Years ago, when I was sculpting from found objects, I noticed an attraction to rusted metal parts and thought I could save myself the stench of falling into dumpster brew (found at the bottom of dumpsters and unavoidable when dumpster diving for found objects to be used in one's art) by incorporating new industrial parts (with a rust patina) in my work as well. So off I went to Home Depot, and inadvertently, I stepped into a brave new world of ecodesign.

Along the way, I discovered a brilliant cadre of likeminded ecodesigners. Eventually my journey took me further down the road towards traditional sculpture and painting, and I forgot about the ecodesigners. Ironically, my journey has taken me full circle, and now I'm working on a career as a professional jewelry designer. So, I was racking my brain, trying to remember that artist who does funky jewelry from rubber washers, and I found her! She's Melissa Kolbusz, a Chicago jewelry designer and friend of the environment who designs gothic and ethereal jewelry from recycled industrial parts.

1. "elliptical envy", alternator wire and electrical component necklace by Melissa Kolbusz
2. "trampoline", steel choker by Melissa Kolbusz

Speaking of ecofriendly jewelry, Leo DiCaprio's new movie, Blood Diamonds (featuring Djimon Hounsou, in all his glorious, chocolate perfection. *Sigh*) brings light to the horrific reality of conflict diamonds (which are mined and sold to finance wars, especially in Africa). Mining in general, even of precious metals, tends to wreck havoc on the environment and the health of the miners. I was woefully unaware of this fact until I stumbled upon GreenKarat, a Texas-based online company, founded by Matt White in 2003 when he couldn't find an environmentally friendly wedding band for his bride.

After reading the GreenKarat website, I became alarmed and felt myself spiraling towards the environmental extreme. (I try to avoid extremes otherwise, I could easily be living outdoors, wearing sackcloth and eating locusts). Besides, precious metals like gold, silver, and platinum are too valuable to discard, so all precious metal is recycled. Further, I plan to use Precious Metal Clay in my work so this will answer my concerns. But, I still plan to give a portion of my income to environmental nonprofits.

When you attend a liberal arts college that has a rich tradition of environmental activism (like Evergreen), it's impossible to escape thinking about how your choices (both personal and business) impact the environment. However, time and experience have taught me to balance the demands of commerce and industry with pro-environmental art production processes.