Digital fabrication technologies allow for fast production, easily achieved accuracy and formerly unattainable forms, but many ask: “Is it handmade?”

Joshua DeMonte will take up that topic when he presents the latest University of Iowa Museum of Art SmartTalk Thursday, April 24, at 7:30 p.m. in 240 Art Building West. He will address his work and how it relates to crafts and adornment as well as the role of 3D printing technology and how it relates to the concept of “handmade.”

His work has been displayed at the Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery, the Museum of Art and Design and in the 3D Printshow in London and Paris. His jewelry work combines the qualities of traditional adornment and architectural form. The often-large pieces of jewelry are intended to transform the space around the wearer, he says. “These architectural pieces, when oriented on the figure, transform the wearer into the landscape or figure existing within the architectural space,” he notes.

DeMonte is a professor and artist in Baltimore, where he directs the Interdisciplinary Object Design program and Object Lab at Towson University. He received his Master of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in metals, jewelry, and computer aided design from Tyler School of Art, Temple University, where he studied under metal smiths Stanley Lechtzin and Vickie Sedman.

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all UI-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, contact the UIMA in advance at 319-335-1727.