BJC Focus

Steady hands | OCTOBER 10 + 11

The BJC Focus symposium is a free annual event that features workshops, demonstrations and presentations all centered around a particular theme. Our featured speakers are artists and intellectuals who are well-studied and acquainted with the chosen topic for the year. The symposium, while developed with jewelry and metalsmithing students and enthusiasts in mind, is free and open to the public, with something to offer everyone.

The event will culminate with a charge to artists to participate in our annual community challenge.

call for speakers

The Baltimore Jewelry Center is seeking proposals for the speaker portion of our annual symposium on Saturday, October 10, 2026. The theme of the symposium, Steady Hands, coincides with Handwork 2026, a year-long initiative presented by Craft in America that encourages organizations, educators, and makers to celebrate the diversity of the crafts that define America, bringing compelling stories and underrepresented art and artists into the spotlight.

We are seeking proposals from artists and makers who are experimenting with or utilizing slower, more thoughtful processes in their studios; who are resisting over production; who are working more contemplatively; and who are pursuing approaches that do not center efficiency and speed. We are curious about what might be lost when we speed up or focus too much on end results and what is found when we slow down and look more closely at our work and our working practices.

We are also seeking proposals from educators who utilize traditional techniques. This includes teachers who are revisiting older methods in their teaching and research. Proposals that emphasize slower, or more fundamental techniques are encouraged, whether in classrooms or in alternative learning environments.  

Speakers will prepare a 30 minute presentation relating to the symposium’s theme and then deliver their presentation over zoom. Speakers will be paid a stipend of $400. To apply, please prepare a proposal to include a brief (200 to 500 words) description of the presentation and how it connects to the symposium’s theme, a portfolio of 5-10 images relevant to the presentation (formatted in one .pdf file), and key biographical information. Proposals can be submitted via this Google form. Applications are due on June 21, selected presenters will be notified by July 8.

Though the Handwork 2026 initiative focuses on craft in the American cultural landscape, artists of all nationalities are invited and encouraged to apply to this call.

Our 2025 Speakers