Jaydan Moore

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Jaydan Moore

Metalsmith, Printmaking

Lives and works in Richmond, VA.
(b. 1986, American)

8-Word Artist Statement:
“Merging found histories to define a communal image.”

Details

ARTIST STATEMENT

I am motivated by how an object moves through the world. Changing in meaning as it is passed down, and how it is revered as its significance grows. Witnessing these wares in, antique shops, and junkyards I imagine how their previous owners may have affected these objects.

As these possessions become more and more mass-produced, our ability to add relevancy and meaning in this way separates each object from one another. Metal withstands its daily use, revealing evidence of wear by the dings, scratches, and patination that can be read on its surface. I see this accumulated layering of worth as far more precious than the most valuable of materials. Once a metal object has run its course it can be scrapped, melted, and recast, ready to be made into a new object. I believe the past still lives within the new object.

By deconstructing and reassembling found silver-plated tableware I commemorate the individual’s ability to contextualize their valuables and memories. Fabricating new forms out of many fragments from stylistically and historically related objects, I create new images of what objects mean to our society, one that considers all memories of use.

ABOUT

Jaydan was born into a family of fourth generation tombstone makers in California. Most of his childhood was largely spent at the family business, which doubled as a rental storage space; where he would rummage through other people’s objects, and listen to families make arrangements for their loved ones. It is these experiences that made him value the heirlooms and objects we choose to use as markers for significant moments.
His career began as an undergraduate student at California College of the Arts, in Oakland and received his MFA and MA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Jaydan’s work is in the permanent collection of the Carnegie Museum of Art (PA), Museum of Fine Arts-Houston (TX), and Honolulu Museum of Art (HI).
He has furthered his career through generous opportunities as an artist in residence at Penland School of Crafts, Kohler Arts/Industry Program, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, and a Fountainhead Fellowship at Virginia Commonwealth Universities Craft/Material Studies Program.
He has received grants through the American Craft Councils Emerging Voices Program, North Carolina Arts Fellowship, and the Peter S. Reed Foundation.