Introducing Katja Kovanen

This week I wanted to introduce you to Katja Kovanen, one of the artists whose work is a part of The Breeze Gold and Gallery. Katja’s work is stunning, and her sense of colour and style are fantastic.

 

I interviewed Katja a little about her work and process and here is the results of that interview:

Can you tell us a little bit about your background as it relates to your work or how you came to be doing what you are doing now? 

I took two years of study at the Kootenay School of the Arts in Nelson. My studio was Jewellery & Small Object Design, but they also had classes such as Drawing and Design. I was making beaded jewellery prior to going and wanted to be able to do more, but I still like making the beaded items. I learned how to do the silver work and the most important thing I learned was how to draw. It’s good for designing jewellery pieces and just a good skill to have.
 
What inspires you when you are creating?
Everything. Sometimes I just cut pictures out of magazines like National Geographic and draw whatever the picture makes me think of, then try to make it into a jewellery design. I try to find designs in everything, but especially nature.

What kinds of materials do you like to work with the most and why?
I like it all. Especially when I get new beads, that’s always fun. I currently use semi-precious stones and glass, but if I could find the right beads out of other materials, I’d like to use those too. It’s just a matter of finding the right materials.  I really like the silver work,too, but am not doing as much with it right now as I would like.

 
Do you have a favorite piece of work?

I really like my flowers made out of silver. I’m planning on doing more of those. And my silver tree, I really love that.

What kinds of things are you pursuing for the future of your business? How do you hope to see it grow?

I hope to take a web design course so I can update my own website. Right now my sister designed my web site, but if I want to change anything I have to go through her, which is difficult since she’s in Ontario. With the internet, I hope to be able to reach more people and hopefully sell more items. Right now, I have a website, but it doesn’t display all my work. I hope to continue with both the beaded and silver work, but come up with more and better designs. It’s a fun job and I’m glad to have a place like The Breeze to sell in. 

Thank you Katja for sharing your story with us! If you would like to see more of Katja’s work you can check out her website here, and of course you can always find her designs at the Breeze.

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