steven KP
CODEBREAKERS / KEEPERS
© Steven KP, photo by Rob Chron.
Steven KP treats wood as an archive that acknowledges the past but never truly lets it go. The knot is a recurring symbol for the jeweler, who carves them to appear as though they are stuck in a similar liminal phase. It is also through making, slow and full of care, that KP attempts to find solace. Concepts like healing and passing have been import- ant to the artist; the format of jewelry as a social signifier presents itself as the perfect conduit. Their work reflects on tending to something ending and allow- ing something new to be nurtured. More recently, the jeweler has been thinking about the notion of clear-cut- ting, where saplings become vulnerable to threats when old-growth forests are cut down. As a queer person and the grandchild of a German Jewish cabinet-maker, this type of loss and erasure is familiar.
When there is a lack of elders (and the safe places they maintain), there is a lack of guidance and protec- tion and an inability for generational knowledge to transfer. By working in a familial language, KP’s pieces reflect embodied wisdom that is able to connect, bind, and even replace heirlooms that have been lost. When things are torn down, new pathways need to be created; in carving, the artist seeks to follow the lines in wood grain akin to clearing a trail, and the objects act as flagging symbols so that anyone can find their way.
B. 1995, Milwaukee, WI
Lives and works in Providence, RI
stevenkp.com
@stevenkp_
JW175
Partially Undone Knot , 2024, Ebonized American cherry wood and sterling silver. Courtesy of the artist, photo by R & Company.
JW176
Doubled Over, 2024, Ebonized American cherry wood and sterling silver. Courtesy of the artist, photo by R & Company.
JW198
unfolded (brooch with box), 2023, Hand-carved and fabricated American cherry, deerskin, and 14k gold pin. 8.75" (H) x 2.5" (W) x 2" (D). Courtesy of the artist, photography by R & Company.