Bio and Artist Statement

Bio

Born and raised in Ohio, Grisez now resides in Seattle, WA. She earned her BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design where she majored in Jewelry and Light Metals with an emphasis in holloware. Her artwork spans from limited edition and one-of-a-kind jewelry to both small and large scale sculpture. Her work has been exhibited nationally in museums and galleries, featured in Metalsmith, Sculpture, and American Craft Magazines, and published in Chasing and Repousse, Methods Ancient and Modern by Nancy Megan Corwin and 500 Metal Vessels by Lark Books, to name a few.

Grisez has been making and exhibiting sculpture professionally since 2000. In 2011, she started Catherine Grisez Jewelry - a collection of limited edition jewelry, born from a desire to translate her sculptures to an accessible and affordable, yet treasured scale. In 2015, Catherine combined her passions, forming CG Sculpture and Jewelry. She continues to design and make sculpture and jewelry in addition to small home goods, custom wedding jewelry, architectural accessories, and interactive public works. She has found harmony and balance in extremes by working both small and large, setting precious tiny rubies in a necklace one day and designing 50’ public art the next.

 

Artist Statement

I make visual confessions of life’s roller coaster – mementos of love, trauma redefined, connection, and acceptance. I give a nod to the unpleasant, turning ugly into beauty and celebrate delight, amplifying the good.

The conceptual focus of my art is based in personal narrative, using abstracted references to natural imagery and societal influences to share experiences, thoughts, and ideas. A primary focal point explores themes of connection, creating moments and objects that help facilitate the power of interconnectedness.

I work in both large and small scale, finding balance in the extremes. I was initially trained as a jeweler, which ingrained the importance of pristine craftsmanship that I try to honor in my sculpture, and more recently, drawings and paintings.

I use hammer, saw, brush, pencil, carving tool, and torch interchangeably. By contrasting smooth organic shapes with detailed textures, my goal is generating a balance of harmony and tension in each piece. I work most in metal but whatever the medium, my focus is on finely made objects and inventive aesthetic.