We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nic Morgan a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Nic, thank you so much for taking the time to share your lessons learned with us and we’re sure your wisdom will help many. So, one question that comes up often and that we’re hoping you can shed some light on is keeping creativity alive over long stretches – how do you keep your creativity alive?
I have always been creative but historically I have had trouble focusing, and have jumped from creative endeavor to creative endeavor. From mixed media artist, to illustrator, to photographer, to sculptor, to painter, to finally settling on metalsmithing and making jewelry. Metalsmithing allows me to use many of the skills I have learned in my previous creative lives while also continuing to learn and grow in a new direction. If it weren’t for my drawing experience, I would be no good at sawing, if I hadn’t tried my hand at being a sculptor, I would have no foundation for wax carving, or even conceiving of a piece in three dimensions. Additionally, I have found that having a number of “passive” creative interests to be beneficial for my overall creativity. As anytime I feel a creative block coming on, instead of becoming frustrated, I have learned to step away from my jeweler’s bench rather than forcing myself to work and to lean back into drawing or mixed media for a while. Personally, these creative blocks tend to happen when I am putting too much pressure on myself to be creative in one area, so by stepping away and switching gears, I am able to find new inspiration and perspective and return to my bench without feeling forced.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I grew up in the UK, moving from England to Wales, and in my late teens to the US, where I continued to move around a bit until I eventually settled in Atlanta. After college, I floated between a number of different jobs, some creative, some not. Including being the cliche British nanny, teaching art classes, illustrating medical pamphlets, co-running a gallery space, which somehow led to becoming a photo retoucher, all while trying to also create art, but never really finding my niche. My metalsmithing journey began about 8 years ago when I took a simple ring making workshop that a friend saw on Groupon, and immediately I was like “yes, this! I want to do more of this!”. I started looking for more classes, buying tools, and scouring the internet for videos and lessons to continue my obsession. Hireth Jewelry came into being in May of 2020, and has been my sole focus since. I love the practice of hand sawing or piercing metal, and adding small details to ring shanks or cutting intricate landscapes into the backplates of pendants. It’s the organic shapes and fiddly details that bring me the most joy. I work predominantly with sterling silver and semi-precious gemstones, and I buy my stones straight from the stone cutters whenever possible to support other craftspeople. Having never really been into florals or pastel colors, I lean more toward the earthier, darker stones. Obsidian, star rubies, and labradorite are my current favorites to work with, and while I will on occasion throw in a bright pink rhodochrosite or super sparkly orange sunstone, the darker and less obvious stones are where I will always land. I also like to make my own ceramic pieces to use in my jewelry, as I enjoy the juxtaposition of the polished stones with the rough finish of my small sculptures.
If you are looking for me or my jewelry, I have a few pieces at Garage Door Studios in Avondale Estates, but I mostly sell at smaller local Atlanta artist markets. I am usually at the Argosy market in East Atlanta Village which is a monthly market, or occasionally the Dairies market on Memorial with GVGATL, which is bi-monthly. I will also be at Grant Park Summer Shade on the 26th and 27th of August.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
If we are talking about important qualities for an artist, or specifically a metalsmith, to me the three most useful would be: 1. An attention to detail: you have to be slightly obsessive about details in metalsmithing. Sloppy workmanship shows. If it doesn’t line up exactly before you start soldering, it’s not going to line up after. Attention to detail is also important for safety, there are a lot of chemicals, motors, and pointy sharp bits involved, not to mention gas tanks and fumes. 2. A desire to keep learning: there are so many different techniques, processes and skills to jump into that you will never get bored because there’s always something new to learn, and the more you learn, the more you grow as an artist.
and 3. Patience. Especially if you are learning a new skill, and extra especially in metalsmithing, because you will break blades, literally all the blades. You will probably stab and burn yourself, you will melt bezels and crack stones, and spend frustrating hours digging around on the floor looking for the 1mm gemstone that bounced off your bench, only to find it days later in one of your shoes. Things won’t always look the way you pictured them in your mind’s eye. And frequently people just won’t like your art, and that’s okay. That’s probably a good thing, because trying to please everyone is a really great way to never push any boundaries or make anything new or interesting. Just have patience with yourself, and with your work…and with the person who doesn’t like you or your work, because they can always just shop at Claires.
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
I feel extremely lucky to have fallen in with the maker’s community here in Atlanta. Everyone is so supportive and happy to help each other. If I have a question or get stuck with a piece I know I can reach out to any number of fellow metalsmiths, jewelry makers and artists for help or advice. Having access to resources like the Metal Arts Guild of Georgia, and Callanwolde has also been amazing. I also took my first metalsmithing class from Pieces of Starr, and if she hadn’t been as positive, excited and knowledgeable about her craft as she was/is, I doubt I would be doing this now.
Contact Info:
- Website: Hirethjewelry.com
- Instagram: @Hireth.jewelry
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@
nicmorganhirethjewelry6810
