Barbara Becker Simon

www.bbsimon.com

bbsimon@swfla.rr.com

Artist's Bio

Barbara Becker Simon earned a BS in Art Education (SUNY-New Paltz) and an MFA in Metalwork and Jewelry (University of Wisconsin-Madison). She has been a goldsmith for over 39 years and has taught at such institutions as University of Wisconsin-Menomonie and Iowa State University. She held the position of Professor in the Fine Arts Department at Edison Community College, Ft. Myers, Florida from 1991-2000. Presently she crisscrosses the United States as a Senior Instructor for the Rio Rewards Precious Metal Clay Certification Program. For two weeks in October of 2004, Barbara traveled to five Japanese cities to teach PMC in the land of its invention. In 2001, her necklace, "Winter" earned the Grand Prize in "Millennial Metal, The Art of Precious Metal Clay," held at the Brookfield Craft Center, Brookfield, CT. Her work appears in Creative Metal Clay Jewelry: Techniques, Projects, Inspiration, by CeCe Wire, and The Art of Metal Clay, by Sherri Haab. Barbara's glass, metalwork and writing have appeared in "Lapidary Journal." Examples of her wirework jewelry are featured in Wire in Design by Barbara A McGuire. In addition to her metalwork, she has gained a national reputation for her lampworked glass beads and jewelry. The third edition of Contemporary Lampworking by Bandhu Dunham features Barbara's signature hollow core vessels on the cover. Formed of Fire by Bandhu Dunham and Cindy Jenkins' book, Beads of Glass contain examples of her work and a how-to on hollow core vessels. Lark Books', 1000 Glass Beads, also features photographs of her beads. Barbara's glass beads are in the collection of the Bead Museum, Washington, DC and the Kobe Lampwork Glass Museum, Kobe, Japan.