RIT metals and jewelry design program featured at NYC Jewelry Week

The breadth and evolution of contemporary jewelry and metalsmithing practices emerging from Rochester Institute of Technology will be on full display during a weeklong celebration of global artists and designers.

“Continuum” — a group exhibition featuring work by 18 students and alumni of RIT’s metals and jewelry design program (BFA and MFA) — is a featured event during NYC Jewelry Week (NYCJW26). The RIT showcase will be on view the duration of NYCJW26, set for Nov. 16-22, in Pratt Institute’s Steuben Gallery (200 Willoughby Ave. Brooklyn, N.Y. 11205).

NYCJW26 is an annual, New York City-wide series of programming highlighting the artists, designers, galleries, retailers, collectors, and curators defining the contemporary jewelry field.

Laurel Fulton, assistant professor of metals and jewelry design at RIT, is the lead organizer of “Continuum” and RIT’s involvement in NYCJW26.

“RIT’s student and alumni exhibition at New York City Jewelry Week creates an important opportunity to connect our community of emerging and established artists with a broader international conversation about contemporary jewelry and metalsmithing,” Fulton said. “Showcasing the work of our students and alumni on a global platform highlights the depth, diversity, and innovation of our program while strengthening connections across the field. These opportunities allow our artists to share their perspectives, engage new audiences, and contribute to the evolving dialogue around the future of the field.”

“Continuum” offers a survey of wearable pieces, sculptural objects, and experimental work that RIT’s metals and jewelry design students and alumni are known to produce by pushing the boundaries of traditional materials and techniques. An opening event is planned for 6:30-8:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 16, at Steuben Gallery.

Lauren Wells ’27 (metals and jewelry design option - studio arts BFA) is exhibiting “Clementine,” a forged steel locket resembling the branches and parts of an orange tree. 

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With "Clementine," RIT student Lauren Wells transformed a simple orange peel into a wearable piece of art.

To create the container, Wells dehydrated an orange and transformed the peel into metal using a technique called organic burnout casting. With the help of Professor Juan Carlos Caballero-Perez, she then learned to solder silver to steel to incorporate leaves on the band. Inside the clementine container is a silver orange blossom flower, punctuated by a centered peridot (a green gem).

It was a fruitful and inventive making process for Wells.

“I have always found lockets and containers intriguing because they allow the wearer to keep something meaningful close to them, concealing its significance from others unless they choose to reveal it,” said Wells, from Buffalo, N.Y. “I wanted ‘Clementine’ to embody this sense of intimacy and personal meaning.”

The exhibition reinforces the legacy of RIT’s metals and jewelry design program while demonstrating its ongoing innovation and the diverse artistic voices shaped by the program. 

“Metalsmithing is a niche but community-oriented practice, and what I love most about it is the shared desire to learn and preserve a craft that has been passed down for thousands of years,” Wells said. “Showing your work is an important first step in connecting with others in the community. Networking also allows you to connect with industry professionals outside of metalsmithing who understand jewelry manufacturing and production processes, potentially leading to valuable business connections and career opportunities.”

Vasilina Baturnia ’26 BFA (graphic design and metals and jewelry design option - studio arts), ’28 MFA (metals and jewelry design) also has a piece in the show. “Remnants of Bloom” is a large-scale ear cuff, made from sterling silver and freshwater pearls, that represents branching, organic forms. 

“I developed it directly through the making process, allowing the material and my hands to guide the form rather than beginning with a fully resolved design,” she said. “The pearls appear like small remnants of life held within the metal structure, while the hanging elements introduce movement when the piece is worn.”

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RIT student Vasilina Baturnia's "Remnants of Bloom" will be on view during New York City Jewelry Week.

NYCJW26 is the latest illustration of how RIT metals and jewelry design students are routinely connected with professional opportunities in the community and industry. Students, and alumni, annually showcase their wearable creations at Fashion Week Rochester while the program’s hiring and co-op partners include Knoll, Tiffany & Co. and many jewelers in the region.

“Exhibiting during NYC Jewelry Week creates visibility, but it also gives us the opportunity to meet so many different people working in the field,” Baturnia said. “Being included while still a student makes the professional art world feel more accessible and gives us experience presenting our work to an international audience.”

RIT student and alumni exhibiting artists at NYCJW26

Sylvie Alusitz, Vasilina Baturina, Erica Bello, Suyu Chen, Hannah Craft, Kate Dannenburg, Sierra Godfrey, Noah Kiehne, Jingyi Liu, Lydia Martin, Ruorui Mu, So Young Park, Charlotte Partin, Yaojin Wang, Lauren Wells, Dongyi Wu, Tianxin Zhang and Yayan Zhang.