BRIGHT SIDE
NEW WORK BY JULIA TURNER
July 02 - July 27, 2026
OPENING RECEPTION
Thursday, July 2nd, 4-7 pm
Meet Julia and join us for an artist talk at 5 pm.
SHIBUMI GALLERY is pleased to present BRIGHT SIDE featuring artist Julia Turner. Whether wearable, sculptural, or on paper, Julia's art practice is rooted in experimentation. Her newest work explores form and color, combining unique materials to create one of a kind pieces. We welcome the lighthearted playfulness of this new collection, as we enter longer summer days and look towards more brightness ahead. Add some color to your every day!
Please join us Thursday, July 2nd at 1816 Fourth Street, Berkeley to meet Julia, enjoy refreshments and light bites. She will give an artist talk at 5 pm on her process and exploration of color.
From the artist -
It's funny how after all these years of making, I'm still discovering colors like they're new. It goes in cycles, where I get a little obsessed with a particular shade and I have to go find it everywhere- in art, on buildings, in the woods, in clothing, in my salad... I'll run around putting it on every surface in the workshop, to see what it will look like and what it wants to say. It's like getting new glasses and wanting to look at everything all over again.
A couple of years ago my friend Maya came over to the studio for a drawing day, and out of her little kit came a tube of the most magical neon pink watercolor paint. I put a blob on some paper and started mushing it around, and it was the most amazing feeling. It was so, so bright, but also beautifully, magically matte. It was so intense it was hard to look at for long, but then I kept wanting more of it too. It felt like it was actually giving me energy, which I must have needed. Of course I went and got some more of it, and I guess I've built up my tolerance a bit because now I want to put that bright light on everything :) Right now I'm having a moment with a particularly luminous red-orange gouache and I love it so much, it's all I can do not to spread it on a bagel.
All the other colors are still here, of course, and I'm so glad to share them with anyone else who needs a boost!
A couple of years ago my friend Maya came over to the studio for a drawing day, and out of her little kit came a tube of the most magical neon pink watercolor paint. I put a blob on some paper and started mushing it around, and it was the most amazing feeling. It was so, so bright, but also beautifully, magically matte. It was so intense it was hard to look at for long, but then I kept wanting more of it too. It felt like it was actually giving me energy, which I must have needed. Of course I went and got some more of it, and I guess I've built up my tolerance a bit because now I want to put that bright light on everything :) Right now I'm having a moment with a particularly luminous red-orange gouache and I love it so much, it's all I can do not to spread it on a bagel.
All the other colors are still here, of course, and I'm so glad to share them with anyone else who needs a boost!
JULIA TURNER is originally from Wisconsin where she began her study of metalworking. She continued through a Master’s degree in Ohio before moving to San Francisco, where she has been living and making jewelry since 1995. Julia has taught and traveled widely, and has exhibited her work throughout the US and Europe.
Julia's jewelry collection is made up of clean forms and vibrant colors which is inspired by both her modern urban surroundings and by her research of traditional techniques. She combines organic forms with an architectural approach, using a wide range of materials from silver and gold to wood, steel and enamel. Each piece is made by hand in her San Francisco studio.