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Born in Virginia, but raised in Boise, Idaho during her formative years, Jennifer Lawrence Bennett found herself experiencing a bit of culture shock when her family suddenly moved to New England during high school. Studying at Connecticut's Norwich Free Academy offered encouraging experiences in Jennifer's arts education, enabling her to later generate a signature design aesthetic. It was during this time that Jennifer learned fundamental jewelry skills and silversmith techniques.
Jennifer pursued her interests in literature, art, and identity studies as an undergraduate at Manhattan's New School for Social Research, the liberal arts program at Eugene Lang College, and classes at Parson's School of Design. She received her BA degree in 1993. In 2000, Jennifer received her M.A. in Education through Seattle's Antioch College, specializing in their combined masters and teaching certificate program.
In 1998, Jennifer experienced a profound turning point in her life when she accepted an opportunity through the University of Wisconsin, to live and study in Nepal for an academic year. While there, she lived and studied amongst the outcasts of the Terai (the Tharu), studying local art and anthropology. Jennifer also discovered a personal interest in working with a family of lost wax metal casters in Patan. This deepened her interest of supporting global culture and craft, and furthered her own journey as a crafts-person. She credits this experience as having fundamentally broadened her understanding of her role in the world - who she was then and and who she wanted to become. As a result, Jennifer has since, and for over 10 years, devoted her life to volunteer work with non-profit organizations specializing in assistance to underprivileged Nepalese woman and children.
Di Luce Design has become a means for Jennifer to give to communities in need, through her art. Each year, Jennifer selects a piece from her jewelry collection to represent a specific non-profit.
15 % of the proceeds from the sale of that item are entirely donated to the non-profit.
Since moving to Seattle in 1995, Jennifer has continued her creative endeavors through classes at Pratt Fine Arts Center. She has worked alongside a metal fabricator in a small design/build firm in Seattle, and worked for a well-known art jeweler. She has taught for Seattle Public Schools and Coyote Central. Jennifer acquired a studio space in Seattle's international district in 2000, a place of diversity in a shared artisan space, which continues to inspire her work daily.