“The material just gets to have its own journey”

— Rachel Mitchell

Boulder County silversmith crafts custom jewelry with fluidity, stories

By Kyle Kirves

Imagine the challenge of capturing something organic – the flow of water, the contours of a mountain, the bursting of a seedpod – and mirroring it in silver. Perhaps ornamenting it with semi-precious stones or etching it in a way that invests it with movement and brings it alive. And doing it all knowing that, once complete, there will never be another like it. While similar perhaps in tone or execution, the work fundamentally has a life and history all its own.

If you can put that mental movie together, you might have an idea of how Boulder County-based silversmith Rachel Mitchell attends to her work. The artist/owner of MaraLuna Jewelry creates many of her pieces with elemental qualities that, though rendered in metal, have a remarkable fluidity to them and convey a sense of motion … something in progress, growing, or coming forth.

“Nature and emotional response feed into the design, but the metal in many ways tells me what it wants to do and I just go with that,” Mitchell says. “It’s a little like having children. You have to sometimes just let go and let the art go its own way and just learn from that.”

It’s not surprising that her work emerges from unregimented methods. Mitchell eschews most traditional artist prep. “I don’t keep a notebook. I’d tried that in school but it just didn’t connect for me,” she says. “It didn’t help me tie what I was seeing mentally to what I needed my hands to do. I do a lot of modeling out of less precious materials – or clay or whatever. Generally, I start something from the beginning and it starts in my head and it just evolves. Sometimes it takes me to a place that’s surprising. But I don’t start out with a set plan.”

Mitchell, who has been working in silver for over 20 years, holds a degree in metalsmithing from Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia, but came to it via another medium. “I started at the Art Institute in photography and what I found myself doing was constructing objects out of photographs,” she says. “So I became kind of fascinated with sculpture and manipulation. But living in a tiny house in Philadelphia, I couldn’t do welding at my house, so I found myself miniaturizing a lot of my work. Which in turn led me to jewelry creation as a way to generate revenue.”

Her studio looks like the office of a professor of natural history. Yes, the tools of her trade are there, along with raw materials. But there are also bleached cow skulls and pelts and other artifacts from the natural world that she uses to striking effect in the photos of her work that comprise her online catalog. She is a collector of oddities, and those oddities inform her artistic choices. Oftentimes, she will take an already assembled piece found in an antique store or estate sale and deconstruct it just to reclaim a stone that appeals to or speaks to her.

“Every single piece is very personal to me,” Mitchell says. “Every piece is something I would wear. That’s meaningful to me. If I am putting it out there for someone to buy, it is because it is special to me and I hope it will be special to you, too.”

That philosophy manifests itself in Mitchell’s work: pieces that are both classically natural and majestically modern at the same time. Some pieces appear to shine with an internal light, while on others, oxidation creates a shadowy depth, dimension and darkness. Mitchell enjoys creating work that is truly one of a kind – when you buy one of her pieces of jewelry you have the satisfaction of knowing that while there may be some similarities to other works in her catalog, this one is truly “yours.”

When asked if there is a particular piece that combines her inspirations, Mitchell cites something special she created recently from her line of what she calls journey bracelets.

“I created a bracelet as a memorial to a friend of mine, Chris Lawrence,” Mitchell says. Lawrence, a fitness expert and martial artist who Mitchell trained with, passed away after a long battle with cancer in 2020. “It holds meaning to me and is a strong reminder of him and the person that he was.”

Another singular creation, a silver bee she rendered for her father, a lifelong beekeeper, is another favorite from her catalog.

Like most artists, Mitchell suggests that no piece is ever really “done,” but there is a point where she just convinces herself to stop. “I think it just feels right – emotionally, textually. It just feels like it’s enough. The material just gets to have its own journey,” she adds.

Here’s hoping that part of that journey leads to you.

Kyle Kirves drinks beer, plays guitar, runs trails, and manages projects – all with varying degrees of success. While not a craftsman himself, he is quite content writing about the Colorado artisans who create such wonderful things and memorable experiences.