background

Kari Woo is a full-time studio jeweller who also doubles as a mixed media assemblage artist living and working in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She is co-founder/owner of INFLUX Jewellery Gallery in Calgary, an instructor with the ACAD Extended Studies Program and a founding member of crafter collectives in Calgary and Vancouver that advocate for the handmade and buying local. In her spare time she likes to think about the role of Craft in contemporary culture.

Her mixed media work has been exhibited in the United States, Europe, across Canada and most recently in South Korea at the Cheongju International Craft Biennale. Her jewellery designs are available in high end design boutiques across the country and in select U.S. locations. Woo graduated with her BFA from the Alberta College of Art & Design in Calgary, 2003 and has been in the art jewellery field since 1993.

philosophy

Strongly rooted in the desire to create and sustain creative culture and local economies - and therefore community - all of my pieces are designed and produced locally by loving hands. My vision is to give socially concious consumers alternatives to big-box store, mass-produced items. With a strong focus on design, function and attention to detail the aim is to provide distinguished, versatile and contemporary styles that will outlive any trend, aligning the wearer with independent creative culture. Whenever possible recycled and ethically sourced materials are used.

statement

My inspiration is drawn from the old and the new; the perfection of imperfection; the notion of less is more; and the contrast between architectural details from the urban landscape with random patterns in nature.