Making Connections- A Handbook of Cold Joins for the Jeweler and Mixed Media Artist

The book is in print and copies are arriving in Seattle on Feb. 21st! It is finally here! Making Connections can be ordered from my web site and in a few weeks will be available at Amazon. In the past year and a half I learned what other writers already know.... In writing a book you literally pour out your heart and soul and lay yourself on the line in front of judges and all. One finds, the truth is hard to reach within yourself and to get at it, you must dig deep. For about a year, I literally ate, drank and slept cold joins and connections. When finished, I was left exhausted, depleted and needing to replenish my vital energy.

As a visual artist, in the process of writing it was a surprise for me to find out how creative working with words can actually be. There is the exact word one needs somewhere in the vast English dictionary that expresses EXACTLY what you would like to say. To me, writing this book was the same creative process as building any one of my jewelry pieces. It takes identifying the exact word, technique, etc. and laying myself on the line by using it. In my work, each piece, like a book literally has a beginning, a climax and conclusion. They all have a story.
Here I stand out on a limb shaking in my Ugg boots because I have no one to blame but myself if this book does not succeed. This book is self published. By self published, I mean, I ,(we, Linda, my business partner and I) hired and managed a writer, photographer, lay out person, editor and readers and so on...
A few comments that I have recently received was that "this book is going to raise the bar in the art world!" and "It is not only beautiful but practical as well!". My reasons for self publishing instead of the traditional route was that I wanted a fresh approach. I did not intend to use an existing and tried formula for creating a successful book. I see what my students are looking for and I know my strengths and weaknesses in my work. I did want to share with the world a book that is not only descriptive and practical but very beautiful. It was a huge task to accomplish for all involved including my lay out person. This book includes 9 chapters each expressing a different technique and means of attaching. It is truly beautiful with very descriptive sketches of each piece showing layers of connections. It is packed full with technique and describes in detail any and all ways that I use for attaching outside of soldering.

Susan Lenart Kazmer is an explorer, inventor and maverick who has pioneered the use of found objects in jewelry making. After two decades of working with appropriated materials, Susan has developed dozens of ingenious cold connections using staples, rivets, fibers, resins and other material. Here, Susan shares the insights, creative philosophy and techniques that inspired and helped create her stackable jewelry and kinetic, three-dimensional marionettes. Embellished with stunning photos and dozens of original joining techniques, this book solves many of the problems encountered when connecting delicate mixed media to metals. Susan’s ground-breaking techniques and fresh approach to cold-connections will uncover a world of new options that will inspire mixed-media artists and jewelers.

Over the years, Susan has won many awards and has had her work included in museum exhibits such as the Smithsonian in Washington DC, the Art Institute in New York, and the Huntington Museum of Art, to name a few. The Post Picasso Gallery included Susan’s work in The Best of 2004. Susan is also considered a pioneer in the field of patination. She lives in Ohio with her family.