ASHLEY ROLLE

Metalsmithing & Jewelry

ASHLEY ROLLE

Important statements can be said through objects. People don’t always listen, but an object’s representation can touch people emotionally, which will in turn make an impression on the individual. My work truly connects representation and emotion.

In my jewelry work I create wearable statements that emphasize an emotional expression in metal. In a past project, I made a bracelet by piercing pieces of metal in the shape of an extended rip in the rough textured metal, it created the illusion of brokenness. The next layer involved tiny holes puncturing the outside of the rip. To show the attempt to connect the tear in the metal, wire was woven through the holes to make the piece appear to be coming together. “The Cuff of Brokeness” represented emotional and/or physical broken pieces of our life. Hearts broken. Broken bones. The world is broken, but sometimes we forget that we all need to heal. Broken pieces need to be brought together.

My current project is celebrating confidence in one’s culture. As a black woman, I have felt ashamed of my hair. In our society, African Americans are judged for their hair for not being professional and/or seemingly looking unkempt. Just recently California has passed The Crown Act which makes it illegal to discriminate against an individual for their natural hair. I am honoring a sense of cultural confidence through a crown. 

Bronze Metal and other symbolic materials were used to create these crowns.Typically, a crown was used for status or reward. They were made out of rare materials for example, gold, jewels, and natural objects such as feathers, and twigs. These crowns symbolize the cultural confidence that should be recognized as a new power, new status for women and men of color.