Rachelle Thiewes

Rachelle Thiewes (born 1952) is a jeweler and metal artist based in El Paso, Texas. She is a professor of metal arts at the University of Texas at El Paso.

Life

Rachelle Thiewes was born in Owatonna, MN. She attended a private Catholic school, which is where she derived some inspirations for her work. She received her BA in Art/Metals from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, and her MFA in Art/Metals from Kent State University. Rachelle Thiewes began teaching at the University of Texas at El Paso in 1976 and is a current member of the Society of North American Goldsmiths. She also taught a Master class at the Royal College of Art in London in 1995.

Artwork

Her work is displayed in many art collections across the world, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The American Craft Museum, The Art Institute of Chicago, The Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution, The National Museums of Scotland, and the Royal College of Art, London.

Rachelle also colllects jewelry and other wearable art pieces from artists in order to help support the arts community. She states in an article in "Metalsmith Magazine" that she owns over 100 pieces in her collection, and has worn every piece at least once.

Exhibitions, collections & awards

Museum collections

Arkansas Art Center
Art Institute of Chicago
El Paso Museum of Art
Evansville Museum of Art
Fuller Craft Museum
Museum of Arts & Design
Museum of Fine Arts Boston
National Museums of Scotland
Smithsonian American Art Museum
The National Museum of Women in the Arts
Victoria and Albert Museum

