Coralynn Pence

born Athena, Oregon, 1909; died Seattle, Washington, 1994

BiographyCoralynn Pence studied at the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles and at the University of Washington. She had a wide-ranging influence on the jewelry arts in the Northwest through her own works as well as her role as a teacher. She taught at the Edison Vocational School in Seattle for 16 years during the early half of the 20th century where she influenced a number of Northwest jewelers. She also taught briefly at the University of Washington.

In 1954, she was a founding member of the Northwest Designer Craftsmen along with Russell Day, Hella Skowronski, Lizel Salzer, Henry Lin, Evert Sodergren, Irene McGowan, Robert Sperry, and Ruth Penington. She is credited with inspiring Ramona Solberg's interest in jewelry making.

Pence was known for her modernist work featuring clean lines and a reliance on silver and gold with stones and other metals as accents. She was a world traveler and often returned from her trips with materials to include in her works. All of her jewelry was designed with specific individuals in mind. She completed more than 500 private jewelry commissions for clients. Her jewelry was exhibited around the world in galleries and museums and her designs have won honors and awards from many organizations over the years.

Sources:
Seattle Times obituary by Deloris Tarzan Ament and other sources
http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19940224&slug=1896842 [accessed August 2021]

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