Bling opening reception

Saturday January 15 was the opening for the New Harmony Gallery's exhibition, "Bling: Handmade Jewelry from Doris Murdoch's Collection." Now you may be wondering, 'who is Doris Murdoch?' Doris was an avid handmade jewelry collector and patron of the New Harmony Gallery for many years. Doris collected several significant pieces of jewelry made from a variety of materials, from friendly plastic to drusy quartz's and uvarovite. When Doris traveled, she would purchase pieces from artists at fairs and in shops all over the nation. We had to research many of the artists (some of them we already knew well) and making new connections with the artists who Doris supported over the years has been an exciting part of working with this collection.

We had hoped Doris would be able to make it to the opening reception of the exhibition of her jewelry collection. Sadly, Doris passed away the week of the opening. Saturday night was a gathering of Doris's friends and neighbors, who celebrated Doris's life by sharing stories about her. The evening was a beautiful memorial to her. To all art collectors, including Doris, we thank you for what you do!

Good friends of Doris, Connie Weinzapfel and Marylin Schultheis hug each other at the opening of Doris's jewelry collection.

Shrinky Dinks are back! Artist and former Assistant Director of the New Harmony Gallery, Curt Uebelhor stands next to the pin he custom designed for Doris (many years ago I'm told.)

Friends and neighbors of Doris stand together to show off the cat pins that Doris also collected over the years. Each friend chose a cat pin to wear at the reception.