At a celebration dinner held May 15 during the Santa Fe Symposium® in Albuquerque, NM, Rio Grande announced the winners of the 16th annual Saul Bell Design Award competition. Through rigorous judging, a panel of judges chose first- and second-place winners in each of six competitive categories, as well as in the Emerging Jewelry Artist category for designers 21 years and younger. Prizes, awards and congratulations were presented to each winning designer at the gala dinner. The winning designs, as well as all finalist pieces, are featured online at saulbellaward.com.
The Saul Bell Design Award is a chance for jewelers to reach for greater heights of skill, knowledge and imagination as they conceive and execute a career-defining design. The best jewelers from around the world compete to be recognized for excellence in jewelry design in any of seven categories: Gold/Platinum, Silver/Argentium® Silver, Metal Clay, Enamel, Hollowware/Art Objects, Alternative Metals/Materials and Emerging Jewelry Artist.
2016 Gold/Platinum Winners
1st Place – $2,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“The Queen”
Garen Garibian
Los Angeles, CA
2nd Place – $1,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Peacock Pin”
Samantha Freeman
Philadelphia, PA
2016 Silver/Argentium® Silver Winners
1st Place – $2,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Unity”
Seung Jeon Paik
Savannah, GA
2nd Place – $1,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Untitled”
Wolfgang Vaatz
Rio Rico, AZ
2016 Metal Clay Winners
1st Place – $2,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Adore”
Rodica Frunze
Nanaimo, BC, Canada
2nd Place – $1,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Memory Interrupted”
Patrik Kusek
Fairfield, CA
2016 Enamel Winners
1st Place – $2,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“On the Wing”
Debbie Sheezel
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
2nd Place – $1,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Orbit #2 Pin/Pendant”
Amy Roper Lyons
Summit, NJ
2016 Hollowware/Art Objects Winners
1st Place – $2,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Mace”
Tom Ferrero
Windsor, CT
2nd Place – $1,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Symbiotic Relationship”
Sungyeoul Lee
Seoul, Republic of Korea
2016 Alternative Metals/Materials Winners
1st Place – $2,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Moonshine”
Zoltan David
Bee Cave, TX
2nd Place – $1,000 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Secret Garden Necklace”
Kathleen Nowak Tucci
Atmore, AL
2016 Emerging Jewelry Artist Winners
1st Place – $500 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“L’Oiseau de la Nuit”
Justine Quintal
Carignan, QC, Canada
2nd Place – $250 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“Monsieur”
Justine B. Gagnon
Repentigny, QC, Canada
3rd Place – $100 Rio Grande Gift Certificate
“A Gothic Melody”
Jason Baide
Bozeman, MT, USA
Visit saulbellaward.com for a complete list of finalists or more information about the Saul Bell Design Award competition. Designers interested in more information are invited to call 800-952-6222 or e-mail events@riogrande.com.
