Kristen Murray - Pearl & Sparrow Jewellery
Kristen grew up in the Durham region and from a young age was always creating. Originally accepted to the Ontario College of Art and Design to study graphic design, she discovered the jewellery program by chance and was immediately drawn to creating miniature works of art in sterling silver. She switched her focus and graduated from the Material Art and Design program as a jewellery major. To learn about stones, Kristen earned a Gemmology certificate at George Brown College, and was then accepted into a two-year artist residency at Harbourfront Centre. There she sold her work onsite and participated in various workshops and exhibitions offered to the artists. During this time, she was accepted as an exhibitor at the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition and found she enjoyed meeting the other vendors and visitors and being part of the creative energy of an art show. Later, she went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Waterloo, specializing in printmaking. Her final project involved incorporating relief printmaking techniques into pieces of jewellery which she then printed onto paper.
After teaching art to high school students for a year, then working as a designer for an upscale jewellery store in Toronto, Kristen took time off to raise her two children. Once they were in school full-time, she dove back into designing jewellery and participated in some local craft shows. She then arranged to exhibit her work in Made You Look gallery in the Queen West neighbourhood of Toronto, opened her Etsy shop, PearlandSparrow, and joined Instagram (@pearlandsparrow). To refresh her skills in soldering and stone setting, Kristen participated in a series of workshops held at The Den - Goldsmith Experience. Now recently settled in Huntsville with her family, she plans to continue working in her home studio.
Kristen has been creating wearable art for over 25 years and loves it just as much as the day she started. Experimentation is particularly important to her, and she believes that everyday jewellery should be just as unique and conversation starting as special occasion pieces. The clean, modern look of Scandinavian design influences her imagination when she is planning new compositions, as well as artists working in other media. Kristen's current work of mainly one-of-a-kind and small series pieces combines her love of colorful gemstones, texture and natural motifs. She is very excited to see where inspiration will take her now that she is among the wild and beautiful landscapes of Muskoka.