Maia Leppo
Maia Leppo is a contemporary jewelry artist who seeks to question the traditional forms found in jewelry. By deconstructing the shape of the gem, and reconstructing the resulting template into fabricated jewelry, she questions the perception of value and the ways that value is assigned to these products. Specifically, how this value changes based on materials, trends, and personal preference.
Maia graduated from Tufts University in 2008 with a degree in Biology and Community Health. After two years in the field of kidney research in Boston, Massachusetts, she quit her job and moved to Gatlinburg, TN to participate in the work-study program at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. She continued her education at Pocosin Arts in Columbia, NC and opened a gallery there. She now is a studio artist and instructor in Chicago and working towards her Masters in Fine Art at SUNY New Paltz. She has participated in artist residencies at Arrowmont and Pocosin and is currently a resident artist at the Brewhouse Association on the Southside of Pittsburgh.
Her work has been shown internationally at Schmuck in Munich Germany, and juried shows throughout the United States, such as The Florida Craftsman Gallery in St. Petersburg, Florida and the Maria V. Howard Arts Center at the Imperial Centre in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
Maia graduated from Tufts University in 2008 with a degree in Biology and Community Health. After two years in the field of kidney research in Boston, Massachusetts, she quit her job and moved to Gatlinburg, TN to participate in the work-study program at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. She continued her education at Pocosin Arts in Columbia, NC and opened a gallery there. She now is a studio artist and instructor in Chicago and working towards her Masters in Fine Art at SUNY New Paltz. She has participated in artist residencies at Arrowmont and Pocosin and is currently a resident artist at the Brewhouse Association on the Southside of Pittsburgh.
Her work has been shown internationally at Schmuck in Munich Germany, and juried shows throughout the United States, such as The Florida Craftsman Gallery in St. Petersburg, Florida and the Maria V. Howard Arts Center at the Imperial Centre in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
"My work is an exploration of high and low culture in relation to the value associated with jewelry. Often the forms found in present-day jewelry are based on the heavy use of stone setting found in Victorian jewelry. The faceted jewel form is a reproduction of jewelry worn by a historically elite class and the reproductions are made with material of less intrinsic value. I am curious about the way that value is assigned to these products. Specifically, how this value changes based on materials, trends, and personal preference."
- Maia Leppo
- Maia Leppo
