Lochlin Smith: "I was born in 1947 and grew up in the lovely countryside of northern Westchester County, New York. I was inspired as a young boy by visiting the great art museums in New York City, and spent many hours in the Egyptian wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art looking at the gold jewelry. Both my parents were artists, so I knew it was possible to make a living in the arts. After high school, I moved into the City, where I attended classes at the School of Visual Arts to study abstract painting. In 1972, I traded NYC for a mountaintop in Vermont. I set up a studio space in an old barn and began painting and sculpting ~ and designing art jewelry. After much twisting, torching and pounding, my jewelry took on a distinctive look and feel. I am most grateful that for over thirty years it has been the sole means of my support. I now live in Montpelier, Vermont with my wife, Marietta, and one of my sons, Julian. My daughter Zea lives right down the street. Two more kids round out our family – Tessa in San Francisco and Stephan in New Jersey. As a business owner, I am privileged to work with others. I turn to my wife, Marietta Rhyne, for help, all the time. She is our Creative Director because she is a fount of good ideas and common sense. The women I work with on the production side of things in the shop have always become very close friends and I love them all, past and present. When I go to work, I just walk out my kitchen door, down a spiral staircase and into my shop. It is a magical space overlooking the city of Montpelier and the hills beyond. Here I make bronze jewelry as well as larger pieces such as clocks, mobiles and garden sculpture. I have been blessed in my life to be able to express my creativity every day. One of my greatest joys is to know that so many people wear my jewelry as a way to express themselves."