STRIPES Paul Klecka It seemed obvious to me that a US flag theme was strongly suggested by this project title. I searched for a way to develop a piece of jewelry that transformed the two-dimensional flag into a fully dimensional object. Injecting dimension allowed the stripes and stars to be used as the only components of the design. One of my signatures is the use of negative space as an integral component of my jewelry. Striving to achieve this in my Stripes and Stars design, I created the parallel bands – STRIPES – which are held together by stars. Each star connects three stripes and their random placement around the ring creates the illusion that the bands are suspended without connections. Visual symbols are powerful and evoke strong and diverse emotional responses. Certainly the US flag has been a controversial symbol, especially in the past year. For conservative patriots and Oath Keepers a positive one – and for others who are disillusioned with American values, a symbol of oppression. My personal point of view is that the American flag unites citizens of the US, and for me it is a positive symbol of our sovereign country. 32