Debra Bard Javerbaum

Debra Bard Javerbaum

How it all began …

Almost a decade ago, I saw an unusual and striking piece of metal wall art at my relatives’ home. The piece, made and purchased in Estonia, was a colorful array of textured steel squares that I found absolutely captivating. For years I wanted to make one myself. When my family and I moved from New York City to Santa Monica I was fortunate to be able to set up a formal studio space in our garage. My objective was two-part: one, to learn everything I could about metal arts; and two, to apply my art and design background to capture the spirit of the artwork I had fallen in love with so long ago. I studied and researched online, made lots of trips to metal shops and hardware stores, took classes, sought advice from artists, jewelers and metalworkers, and then spent hours in my studio experimenting with what I called “metal mosaics.” In time, I created original pieces from a combination of painted, torched, patinated, textured, etched, or otherwise distressed copper and steel squares. I assembled them in ways I found visually pleasing, rearranging them to highlight their colors, patterns and relationships, and connected the squares via handmade jump rings to copper pipe. The results range in size from small pieces to hang in gardens or powder rooms, to large pieces that serve as the centerpiece of a room or office lobby.

How my art evolved from that point ...

Working with copper and color naturally led me to enameling, a wonderfully challenging art form that appeals to my inner alchemist. Consulting the Thompson Enamel Workbook and books like Pat Johnson’s Enameling on Copper and Linda Darty’s The Art of Enameling, I began torch firing and then progressed to a Paragon SC2 Pro Kiln. The process can be wildly unpredictable; when I remove a piece from the kiln I might be rewarded with the satisfaction of a technique finally mastered, surprised by a happy accident that leads to retroactive note-taking and attempts to recreate the magic, or just as easily disappointed with results that present a whole new round of problem-solving. I enjoy devising new ways to achieve gorgeous jewel tones and depth of color with opaque and transparent enamel, and experimenting with high firing lead-bearing and unleaded enamel together. I’m inspired by the luminosity of enamel, and by the works of Jean Ames, David Andersen, Fred Uhl Ball, Linda Darty, J. Esteban Perez, June Schwarz, Judy Stone, Pauline Warg and many others. With so many potential variations for each tile, and the ability to create mosaics of kaleidoscopic colors, texture and shine, the possibilities are endless. 

How I collaborate with clients ...

Collaborating with clients on their custom metalwork is the most enjoyable part of the process. From visiting their space to discuss how the lighting and decor might inform the piece, to talking about ways to personalize the tiles, I find it exciting to create the piece together and bring our shared vision to fruition. It’s especially rewarding to watch a client step on the studio ladder to get a bird’s-eye view of the work in progress and, together, puzzle through the countless permutations to find an arrangement that "works".

Where you can see my art and enameled jewelry …

I display and sell my artwork along with enameled jewelry at the Ten Women Gallery on Montana in Santa Monica (www.tenwomen.org) and show examples of finished mosaics at www.debrabard.com and on Instagram @debrabard. My work can be seen on the Netflix TV show Disjointed and at the offices of Hale & Hale, DDS on Wilshire in Santa Monica. My custom mosaics are also in collectors’ homes in California, Colorado, Arizona, Michigan and Oslo, Norway.