Based in Seattle, Washington, with a degree in jewelry and sculpture, KT’s work focuses on themes of adorned spaces, exploring  that adornment in her encased, gem-like glass objects. The repetition of jewel-like shapes through history has perpetuated the cultural identification of gemstones as something precious.  

By isolating a societal obsession with those gems and their contribution to status, she creates a study on her beliefs of what western culture seems to value.

My work takes a more utilitarian approach to objects and their value and focuses on the principles of object reconstruction and fabrication. This is a direct response to my experience with mental health and a constant need to reframe my thoughts. It is the seeking of social acceptance, to become this prized jewel, that ultimately fuels my desire to fabricate these shapes. 

Within this reconstruction, the functional value of these objects is completely removed.  That alters the perception of the viewer by removing any sort of original value and replacing it with charged sentimental recognition. Through the use of a steel structure, the glass conforms to a general cage shape. However, there are moments where the glass pillows outwards, distorting the general contour of the gemstone. This correlates to my experience as a woman and to seeking societal perfection. I have been given a shape but try as I might, I just don’t fit the bill.

The glass and metal are metaphorical for life and its preciousness.  The metal cage creates a structure to support the encased glass, but also endangers the glass within it. The steel structures create guidelines for the glass to inhabit and provide moments of strength. When the glass escapes through the contours of the cage, the pillowed areas display moments of fragility.  

It is this contrast between these two elements that I find both exciting and relative to the life we live.