Public collections

New Mexico State University
Royal College of Art
University of Texas El Paso

Museum exhibitions

2007 THE ART MUSEUM OF SOUTH TEXAS, Corpus Christi, TX, “Looking West: Regional Art”
2006 NATIONAL MUSEUM FOR WOMEN IN THE ARTS, Washington, DC , “Book as Art”, 20th anniversary exhibition
EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, TX, “TEXAS 100, Selections from the El Paso Musem of Art”
PALO ALTO ART CENTER, Palo Alto, CA, “Kiff Slemmons Re:Pair & Imperfection”
2005 FULLER CRAFT MUSEUM, Brockton, MA, “Works from the Permanent Collection”
THE BUTLER INSTITUTE OF AMERICAN ART, Howland Township, Ohio, “Educators/Educated: Jewelry and Metals in Ohio”
CHARLES A. WUSTRUM MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, Racine, Wisconsin, “Magnificent Extravagance: Artists and Opulence”
2004 BUDDY HOLLY CENTER, Lubbock, Texas, “Crafts, Etc. American Master Jewelers & Metalsmiths”
MUSEUM OF ARTS & DESIGN, New York, New York, “Treasures from the Vault”
2004 MINT MUSEUM OF ART, Charlotte, North Carolina, ANCHORAGE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND ART, Anchorage, AK, “Beyond the Mines: The Art of Gold”
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WOMEN IN THE ARTS, Washington, DC, “Book as Art XV”
2003 EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “Air Patterns” - Susan Davidoff & Rachelle Thiewes
SMITHSONIAN AMERICAN ART MUSEUM RENWICK GALLERY, Washington, DC, “Jewels & Gems”
POWERHOUSE MUSEUM, Sydney, Australia, “Mikromegas”
ORATORIO SAN ROCCO, Padova, Italy, “Mikromegas”
CROCKER ART MUSEUM, Sacramento, California, UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND MUSEUMS, Richmond, Virginia, “Beyond the Mines: The Art of Gold”
2002 GALLERY YU, Tokyo, Japan, “Mikromegas Tokyo”
MUSEE D'ART ET D'HISTOIRE, Geneve, Switzerland, “Mikromegas jeu d'epingles”
ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER, Little Rock, Arkansas, “Embellished With Gold”
EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “Burning Desires”
2001 AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, New York, New York, “Mikromegas”
EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “Roundup”
GALERIE FUR ANGEWANDE KUNST, Munich, Germany, “Mikromegas”
2000 EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “On the Edge”
1999 EVANSVILLE MUSEUM OF ARTS & SCIENCE, Evansville, Indiana, “The Art of Adornment: 1500 Years of Body Ornament”
EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “Refocus 2”
1998 NATIONAL MUSEUMS OF SCOTLAND, Edinburgh, Scotland, “Jewellery Moves”
1997 NATIONAL ORNAMENTAL MUSEUM, Memphis, Tennessee, “Revelations”, Traveling
REESE MUSEUM, East Tennessee State University, “Formulations: A Metals Invitational”
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART RENWICK GALLERY, Smithsonian Institute, Washington DC, “The Renwick at 25”
1996 AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, New York, New York, “Gold and Silver: 1996”
CRAFTS COUNCIL, London, NATIONAL MUSEUM & GALLERY, Cardiff, “Jewelry in Europe and America: New Times, New Thinking”, Traveling
1995 AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, New York, New York, “Jewelry from the Permanent Collection”
1993 EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “Rachelle Thiewes: Elliptical Allusion”
AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, New York, New York, “New Acquisitions: Craft Today USA”
SETAGAYA ART MUSEUM, Tokyo, Japan, “’93 The Art of Jewellery”
ITAMI CITY CRAFT CENTER, Osaka, Japan, “’93 The Art of Jewellery”
MIAMI UNIVERSITY ART MUSEUM, Oxford, Ohio, “Ohio Metals: A Legacy”, Tour
KRANNERT ART MUSEUM, Champaign, Illinois, “Contemporary Metal: Form and Narrative”
1992 MUSEE DES ARTS DECORATIFS : Finland, MUSEUM OF APPLIED ARTS: Finland, MUSEUM FUR KUNSTHANDWERK: West Germany, MUSEE DES ARTS DECORATIFS, Switzerland, MUSEUM OF APPLIED ARTS: USSR, ATATURK CULTURAL CENTER: Turkey, NATIONAL GALLERY: Turkey, ST. PETER'S ABBEY: Belgium, ROHSSHA MUSEUM OF DESIGN: Sweden, THE ALTES MUSEUM: East Germany, PAULAU ROBERT: Spain, ZACHETA GALLERY: Poland
“Craft Today USA”, Tour 1989-1992
ART GALLERY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, Perth, Western Australia, “Design Visions - American Jewellery and Metalwork”
1991 THE ATLANTA MUSEUM OF ART & DESIGN, Atlanta, Georgia, “Silver: New Forms and Expressions II”
THE NATIONAL ORNAMENTAL METAL MUSEUM, Memphis, Tennessee, “Silver, New Forms and Expressions II”
1989 ARKANSAS ART CENTER, Little Rock, Arkansas, “National Objects Invitational”
THE NATIONAL ORNAMENTAL METALS MUSEUM, Memphis, Tennessee, “Eloquent Resolutions: Jewelry by and for Women”
SAN ANTONIO MUSEUM OF ART, San Antonio, Texas, “Texas Metals Invitational”
LAGUNA GLORIA ART MUSEUM, Austin, Texas, “Texas Women”
1988 NATIONAL MUSEUM FOR WOMEN IN THE ARTS, Washington D.C., “Texas Women”
EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “El Paso Mayor’s Invitational Art Exhibition”
AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, New York, New York, “Bewitched by Craft”
1987 DEUTCHES GOLDSCHMIEDEHAUS, Hanau, West Germany, Toured Hannover, Pforzheim & Hagan, “Jewelry in Movement, Movement in Jewelry”
1986 AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, DENVER ART MUSEUM, LAGUNA ART MUSEUM, MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM, J.B. SPEED MUSEUM, VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, “Poetry of the Physical”, Tour 1986-88
MITCHELL MUSEUM, Mt. Veron, Illinois, “Form Beyond Function: Recent Sculpture by North American Metalsmiths”, Traveling
1985 DOWNEY MUSEUM OF ART, Downey, California,”Contemporary Metals USA”
THOMAS JEFFERSON CULTURAL CENTER:Philippines, JOONG-AUG GALLERY: Korea, NATIONAL MUSEUM OF HISTORY: Taiwan, NATIONAL MUSEUM: Indonesia, NATIONAL MUSEUM: Malaysis, AUCKLAND CITY ART GALLERY: New Zealand, “American Art Jewelry Now”, Tour 1985-87
1984 AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, CRAFT & FOLK ART MUSEUM, OAKLAND MUSEUM, HUNTER MUSEUM OF ART, BASS MUSEUM OF ART, NATIONAL ORNAMENTAL METAL MUSEUM, NEWPORT ART MUSEUM, “Jewelry USA”, Tour 1984-86
1982 AMERICAN CRAFT MUSEUM, New York, New York, “Patterns”
1980 NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART RENWICK GALLERY, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC, “Ornament Show”
MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY CRAFTS, New York, New York, “Young Americans Metals”, Traveling
1979 CRAFT & FOLK ART MUSEUM, Los Angeles, California, “Multiple Show”
1977 PHOENIX ART MUSEUM, Phoenix, Arizona, “The Metalsmith”
EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, “Designer Craftsman”
1974 EVANSVILLE MUSEUM OF ART, Evansville, Indiana, “Mid-States Craft Exhibition”
1972 EVANSVILLE MUSEUM OF ART, Evansville, Indiana, “Mid-States Craft Exhibition”

