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Julie Jerman-Melka and Jeffrey Melka

Finding endless inspiration along the shores of Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula to create what you see below and on the following pages

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Have many new pieces for 2023, including what you see here.  Of course the best way to see the entire collection is to visit us at one of the many shows we do each year, or one of the galleries on the Gallery List below.

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Shoreline Sonata

   Hand forged sterling silver, basalt beach pebbles, white topaz and freshwater pearls.  Adjustable from 16" to 18".  Sold, but would be happy to make another

New Arrivals
Shopping Anchor

Earrings, necklace and ring by Larry Sanders Photography

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ABOUT US

     We are a wife and husband team located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in a very small community in the Keweenaw Peninsula, very remote and beautiful, and inspirational for the work you see on these pages.

     Julie has been a metalsmith and jewelry designer for her entire career.  Many years were spent in Colorado, where the metalsmithing skills were honed and fine tuned, and where Julie also earned her M.F.A.in metalsmithing and jewelry design at Colorado State University.  This allowed her to teach her love of the medium on a college level which she did for many years, while slowly building her own business: Flying Anvil Designs.

     I was always the back of the house assistant, and in 2007 joined as a full time business partner, which was an easy transition as we've been life partners for approximately 35 years now.   

     Julie is and will always be the main design force for all of the pieces in the collection, which we call the Gentle Current Series, because it utilizes basalt beach stones that we collect on our almost daily walks along the shores of Lake Superior.  All the meticulous metalwork, stone setting and finishing work are done by her.

     My focus on the business is drilling and coring the stones, and mostly doing what I refer to as "the necessary evil", all back of the house business tasks that are part of running any business.  Thank goodness for that often under utilized accounting degree.

     We relocated back to the Upper Peninsula eight years ago and feel very fortunate to live in the area where we were both born and raised.  Each day and season brings its own unique inspiration and outdoor recreation that we love:  Paddleboarding and sculling in the summer, hiking in the incredible fall colors, cross country skiing in our famously long winters, and looking forward to spring and the cycle starting over, all the while creating new pieces for the line.

                             Julie and Jeffrey

    

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About

Shows and Galleries

Shows/Galleries

 

2023 Show Schedule

     Looking forward to seeing everyone in 2023 Schedule will be updated as jury results come in.  Current as of July 12, 2023

Our apologies, but had to cancel both Florida shows.  Hope to see everyone in The Sunshine State in 2024.

March 4-5 

Gasparilla Festival of the Arts

Tampa, Florida

Booth #702

Link to Show

March 17-19

Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival

Winter Park, Florida

Booth #163

Link to Show

April 20-23

Main Street Fort Worth Arts Festival

Fort Worth, Texas

Booth #629

Link to Show

May 6-7

Cottonwood Art Festival

Richardson, Texas

Booth # Assigned at Check In

Link to Show

May 12-14

Artisphere

Greenville, South Carolina

Booth #11

Link to Show

May 19-21

Art on the Square

Belleville, Illinois

Booth # TBA

Link to Show

June 9-11

Columbus Arts Festival

Columbus, Ohio

Booth #TBA

Link to Show

July 29-30

Geneva Arts Fair

Geneva, Illinois

Booth #35

Link to Show

August 11-13

Sun Valley Arts and Crafts Festival

Ketchum, Idaho

Booth #K4

Link to Show

August 19-20

Golden Fine Arts Festival

Golden, Colorado

Booth #TBA

Link to Show

October 7-8

Cottonwood Art Festival

Richardson, Texas

Booth #TBA

Link to Show

October 14-15

Bayou City Art Festival

Houston, Texas

Booth #TBA

Link to Show

October 21-22

River Arts Fest

Memphis, Tennessee

Booth #TBA

Link to Show

That's it for 2023.  2024 schedule will be posted as results come in, starting some time in November.

 

 

    

      

  

    

  

  

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

California:          

Artisana                                  

146 North Mail Street

Sebastopol, CA  95472

707-829-3036 

artisanafunctionalart.com

Colorado

Balefire Goods

7513 Grandview Avenue

Arvada, CO  80002

720-479-8434

balefiregoods.com

Florida:               

Brenda McMahon Gallery        

2901 Beach Blvd South #104

Gulfport, FL  33707

518-692-7742            

BrendaMcMahonGallery.com

Massachusetts:

London Ventures Company

2 Dock Square

Rockport, MA  01966

978-546-7161

Michigan:        

Joe Graci Gallery                     

555 East Michigan Street

Marquette, MI  49855            

gracigallery.com

Wisconsin:

Bell Street Gallery

807 Bell Street

La Pointe, WI  54850

(on Madeline Island in the beautiful Apostle Islands)

715-747-2092

bellstgallery.com

Cappaert Contemporary Gallery

7901 State Highway 42

Egg Harbor, WI  54209

920-868-3987

(Open May 1-October 31)

cappaertcontemporary.com

           

      

Galleries

Thank you for contacting us. We try to respond within 1-2 days.

CONTACT

You can contact us through the form on the left, or the phone numbers below. We do our best to respond within 1-2 days.  Thank you.

970-310-4904   cell

906-934-2372   yes, we still have a land line

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JOIN OUR MAILING LIST

We only use our list to send notifications of where we will be doing shows, assuming we will again in the near future, and never more than 4 times each year.  There will always be an unsubscribe button on each mailing.  Thanks, and we hope to see you at a show soon.

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