WISCONSIN CHARM

Resume Highlights:

• Education

University of Wisconsin - Madison, WI. Master of Fine Arts in Metalsmithing, 1990.  Master of Arts in Metalsmithing, 1989.

University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh, WI.  Bachelor of Fine Arts in Metalsmithing and Sculpture, 1987.

Gemological Institute of America - Carlsbad, CA.   Completed Diamond Course, 1996.  Completed Diamond Grading Course, 1998.

• Experience

Reimer Jewelers - Oshkosh, WI.  Goldsmith and jewelry designer.  June 2012 to present.  Design, cast, fabricate, stone setting and finishing in platinum, gold and sterling silver.

J. Anthony Jewelers - Neenah, WI.  Goldsmith and jewelry designer.  August 2009 to Februrary 2012.  Design, cast, fabricate, stone setting and finishing in platinum, gold and sterling silver. 

Gold and Silver Creations, Inc. - Sturgeon Bay, WI.  Goldsmith and jewelry designer.  November 1991 to August 2009.   Design, cast, fabricate, stone setting and finishing in  platinum, gold and sterling silver.

University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh, WI.  Instructed beginning and advanced Art Metals courses, Spring 1994, 1995, 2008.  Instructed beginning and advanced Functional Design courses, Spring 1994 and 1995.  Instructed continuing education Silver Jewelry Making course fall 2008, spring 2009 and 2010.

• Show and Awards

Dimension in Door County: Form Transcending Function Exhibit, Hardy Gallery, Ephraim, WI 2010.

Alumni Art Exhibition, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Oshkosh, WI, 2009. 

46th Annual Francis Hardy Juried Exhibit, Ephraim, WI, 2008.

Art of Adornment - Jewelry and Metal Arts Invitational 2007.  Peninsula Art School, Fish Creek, WI.

Men at Work Exhibition, 2003, Miller Art Museum.

University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh Faculty Art Exhibit, 1995.

31st Annual Francis Hardy Juried Exhibit, Ephraim, WI, 1993.

University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh Faculty/Alumnus Exhibition, 1991.

Artist fishing near Sturgeon Bay 

Paul enjoys fishing and hunting in the scenic Door County area.  Much of his spare time is spent in pursuit of these outdoor activities.

The idea for the trophy fish rings came to Paul as he realized that many fishermen practice catch and release tactics when fishing.  The rings can give fishermen a reminder of the 'big" one that they released, with personalized engraving available to commemorate that special event.

I was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin in 1964 into a middle class family.  I spent much of my free time out in the fields and woods near our home enjoying nature.

Aviation and railroading have been interests of mine since childhood.  Seeing the trains ramble through Oshkosh and growing up with the Experimental Aircraft Association Fly-In each summer has always held me captivated.  I learned to fly my senior year of high school and received my pilot's certificate my freshman year of college.  I attended UW-Oshkosh where I had hoped to launch a military aviation career.  After two years of Army ROTC, (I didn't want to fly helicopters), and a stint at the U.S. Marine Corps Officer Candidate School in Quantico, VA I found that the military wasn't the route for me.

I changed majors and pursued the art field - specifically metalsmithing.  I always liked the arts and thought that I would enjoy this field; not knowing where it would take me.  I studied metalsmithing, sculpture and geography.  Not knowing what to do with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree I entered Graduate School at UW-Madison.  At Madison I studied metalsmithing under Fred Fenster and Eleanor Moty, two of the top metalsmiths in the country.  I enjoyed learning how to move metal with a hammer and stake and also how to fabricate larger vessels.  I enjoyed making objects out of copper and pewter and learning the skills from one of the country's top pewtersmiths, Fred Fenster.  This was the specialty that I wanted to pursue.

Reality set in, however, after I graduated with both Master of Art and Master of Fine Art degrees in metalsmithing.  Jobs were available out East for pewtersmiths but the salaries were too low to make a decent living and to pay off my student loans.  Jewelry making was always an option that I kept in the back of my mind that I could fall back onto in an emergency.  I started making rings in high school but never wanted to be a jeweler.  The pieces were just too small.  As life would have it, I became a jeweler - metalsmithing on a small scale.

I moved to Sturgeon Bay in 1991 with my wife, Michelle but have since returned to Oshkosh in 2010.  I have been a jewelry designer and goldsmith since that time and I have enjoyed nearly every minute of it.  I continue to make pewter and copper vessels in my studio - continuing what I had started at Madison.