This exhibition will showcase the work of this local metalsmith, jewelry artist, and glassblower.

Gaumer’s (Un)Wearable series fuses these ornate ancient crafts to broach sometimes painful conversations about expectations of beauty, feminism, power, and self-worth. The adornments she has styled combine materials that simultaneously project strength and fragility, inspiring the viewer to imagine how it would feel to be in the position of the wearer. NUMU visitors will get an intimate glimpse into the handbuilt workspace that Gaumer has fashioned, as well as the process she developed to create the lux glass respirator.

Exhibition curated by Julie Ericsson.

This unique exhibition developed in partnership with Music at Kohl Mansion Burlingame, producers of the Violins of Hope San Francisco Bay Area Project, presents a virtual experience of the Tel Aviv violin workshop of Amnon and Avshalom Weinstein where the Violins of Hope are restored. The installation will share the story of the Weinstein family and the inspiration behind the Project, and highlight one of the 70 historic instruments in the collection.

In the Artist’s Studio
Charlotte Kruk
April 26-September 1, 2019

Charlotte Kruk’s wearable sculpture, Image courtesy of the artist

In the fourth installment of In the Artist’s Studio, NUMU invites you into the studio of San Jose-based sculptress Charlotte Kruk for an introduction to her work, creative process, and life as an artist. Best known for her wearable sculptures crafted from repurposed food and candy wrappers, Kruk transforms discarded materials (candy wrappers, cookie boxes, paper, sugar bags, and plastic spoons and forks) into fine art. In this exhibition, visitors will see examples of her vibrant and colorful wearable sculptures and playful ceramics. Kruk’s work is a response to environmental, cultural, and personal experiences. Also on view are some of Kruk’s art making tools and personal items, along with photographs of private studio spaces, which are rarely open to the public. 

To read an interview with the artist, click here.

In the Artist’s Studio: David Middlebrook

June 28, 2018 – October 21, 2018. Free admission for all visitors.*

Internationally renowned Los Gatos-based artist David Middlebrook is featured in NUMU's In the Artist's Studio exhibition series that invites visitors to experience a virtual studio visit of local artists.  The exhibition presents an introduction to his work, creative process and life. Visitors will see Middlebrook’s sculpture, view art making tools and personal items, and photographs of private studio spaces, which are rarely open to the public. In David Middlebrook’s studio, and in his installations around the world, he brings to his art practice his life experiences, skill, imagination, passion, humor, history and, most importantly, the magic that occurs only in the artist’s studio.

Middlebrook’s studio is nestled in the hills of Los Gatos, surrounded by ancient oak trees. The building where he does much of his work is a large barn-like structure accented with unique salvaged windows. The space is filled with an assortment of supplies, tools and works in progress, as well as found objects, personal mementos and memorabilia from childhood. Middlebrook’s artmaking spreads outside into an adjacent open-air studio where huge pieces of stone and metal sit under the trees waiting to be transformed into large-scale, site-specific works that encompass all shapes and sizes.

NUMU’s In the Artist’s Studio exhibition series supports NUMU’s mission to share stories in new ways. Most people do not have the opportunity to visit an artist’s studio and learn firsthand how artwork is made, and more importantly why it is made. Through this series NUMU offers insight into the practice of artmaking and shares with the community the ingenuity, intelligence and empathy that goes into the creative process. NUMU introduced the series in January 2018 featuring the studios and practices of San Jose-based artists George Rivera and Kristin Lindseth.

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*Does not include exhibition related programs

More information including high res images for download may be found on our Press Resources Page.  Read press coverage for the exhibition on the NUMU in the News page. Sign-up to receive our Press Releases.

In the Artist’s Studio: George Rivera and Kristin Lindseth

January 19, 2018 – June 17, 2018. Free admission for all visitors

With this first installation of In The Artist’s Studio, visitors are invited into the studios of George Rivera and Kristin Lindseth for an introduction to their work, creative process and lives as artists. In this virtual studio visit, a selection of the artists' works, art making tools and personal items, along with rarely seen photographs of private studio spaces - rarely open to the public - are on view. 

An artist’s studio is both a sacred creative space and a functional workshop, each as unique as the individual artist. The studios of artists provide a treasure trove of insight into their practices and personas. Examples from art history include painter Francis Bacon, known for working amongst a disheveled hoard of creative material. Georgia O’Keefe’s adobe home studio is filled with found bone fragments and rocks, and punctuated with windows that provide magnificent views - all informed and inspired her creative process. Constantin Brancusi’s workspace was chock-full with not only his sculptures, but also his own handmade furniture. 

George Rivera and Kristin Lindseth, like O’Keefe and many other artists throughout time, work in their home studio and the adjacent outdoor spaces. The studio space, where Rivera does most of his work, is filled with a collection of things, almost like a living collage or assemblage, along with guitars, amps and motorcycles. For Kristin Lindseth, she is most often working just outside the studio or in the foundry, venturing up the mountain trails near her home where ideas come to her as she hikes. Both artists bring to their studio practice their life experiences, skill, imagination, passion, memorable responses to works from art history and, most importantly, the magic that occurs only in the artist’s studio.

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