About The Artist

I was born and raised in New York City where I grew up immersed in fine art, ballet and music. My father, Paul Rader, was a professional artist through out his life, which has been my inspiration.

I began my artistic training in dance. I attended The Julliard School and went on to dance professionally with the New York City Ballet. I took a break from the arts and worked in corporate banking in Miami and gradually returned to the arts and began creating jewelry in 1989. I have been a full time artist since 1994, participating in Fine Art Shows around the country.

I design and create one-of-a-kind and very limited edition personal adornment that is organic and sculptural . I personally perform all the creative aspects involved in my work.

Living in the North Georgia Mountains is a constant inspiration to me. Being surrounded by nature enables me to dig deep into my primitive self, letting my work become a celebration of balance and form through the gifts given to us in nature. I find beauty in the shapes of bones and of trees in winter, or the way a rock perches in the river. I find balance in contrasts of color, texture and shape.

I fabricate each piece from sterling silver and use 22 karat gold to accent the piece. I use techniques such as forging, raising and various surface embellishments to give the metal depth and texture. The finish is obtained by oxidizing the piece in sulphur and buffing it with steel wool. The stones in my work range from a variety of fossil materials to boulder opals, precious and semi precious stones.

I design my pieces by working in series. I allow shapes to evolve which add to and guide the design rather than forcing the silver into a preconceived shape.

Designing the piece is the most exciting aspect of what I do. Many times the piece changes form as I re-arrange my thoughts or discover new elements to incorporate into the design.