Sarah Loch-Test
My enamelled jewellery depicts the impacts of nostalgia and neglect of industry and urbanization. I also examine how processes like mining and oil drilling impact and alter the environment. Cleaner sources of energy, such as wind, represent a new era of precious American industry. They have the potential to provide a returned sense of manufacturing pride. Wind turbines are new monumental structures that decorate our landscape, however clean energy is also a threat to those nostalgic for steel mills and coal mines. In contrast to these monumental structures, some of my pieces zoom into areas of industrial architecture, focusing on intimate and obscure details. These pieces are more ambiguous as to their source of inspiration. I use various techniques to make images permanent in enamel, including the use of decals and laser etching. A range of enamelling techniques allows me to paint precisely or make an abstract design or pattern.
Sarah studied at Kent State and East Carolina universities, where she embraced the art of enamelling. Her time spent living in Pittsburgh, a resilient city in a post-industrial era, continues to influence her metalwork. Having taken up trail running, she gets plenty of inspiration while traversing the landscape. Sarah currently works as the Metals Technician at the University of North Texas. Her work has been exhibited regionally and nationally, and is in the Enamel Foundation’s permanent collection, the Arkansas Museum of Fine Art, the Crocker Museum and the Yale University Art Gallery.
