DisModish is the New York-based jewelry and design studio of Nicola Minchillo. The fabricated word DisModish is intended to explain the process of taking prominent style and modifying it with the aid of traditional ethnic and folk influences to create a wholly individual and unique piece of jewelry. Each of my handcrafted pieces is uniquely crafted with a strong emphasis on balance and sculpture. DisModish pieces are intended to be one-of-a-kind, personally inspired works of art to be worn as a statement of individuality. Rather than focusing on traditional ethnic designs and folk crafts, DisModish seeks to blend the rules of jewelry making and sculpture together. The results are conversation pieces that focus attention on the individual wearing the piece. The artistic mission of DisModish is to recognize a variety of individual tastes and translate them into unique DisModish pieces. I have been commissioned for several "sculpture pieces" over the past few years as the medium grew out of my larger focus as a local artist and designer. DisModish became official in 2003 after a personal, clear emphasis on carrying over my drawing style into a variety of different, wearable mediums was recognized. ABOUT THE ARTIST My path as a jewelry designer finds its roots in my grandmother's attic. Whereas the idea of "nana's attic" often invokes images of little girls dressed in pearls and oversized shoes, my grandmother did not have trunks of old clothes and time worn memories. My grandmother had books-hundreds of books in dozens of piles stacked in hard to navigate precarious piles on the floor, on shelves, and on bookcases. The atmosphere of children's fantasies, classical literature, historical analysis, philosophical debate, and scientific theory was more imposing and engulfing than the attic's heat in August. As a child with a vivid imagination and a deep love of history, the attic was my haven. In the attic, I grazed for hours, flipping through pictures and daydreaming about the scenery and fashions of novels and histories. As I matured, so too did my daydreaming as it moved onto paper. My need for historical accuracy in my designs drove me deeper into these books for clues to the past. My desire to create designs I would wear led me to forge different interpretations of styles. However, for the most part, I kept my desire and designs to myself, wishing to pursue history as a career. Throughout college and graduate school, my love of history continued to foster a love of the Arts and design, which in turn renewed my attraction to history. While I studied theory, my mind was preoccupied with re-imagining designs. When I worked on a project, I found my greatest clarity of thought. It was during this time that friends and acquaintances became aware of my second love and began pursuing me to create for them. Suddenly, I had an audience with whom to share my creations, and my projects began to breathe with life. There was, however, a pivotal moment when craft and hobby became art and love's work. Upon becoming a secondary school history teacher, I found myself returning to those old books for inspiration for my students. I found myself once again inspired-teaching inspired me to create, and creating refocused my love of teaching. As interest increased in my "conversation pieces", DisModish was finally born in 2003. Since then DisModish has showcased at art fairs in New York and Massachusetts and in local boutiques. In May of 2006 I was accepted as a member of the Mamaroneck Artist's Guild in Larchmont, New York, and displayed several pieces in the "A Bold Step" exhibit in June of 2006. Thank you for visiting DisModish, and "I hope you enjoy your piece, as much as I enjoyed making it!"