ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Jim & Lia Biond
2022 Best of Show
Jim and Lia Biond have been jewelry designers and fabricators for over 30 years. They have won many awards at fine art festivals such as Best of Show in Augusta, GA, Best of Show in Melbourne, FL and 1st Place 3-Dimensional in Tarpon Springs. Most recently they received the BEST OF SHOW award at the Mandarin Art Festival in 2022.
The Bionds have been participating in the Mandarin Art Festival for 25 years. It was the 1st art show in which they received a 1st Place award in the Jewelry category. “It’s the best art show in NorthEast Florida.” They have almost retired from the art show circuit but will continue to show in Mandarin for as long as possible. Starting from the super volunteer committee members to the great artists and the excellent and knowledgeable patrons, this is one of their all time favorite shows.
Pictures of their jewelry and their art show schedule are posted on their website www.biondojewelry.com and on their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/biondojewelry. Jim graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Engineering and worked in different countries throughout Europe for 13 years. Upon his return to the U.S., he became fascinated with gemstones and metals and began his formal jewelry training at Rowan State College in New Jersey. He then continued at the Center of Visual Arts and College of Arts in Philadelphia and has attended many workshops. Jim and Lia moved to Mandarin in 1994 to escape the cold NJ weather and currently reside in St. John’s County, FL.
Jim finds he is most creative when he is in a true bind with time. Some of his best collections were designed within less than 14 hours. “The very fact that you don't have time, or you don't have all of the normal components you would like, gives you an excuse to liberate yourself, especially when it comes to jewelry design.” Jim’s current metal of choice is Pure Silver, which is the whitest of all the precious metals.
Jim’s design inspirations have come from many different aspects of life, such as boot laces, gears, folded forms, teapots, and irregular shapes. Lia takes some of his unique pendants and designs Kumihimo (a Japanese weaving technique) necklaces to accentuate the colors in the gemstones. Jim says, “Lia is my CFO, CEO and everything else. I am the craftsman. When we married I said she could do all of the paperwork and if her pencil broke, I would fix it.”
Lia fell in love with ‘Kumihimo’ braiding when she saw the beautiful work of an expert at a fine arts show. After making some time in between her work obligations, she took an intense course from that artist and has never looked back. She says she found herself hating to tear away from the beads just because she had to meet a work deadline. After taking an early retirement, she can now dedicate all the time she wants to creating more elaborate pieces.
Kumihimo is an ancient Japanese art of braiding which means “the gathering of threads.” It combined function and beauty when the braids were used by the Samurai warriors to attach swords to their sashes and to decorate the handles of their weapons. In later years, beads were added to the threads. Kumihimo is a satisfying and beautiful craft and she considers it to be a form of meditation.
Jim and Lia go to wholesale gem shows several times a year in search of special stones to make their jewelry pieces. They call it "treasure hunting". Sometimes it takes several years for the design inspirations to come.
The Bionds are advocates of continuous education; however, most of their techniques have been learned through irreplaceable “hands on” experience. Jim is currently expanding his teaching curriculum through FSG chapters and other jewelry making societies. They say their goal is to help beautify every person who wears their creations. Their motto: Craftsmanship + Experience + Passion.
Below are some images from their collection.
The Bionds have been participating in the Mandarin Art Festival for 25 years. It was the 1st art show in which they received a 1st Place award in the Jewelry category. “It’s the best art show in NorthEast Florida.” They have almost retired from the art show circuit but will continue to show in Mandarin for as long as possible. Starting from the super volunteer committee members to the great artists and the excellent and knowledgeable patrons, this is one of their all time favorite shows.
Pictures of their jewelry and their art show schedule are posted on their website www.biondojewelry.com and on their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/biondojewelry. Jim graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Engineering and worked in different countries throughout Europe for 13 years. Upon his return to the U.S., he became fascinated with gemstones and metals and began his formal jewelry training at Rowan State College in New Jersey. He then continued at the Center of Visual Arts and College of Arts in Philadelphia and has attended many workshops. Jim and Lia moved to Mandarin in 1994 to escape the cold NJ weather and currently reside in St. John’s County, FL.
Jim finds he is most creative when he is in a true bind with time. Some of his best collections were designed within less than 14 hours. “The very fact that you don't have time, or you don't have all of the normal components you would like, gives you an excuse to liberate yourself, especially when it comes to jewelry design.” Jim’s current metal of choice is Pure Silver, which is the whitest of all the precious metals.
Jim’s design inspirations have come from many different aspects of life, such as boot laces, gears, folded forms, teapots, and irregular shapes. Lia takes some of his unique pendants and designs Kumihimo (a Japanese weaving technique) necklaces to accentuate the colors in the gemstones. Jim says, “Lia is my CFO, CEO and everything else. I am the craftsman. When we married I said she could do all of the paperwork and if her pencil broke, I would fix it.”
Lia fell in love with ‘Kumihimo’ braiding when she saw the beautiful work of an expert at a fine arts show. After making some time in between her work obligations, she took an intense course from that artist and has never looked back. She says she found herself hating to tear away from the beads just because she had to meet a work deadline. After taking an early retirement, she can now dedicate all the time she wants to creating more elaborate pieces.
Kumihimo is an ancient Japanese art of braiding which means “the gathering of threads.” It combined function and beauty when the braids were used by the Samurai warriors to attach swords to their sashes and to decorate the handles of their weapons. In later years, beads were added to the threads. Kumihimo is a satisfying and beautiful craft and she considers it to be a form of meditation.
Jim and Lia go to wholesale gem shows several times a year in search of special stones to make their jewelry pieces. They call it "treasure hunting". Sometimes it takes several years for the design inspirations to come.
The Bionds are advocates of continuous education; however, most of their techniques have been learned through irreplaceable “hands on” experience. Jim is currently expanding his teaching curriculum through FSG chapters and other jewelry making societies. They say their goal is to help beautify every person who wears their creations. Their motto: Craftsmanship + Experience + Passion.
Below are some images from their collection.
