I am pleased to share that my work and I will be featured in Ornament Magazine's first 2024 issue. This year is extra special as the magazine is celebrating their 50th Birthday!
A special thank you to writer Carl Little and Co-editor Patrick Benesh-Liu for a great article of my creative path and to Editor Robert Liu, for also choosing this article in your editor's pics! I feel so honored to be included in this long-time publication supporting the craft of adornment.
This issue, Volume 44.3 2024, is now out on the shelves and online at Ornamentmagazine.com

For full article:
www.ornamentmagazine.org/articles/maria…

Come see a new body of butterfly wing and hand woven chain works this Saturday Aug 26th, 10-5pm - in the Free St parking lot next to the Portland Museum of Art.
There will be a limited edition of Luna Moth wing pieces for the first come first serve, come early!
I will be in The Metals Collective booth 805 with my mates Emily Percival and Naomi Grace McNeill.

‘Hyphae’ (necklace & earrings, 2023) will be on exhibition & sale as a set for ‘Little Sparks’ at Lights Out Gallery, Norway, Maine.
I chose to create this limited edition work inspired by the exhibition theme and spirit.
Holographic material has a wondrous spark, allowing us to see more dimensions in a single plane.
Living in my new home in nature, I can feel the magic of nature’s ‘Web’ or ‘Hypha’ deep in the soil of the woods hidden underneath my feet. ‘Hyphae’ are the ever present highways working mycelium networks, allowing communication from plant to tree , healing the soil and making way for new growth. All of which are essential to plant life on this planet.
Lights Out Gallery is a hypha of its own. Creating new paths and networks for artists & patrons to connect on a deeper level that is the foundation of the human spirit & spark for living well.
I feel proud & honored to support this visionary group in this way, keeping our essential hypha highway of art appreciation wholesome and ever full of creative sparks!❇️

Lights Out Gallery presents their first show at their amazing home base gallery space 10 Tannery St in Norway, ME.
“Little Sparks” An exhibit of small works, will feature over 120 Maine artists, spanning the state. 
OPENING NIGHT AUG 24th 4-8p! So many artists to meet & works to see & acquire!
Show Duration:
Aug 24- Oct 7th
Open Thurs-Sunday 11-4pm
Oct 7- Closing party 3-7p

@smithingmaria
@lightsoutgallery

From the forms of the region’s plants and animals to global social and cultural histories, inspirations abound for Maine Jewelers, who use metals and other precious materials to embody their creative responses to their physical and cognitive environments. In “The Lives of the Jewelers,” Maine metal artists will display their work, in the form of both jewelry and extended applications of their chosen materials, alongside imagery and text describing the sources that inspire them. Like Vasari’s 1550 text The Lives of the Artists, which illuminated the practices of Renaissance visionaries, this exhibition will provide a window into the motivations and intellectual preoccupations of individual contemporary Maine jewelers, who bring their vision of beauty so directly into daily life.

Featuring: Ebenezer Akakpo, Aminata Conteh, Shelby Goldsmith, Michael Good, Tim McCreight, Naomi Grace McNeill, J. E. Paterak, Kyle Patnaude, Christine Peters, Sharon Portelance, and Maria Wolff

The Craft Maker's Gambit
An Exhibition of Chess

On View: Nov 5 – Dec 31st, 2021
Location: Maine Craft Portland
Best in Show Checkmate Winner Announcement: December 3rd


Maine Crafts Association invited MCA craft artist members to create upon the theme of this ancient game for exhibition. Most all mediums of craft will be represented in this show, from felted wool, ceramics and fine woodworking to forged steel, sculpted glass and multi-media!

The exhibition was not limited to full chess sets: Some of our members are creating work based on the theme, from textiles to sculpture.

SPECIAL EVENTS:
WGM SABINA FOISOR, 2017 US Women's Chess Champion visits
Maine Craft Portland!
LECTURE: Dec 2nd, 7pm (limited tickets available)
BLITZ MATCHES (speed chess): Dec. 3rd, 5p-9p
Come watch this talented grandmaster play or sign up to play Sabina yourself on First Friday's Art Walk!

Hosted by the Maine Crafts Association in partnership with the Maine Chess Association

Curated & Installed by Maria Wolff

A Metals Collective group show called 20/20 Visionary exhibited in Maine College of Art's Bob Crewe Gallery. A show of eyewear & visionary themes.
For more information go to metalscollective.com.

Maine Crafts Association features The Metals Collective on their 10th year anniversary!

"Metalsmiths are some of craft’s ultimate conductors, taking raw materials and melting, twisting, hammering, smoothing, shaping, texturizing, and embellishing them into whatever form their mind has envisioned, in a symphony of inventiveness and agility. Metal craft brings us a wide range of objects of beauty to behold, from functional tools of incredible strength, to elaborate, dazzling, one-of-a-kind accessories with which we adorn ourselves. Since 2010, the members of Portland, Maine based Metals Collective have been working together and challenging each other to bring life to their visions for their individual and group metal craft. For ten years, the group has been growing and changing just like their vision, skill and reach.

