Creating visual interpretations of emotional reactions.

Jewelyn Franz was born in the state of Pennsylvania in the United States in 1995. Coming from a family of teachers and engineers, her pursuit of textile artistry contrasts greatly from the career choices made by her family members. She began working with textiles as a child, getting machine sewing lessons from her aunt every other weekend. She went from making her own clothes, to quilting, costume design, and many others. When she was a teenager, she taught herself to knit as a hobby that eventually turned into a career. She has recently completed her BFA in Crafts from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania in December of 2017. Now, her primary source of inspiration is her Cherokee heritage, with a focus on the land and our bodies. She has exhibited her work in multiple group and solo shows locally, including her recent participation in the 2019 Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show. Her work is in many private residences, including the home of Kutztown University's president. She worked with Emily Nachison of Oregon College of Art and Craft in the Miller Gallery of Kutztown University in the completion of her site-specific installation Long Lost as a team lead to help students in the textile portion of the work in Spring of 2016. She currently works at the manufacturing level of textiles and is working towards finding her true path in this complicated world.