Penland Winter Residency: Distinguished Fellow Shani Richards
In the 76th episode of Perceived Value, host Sarah Rachel Brown is at the Penland School of Craft during their Winter Residency. This episode is part of a special series featuring the Distinguished Fellows of the Penland Winter Residency. As the Andrew Glasgow Resident, Sarah has been awarded two full weeks to conduct interviews and research at Penland during their winter program. Sarah was encouraged to share a portion of her work with Penland’s artist community, thus this special series.
The fourth and final Distinguished Fellow to be featured is Shani Richards, a metalsmith from Akron, Ohio. The two metalsmiths sat down and discussed what Shani was focusing on during her time at the Penland Winter Residency. Shani being no stranger to fellowships or residencies, their conversation evolved into discussing the pros and cons of pursuing a career as a full-time artist, how Shani is navigating her current nomadic lifestyle, and what she hopes for in her future.
This special series is possible due to the support of the
Penland School of Craft and the Andrew Glasgow Residency.
Thank you to the Penland staff and artists for the generosity of your time and participation.
Shani Richards was born and raised in Akron, Ohio. She graduated with BFA in metalsmithing at the University of Akron in 2006. Ms. Richards lived in New York City for six years, while there she interned first at Noha’s Jewelry and later at Stony Jewelry. She attended Parson New School of design a year to study fashion marketing. Before moving upstate to attend SUNY New Paltz, Ms. Richards took an independent study at her alumna The University of Akron, and focused on teaching jewelry making, specifically crafting rings throughout the city. Shani graduated with an MFA in Metal at the State University of New York, New Paltz and presented her Thesis show titled “Make it Plain” at The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art. Afterwards Shani returned to her hometown Akron, Ohio. In 2018 she was awarded a Community Fellowship from The League of Creative Interventionists. With the year-long fellowship Shani developed a community youth project called Akron’s Growing Chefs. In 2020 Shani was awarded art residency with The Akron Soul Train. Shani was one of six artists selected to be a part of The Sculpture Center 2022 Emerging Artists Solo Exhibition Series. In 2023 Shani was a Visiting Craft Fellow at SUNY New Paltz, New York. The fellowship is sponsored by the Metals Program and The Windgate Foundation. Shani was also a fellow at Ann Street Gallery in Newburgh, NY.
Instagram: Shani.Richards
Facebook: Shani Richards