Originally founded by Maria Wolff and Holly L Gooch as Metal Heads Redux, an homage to a previous Portland group of metalsmiths from the 90’s called The Metal Heads Society, the group is currently composed of eighteen artists within different stages of their careers, each with different backgrounds and styles.

The Metals Collective continues to surprise and excite its audience with intriguing and relevant work in a variety of unique exhibitions. These exhibitions encourage members to work outside of their individual comfort zones to breathe new life into their studio practice while enhancing their personal creative growth. Participating members respond to their given exhibition themes with extraordinary skill and exquisite vision, resulting in a profound collective experience often displayed where one would least expect to see a craft installation. This immersive technique exposes more people to the world of fine craft.

One such unexpected exhibition space is the exceptional cocktail bar The Jewel Box on Portland’s Congress St. The beautiful and unique space has served as host of Piercing the Pickle (2015), The Fragrant Jewel (2016), Cocktail Accoutrements (2017), Refraction (2018), and most recently Cabinet of Curiosities (2019). Other locations have included Bar of Chocolate, Patty Daunis-Dunning Jewelry Shop, Maine College of Art, Portland Fine Craft Show, The Center for Maine Craft, and Fore River Gallery.....

To read the full article with artist interview questions go to:

https://mainecrafts.org/featured-mca-institutional-member-metals-collective/

THE HOLY GRAIL: MIRACULOUS ITEMS OF POWER
Maine Crafts Association's gallery, Maine Craft Portland, presents a challenge for our MCA craft artists to create one-of-a-kind pieces that embody one of the many meanings The Holy Grail has held over the centuries.

The Holy Grail: Miraculous Items of Power

On view @ Maine Craft Portland August 25 - October 25, 2020

The Holy Grail is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Different traditions describe it as a cup, dish or stone with miraculous powers that provide happiness, eternal youth or sustenance in infinite abundance, often in the custody of the Fisher King. The term "holy grail" is often used to denote an elusive object or goal that is sought after for its great significance.

Scholars have long speculated on the origins of the Holy Grail before Chrétien, suggesting that it may contain elements of the trope of magical cauldrons from Celtic mythology and later Welsh mythology combined with Christian legend surrounding the Eucharist.
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Grail

Maine Craft Portland presents a challenge for our MCA craft artists to create one-of-a-kind pieces that embody one of the many meanings The Holy Grail has held over the centuries.  
For more information: https://mainecrafts.org/the-holy-grail-miraculous-items-of-power-maine-craft-portland/

Curator and Participant

THE CLEVER CUP: MUG EXHIBITION @ CENTER FOR MAINE CRAFT | MAR 6 – APRIL 27, 2020

For more information: https://mainecrafts.org/clever_cup_2020/

A Metals Collective group show at Portland's The Jewel Box of pieces built upon the 'Cabinet of Curiosities' theme.

For more information: https://mainecrafts.org/clever_cup_2020/

NUPTIALS: ADORNMENT FOR A NEW AGE
Maine Crafts Association's gallery, Maine Craft Portland, unveils an alternative bridal show not to be missed! Over 20 craft artists have created one-of-a-kind ceremonial adornment, accessories, and jewelry that embody new ideas to present bridal with a twist!

This 2-month long exhibit will showcase unique offerings for the discerning contemporary looking to get hitched in distinctive true to you style. How about matching hand stamped leather belts, lovers’ knot bracelets, or a silk skived unisex Kurta? These dazzling, ready to wear pieces, like all offerings at the Maine Craft Portland retail gallery were handcrafted by talented Maine-based craft artists.

Curator and Participant

Maria Wolff
Portland
Once Upon a Dream Tiara

In a world of many distractions and evolving definitions, the longevity of romantic love between two people is more and more short lived. Having one monogamous partner for the rest of your life seems to be more of an alternative notion within modern social circles.
The little fairy tale girl inside me will always carry the Beauty, Music, Hope and Chivalry of romantic love. To embody the essence of these things, I chose to make a sterling silver tiara with crystal balls, pearls and the ebb and flow of the tide.
The center broadswords are an added reminder to stay strong, stay long and fight for the pure of heart.

COLLECTIVI-TEA | Presented by the Metals Collective
A group show of tea regalia.

On View: January 8th – February 23rd, 2019 in the Center for Maine Craft Gallery

For more information: https://mainecrafts.org/collectivi-tea-presented-by-metals-collective-of-portland/

Maine Crafts Association annual juried fine craft show in Portland, Maine.

A Metals Collective group show of work inspired by the refractive visual and conceptual themes. Exhibition at Portland's Jewel Box.

A Metals Collective group show of jewelry work inspired by Valentine's day and themes of love & passion. This exhibition was on view at Portland's jazz club BLUE all times day and night for its duration.

