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About Dawn
Hi my name is Dawn Fernald-Spruill and I have been a professional artist for more than 12
years. I began my career as an artist actually by accident. I was in nursing school when I
discovered I was pregnant with my daughter Ciara. Due to my "condition", I had to drop my
nursing labs. But as I had already paid for the semester and couldn't get a refund, I took art
classes instead. One of the classes I took was Introduction to Stained Glass and I became
hooked. My favorite thing to create was and is kaleidoscopes.
After my daughter arrived my family moved from Virginia to New Hampshire where I was
quickly coerced into teaching stained glass to some friends. It was during this time that I came
to realize that my calling in life was to teach art. And so the adventure begins. From stained
glass I began to expand my horizons by learning and then teaching silk painting, lampworking,
fused glass and beading. But we as a family made the decision to move to St. Louis where my
husband Chris would attend seminary at Eden Theological Seminary.
Nothing however, compared to the "art frenzy" that would take hold when I was introduced in
2001 to Precious Metal Clay (PMC) by my best friend Nancy Duvall-Vest. Nancy and I started
a Home Jewelry Business in St. Louis called the Garden of Bead'n. This is when I really decided
that "jewelry" was in my future. My husband Chris even invented Jewelry Bingo for us. It was
a great time. But it was time to move again to Chris' first church in Grand Rapids Michigan.
PMC became an addiction. The more I played with it the more I wanted to create. But we
weren't done moving....so off we went to Frederick Maryland where (hopefully) we will be for a
while.
I had the opportunity in July of 2005 to become Level One Certified with Wendy Schuster,
Senior Teacher through the PMC Guild. Wendy is an amazing teacher and continues to play an
influential role in my life as a PMC artist. But that still wasn't enough. I needed to learn more.
In October of 2005 I traveled to Young Harris Georgia where I had the opportunity to meet
and be taught by the two pioneers of PMC, Mary Ann and Ken Devos. There I received my
Level Two Certification.
In October of 2006 I decided that I wasn't done learning and so I took the Rio Grande
Certification class through Senior Teacher Tonya Davidson owner of Whole Lotta
Whimsey.com. Tonya really helped me stretch outside my comfort zone. Also in October I
had the privilege of being featured in Frederick Magazine under their Maryland Made section.
Well it has been one crazy journey and I am sure it is not even close to being over. PMC is an
amazing art form. The clay is so easily manipulated and creatively it is a great medium. I
currently am teaching in my home studio as well as at local area Bead and Hobby shops as well
as for Frederick County Parks and Recreation and The Delaplaine, spreading the good word
about PMC as well as continuing to teach Stained Glass, Fused Glass and Silk Painting. If you
want to learn more about what and where I am teaching check out my Classes Page. Thanks for
taking the time to come along on my adventures!
years. I began my career as an artist actually by accident. I was in nursing school when I
discovered I was pregnant with my daughter Ciara. Due to my "condition", I had to drop my
nursing labs. But as I had already paid for the semester and couldn't get a refund, I took art
classes instead. One of the classes I took was Introduction to Stained Glass and I became
hooked. My favorite thing to create was and is kaleidoscopes.
After my daughter arrived my family moved from Virginia to New Hampshire where I was
quickly coerced into teaching stained glass to some friends. It was during this time that I came
to realize that my calling in life was to teach art. And so the adventure begins. From stained
glass I began to expand my horizons by learning and then teaching silk painting, lampworking,
fused glass and beading. But we as a family made the decision to move to St. Louis where my
husband Chris would attend seminary at Eden Theological Seminary.
Nothing however, compared to the "art frenzy" that would take hold when I was introduced in
2001 to Precious Metal Clay (PMC) by my best friend Nancy Duvall-Vest. Nancy and I started
a Home Jewelry Business in St. Louis called the Garden of Bead'n. This is when I really decided
that "jewelry" was in my future. My husband Chris even invented Jewelry Bingo for us. It was
a great time. But it was time to move again to Chris' first church in Grand Rapids Michigan.
PMC became an addiction. The more I played with it the more I wanted to create. But we
weren't done moving....so off we went to Frederick Maryland where (hopefully) we will be for a
while.
I had the opportunity in July of 2005 to become Level One Certified with Wendy Schuster,
Senior Teacher through the PMC Guild. Wendy is an amazing teacher and continues to play an
influential role in my life as a PMC artist. But that still wasn't enough. I needed to learn more.
In October of 2005 I traveled to Young Harris Georgia where I had the opportunity to meet
and be taught by the two pioneers of PMC, Mary Ann and Ken Devos. There I received my
Level Two Certification.
In October of 2006 I decided that I wasn't done learning and so I took the Rio Grande
Certification class through Senior Teacher Tonya Davidson owner of Whole Lotta
Whimsey.com. Tonya really helped me stretch outside my comfort zone. Also in October I
had the privilege of being featured in Frederick Magazine under their Maryland Made section.
Well it has been one crazy journey and I am sure it is not even close to being over. PMC is an
amazing art form. The clay is so easily manipulated and creatively it is a great medium. I
currently am teaching in my home studio as well as at local area Bead and Hobby shops as well
as for Frederick County Parks and Recreation and The Delaplaine, spreading the good word
about PMC as well as continuing to teach Stained Glass, Fused Glass and Silk Painting. If you
want to learn more about what and where I am teaching check out my Classes Page. Thanks for
taking the time to come along on my adventures!
My Senior Teacher Wendy Schuster and I, April
2006. Wendy is one of the best teachers I have
worked with. I have had the great privilege of
receiving my Level One Certification from her as
well as continuing to apprentice under her. She
is an amazing artist and I admire her teaching
skills. She helps each student unlock their
creative muse!
2006. Wendy is one of the best teachers I have
worked with. I have had the great privilege of
receiving my Level One Certification from her as
well as continuing to apprentice under her. She
is an amazing artist and I admire her teaching
skills. She helps each student unlock their
creative muse!
| The Family... |
Me and my crazy friend
Nancy Duvall-Vest, also a
3X Certified PMC Artist
in St. Louis Missouri
Nancy Duvall-Vest, also a
3X Certified PMC Artist
in St. Louis Missouri
One of my favorite PMC people
is Tonya Davidson, founder of
Whole Lotta Whimsey and
senior instructor for Rio Grande.
Gracious, generous and creative
are just a few of the words I can
use to describe Tonya.
is Tonya Davidson, founder of
Whole Lotta Whimsey and
senior instructor for Rio Grande.
Gracious, generous and creative
are just a few of the words I can
use to describe Tonya.
| DBD Art Studios Frederick Maryland |
| Our newest members Dexter and Mickey Mouse at 6 weeks |
| Check out the article, but please don't laugh at the picture of me!! Also, special thanks to Frederick Magazine for giving me permission to put the article on my web page!! |
