she has also worked consistently to source previously-mined colored stones and diamonds and actively supports Fair Trade gemstone companies. Further, Caron’s packaging and print
materials are made from recycled and recyclable media.
About Chaya Caron
Located in South Portland, Maine, Caron has exhibited at high profile juried shows throughout the country, including the exclusive Stowe Foliage Fine Arts Festival in Stowe, Vt.; Craft Boston; Morristown Craft Market in Morristown, N.J.; and the Germantown Friends School Show in Philadelphia. She also has earned an expansive range of retail clients, including high-profile retailers in California, North Carolina, Canada, Massachusetts, New York and Maine. Her personalized custom works are in high demand from clients coast to coast in North America and in South America and Europe.
A fusion of natural elegance and stylish minimalism, Chaya creates her line and custom works in hand-forged, upcycled metals and sustainable materials, including gold, silver, platinum, diamonds and colored stones. The modern, yet elegant, details expose the essence of the subject, such as the grace of a bird or the posture of a flower.