Solo exhibitions

2006 JEWELERS’WERK GALERIE, Washington DC, “Mirage”
2005 ADAIR MARGO GALLERY, El Paso, Texas, “SHIMMER”
2000 JEWELERS'WERK GALERIE, Washington, DC, “Light Air - RACHELLE THIEWES”
MOBILIA, Cambridge, Massachusetts, “Rachelle Thiewes - New Jewelry”
1998 BARBICAN CENTRE, London, England, “Inventing America: American Metalanguage - Rachelle Thiewes”
1997 JOANNE RAPP GALLERY, Scottsdale, Arizona, “Rachelle Thiewes: New Jewelry”
1996 ADAIR MARGO GALLERY, El Paso, Texas, “Ring of Thorns”
SUSAN CUMMINS GALLERY, Mill Valley, California, “Rachelle Thiewes: Ring of Thorns”
1994 ADAIR MARGO GALLERY, “Rachelle Thiewes”, El Paso, Texas
JEWELERS'WERK GALERIE, Washington, DC, “Rachelle Thiewes”
1993 EL PASO MUSEUM OF ART, El Paso, Texas, "Rachelle Thiewes: Elliptical Allusion"
GALVESTON ARTS CENTER, Galveston, Texas, “Rachelle Thiewes: Private Interactions”
1991 DARTMOUTH COLLEGE, Barrows Exhibition Rotunda, Hanover, New Hampshire, “Rachelle Thiewes”
1989 JEWELERS'WERK GALERIE, Washington, DC, “Rachelle Thiewes: New Work”
CDK GALLERY, New York, New York, “Rachelle Thiewes”
1986 ELAINE POTTER GALLERY, San Francisco, California, “Rachelle Thiewes”
1983 FOX FINE ARTS CENTER, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas, “Rachelle Thiewes”
1979 TIARA GALLERY OF CONTEMPORARY METALS, El Paso, Texas, “Rachelle Thiewes”

Awards and grants

1999 El Paso Energy Foundation Faculty Achievement Award For Teaching Excellence
Faculty Development Leave Grant, University of Texas at El Paso
1997 Liberal Arts Outstanding Achievement Faculty Award, University of Texas at El Paso
1988 National Endowment for the Arts Visual Artist Fellowship
1983 Vice President's Award for Academic Excellence, University of Texas at El Paso
1982 “Gold ‘82”, International Gold Competition, International Gold Corporation, New York, New York
Two Merit Awards
1977 “The Metalsmith”, Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, Arizona, Merit Award
1974 Mid-States Craft Exhibition, Evansville, Indiana, Purchase Award, Honorable Mention
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, Outstanding Senior Award
1973 Mid-States Craft Exhibition, Evansville, Indiana, Honorable Mention
Geneva Art Festival, Geneva, Illinois, Third Place
1972 Geneva Art Festival, Geneva, Illinois, Honorable Mention

References

http://www.temple.edu/crafts/public_html/mjcc/local/history/p187.html
http://www.academics.utep.edu/Default.aspx?tabid=16871
http://academics.utep.edu/Default.aspx?tabid=16871
Artist's resume as of 2007.