From the time of cavemen to modern society, jewelry has been a popular way to express culture and art all around the world. Now, with the guidance of Nissa Kubly, students at Xavier can take an elective, learning to make jewelry and working with different metals.

Students learn to use different tools and techniques to create projects such as keychains to rings. Kubly says, “The projects for the class consist of learning how to do the basics of soldering with copper and brass,” and later “working with sterling and silver.”

Students look at designs from other cultures as well, learning techniques used to create jewelry. For example, early Norwegian forming and forging of metals is one of many approaches introduced to students.

One of the most interesting techniques taught during the semester is setting a stone. Students learn to place a jewel in a necklace or ring as decoration. “At the end of the course, they should learn how to make a sterling silver ring and set a stone for that ring,” said Kubly. 

Students also learn to work with different tools during class. One of the main tools is a torch.  “At first, I was kind of nervous to use it,” said senior Arianna Thompson-Bueno, a returning student of the class, “but it wasn’t as bad as I thought.”

Working with a torch seems frightening, but after taking the class and having hands-on experience, students are able to handle the tool in a comfortable and safe way. According to junior Ava Silvernail, a new student in the class, “Ms. Kubly said that no one has ever burned themselves.”

Silvernail also expresses her excitement to use the torch, saying, “I was not that scared, more excited.”

This studio art class is known for its openness to creativity. “You can basically make whatever you want because it is really flexible,” Silvernail said.

For Bueno, one of her favorite projects was setting a stone in the necklace that she made. Being a returning student, she looked forward to creating more necklaces,“doing more detailed work” and “improving” her skills when working with metal.

One final activity students can participate in is the Student Art Show in the Stark Gallery. At the end of the year, students can display their creations along with other pieces for the Xavier community to see. 

Kubly’s class is an interesting elective for students to participate in; however, it is only open to students who have already taken Sculpture I as a prerequisite. 

“It looks harder than it actually is,” Bueno said. Students find Jewelry and Metalworking to be very relaxing, “especially with a day full of tough classes,” Silvernail added.

Xavier’s Jewelry and Metalworking elective class sparks a new interest in students, while simultaneously teaching an undying art expressed throughout many generations.