Selected writing, interviews, institutional features, and archival material documenting Gustav Reyes’s work in contemporary art jewelry, wood, material process, and the relationship between making and the natural world.
Together, these sources trace the development of the practice from the early wooden-ring work through sculptural jewelry, material research, and later institutional recognition.
Explore the Studio Archive → — a curated record tracing the early wooden-ring experiments, the development of a broader sculptural language, periods of pause, and the return to the studio.
For a concise record of exhibitions, collections, and lectures, see the selected CV.
2020 · Phoebe Mogharei, “This Pilsen Artisan Makes Oak Couture”, Chicago Magazine, May 22, 2020. The surviving indexed record describes Reyes transforming unwanted wood into objects of art in his Pilsen studio.
2017 · Brigitte Martin, “Around Life’s Curves”, American Craft.
2017 · Sarah Grosspietsch and Gustav Reyes, “Artists Up Close: Witnessing the Beautiful Manipulation of Wood,” Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago.
Ornament, Vol. 36.2 · Patrick R. Benesh-Liu, “The Irrepressible Spirit”. Six-page profile on Gustav Reyes’s creative process, bent-wood practice, material philosophy, studio life, and the relationship between Gustav Reyes and Simply Wood Rings.
2012 · Metalsmith, Vol. 32, No. 3, pp. 14–15 · Andrea DiNoto, “A Bent for Wood”. Two-page feature on bentwood techniques, salvaged materials, contemporary jewelry, rings, Organic Coil, and Reyes’s ACC Baltimore presentation.
2011 · Stephanie Manriquez, “Vida En Madera,” Revista Contratiempo.
2010 · Annie Osburn, “Trends: Wood,” Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist.
2010 · Bethany Emerson, “With This Ring,” Richmond Bride.
2009 · Victoria Gomelsky, “Warm, Honest, Wooden,” The New York Times.
2009 · Garth Johnson, 1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse, pp. 124–125, Jewelry + Adornments.
2008 · Jessica Sedgwick, “Jewels of the City,” Chicago Sun-Times.
2007 · “With This Ring…,” Woodshop News.
Coil Brooch, 2013 · Museum of Arts and Design, New York · Permanent Collection · accession 2013.56. Reyes exhibited at LOOT: MAD About Jewelry 2013, curated by Bryna Pomp; Ursula Ilse-Neuman was MAD’s Curator of Jewelry during this period. The museum collection record documents the work and accession number; the artist recalls the acquisition taking place at LOOT with Pomp and Ilse-Neuman involved.
Museum of Arts and Design, New York · MAD About Jewelry 2015 artist profile · Collection record: Coil Brooch, 2013.
Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven · American Jewelry: The Susan Grant Lewin Collection — the Gallery’s account places Reyes’s steam-bent wood jewelry within the collection’s account of contemporary studio jewelry.
JOYA Barcelona · JOYA Barcelona Art Jewellery Fair 2014, documented by Klimt02.
Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago · Chicago Designer Showcase — featured designer record.
Artsy · Gustav Reyes artist profile, submitted by Gallery Loupe.
American Craft · “Gustav Reyes’ Wearable Wood Art”, 2011.
Ornament · “Smithsonian Craft Optimism”, 2021 — show coverage including Reyes’s wood jewelry.
2010 · Gustav Reyes, “WoodWorking Tips for Jewelers,” Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist.
The studio archive also preserves earlier drafts, interviews, process notes, and historical Simply Wood Rings material. These sources are kept distinct so the archive can clearly separate published material, historical studio writing, documentary records, and later editorial context.
Image Rights & Reproduction → — guidance for press, curatorial, scholarly, educational, and publication use of studio-controlled images.
Selected historical writing from 2009–2012 is preserved with its original dates and wording as part of the Studio Archive.