A retrospective of The Metals Collective work from former shows spanning 7 years. This gallery was collectively run by members of The Metals Collective in 'Artists at Work' Gallery at Maine College of Art.

For more info:
https://mainearts.maine.gov/Postings/Events/Detail/RETROSPECTIVE-Portland-s-Metals-Collective-Through-the-Years

The Metals Collective puts on thier 3rd annual Jewel Box show with an apropos theme! The challenge this year was to make a bar tool and/or cocktail themed jewelry items.

Where:The Bearded Lady's Jewel Box, Congress st Portland, Maine

When: Opening Party June 2, 5-10pm
and will be on exhibit through July, 2017

A group show of jewelry inspired by music.

Where: BLUE, Congress st, Portland, Maine

On exhibit November 2016 - January, 2017

Designer Profile Feature written by Maine Women Magazine writer Shannon Bryan.

"Centuries have gone into Maria Wolff’s work. Her handcrafted jewelry—round pendants featuring colorful butterfly wings framed in silver, handwoven Viking chain earrings, a bracelet featuring the head of mythological beast—is a culmination of traditional craftsmanship and modern design. Each piece is a testament to folklore and family and the fellow makers she’s met over the years who have become another family of sorts.
Maria first understood the art of craftsmanship through her father, a fifth-generation master cabinetmaker who was born in Denmark..."

To read full article go to:
https://www.mainewomenmagazine.com/designer-profile-maria-wolff/

This year I am happy to announce that I will be exhibiting with 3 other talented metalsmiths, Naomi Grace McNeil, Emily Percival and Nicholas Downing from The Metals Collective. This will surely be a treat and a great offering of many techniques and design.

A group show inspired by the Georgian/Victorian wearable vinaigrette.
On display at The Bearded Lady's Jewel Box, 644 Congress St, Portland,ME through July 29th, 2016

A Metals Collective group show inspired by Victorian tussie mussies and poison rings at The Fore River Gallery, Portland,ME
Feb-March, 2016

Booth 134

Portland Press Herald's food editor, Peggy Grodinsky, interviews Metals Collective President Maria Wolff about The Metals Collective Pickle fork and relish spoon show called 'Piercing the Pickle'

To read full article go to:
https://www.pressherald.com/2015/06/03/for-the-pickle-eater-who-has-everything-an-exhibit-in-portland-re-examines-the-pickle-fork/

A traveling group show based on Pickle forks and condiment utensils.

The Bearded Lady's Jewel Box, Portland, ME
May 1 - June 21, 2015

Green Gardens, Norway, ME
July 3 - Aug 31, 2015

A summer group show of jewelry inspired by favorite alcoholic beverages.

An on-going group show of absinthe spoons.

Come join me with the Metals Collective at Maine College of Arts biggest sale and most festive First Friday Art walk of the year!

Friday December 6th, 5pm-9pm
Saturday December 7th, 10am-5pm


Maine College of Art
522 Congress Street, 2nd Floor by the Cafe
Portland, ME 04101

I am very pleased to announce my 1st year with this beautiful show
at Gilsland Farm Audubon Center's 17th Annual show!
Come enjoy the spleandor of nature and fine craft!

20 Gilsland Farm Rd.
US Route 1
Falmouth, Maine

Saturday August 17th, 10-5pm
Sunday August 18th, 10-4pm

Come join us on the most festive of all First Friday Art Walks first weekend this December! I will be on exhibit in Maine College of Art's main floor with 5 other College Alumni showing a great body of work out of MECA's metalsmithing and jewelry department , Alumni from 1977 to the present!
We are having fun with our display this year... Look for the bright white display of sculptures!
A must see show!

Maine College of Art
Congress St, Portland

Dec.7. 5-9pm
Dec.8. 10-5pm

I will be exhibiting all available butterfly wing jewelry pieces with the beautiful one of a kind gemstone jewelry of my former studio mate, Tina Dinsmore.
Come enjoy this big summer festival fun and visit our booth!

July 20, 21 and 22nd, 2012

Friday and Saturday 10am – 9pm
Sunday 10am - 5pm

North Yarmouth Academy Lawn

The Butterfly Collection will be on exhibit throughout the summer. Come and join us for the first Friday Art Walks on June 1, July 6 and Aug.3.

Flat Iron Gallery
594 Congress St
Portland, ME 04101

Across the street from the Portland Museum of Art

New work will be on display featuring the addition of historical silhouette overlays. I am very excited for this show and am very proud to be exhibiting with Mike and Liz of Fore River Gallery.
Fresh new colors and designs for my favorite time of year, Spring!

The show opens April 6th and will run until May 26, 2012
Come join us for the Art Walk First Friday!

Fore River Gallery
613 Congress St
Portland , ME

'The Butterfly Collection' along with the 'Cameo Reproduction' run will be on exhibit throughout the year at the Flat Iron Gallery located at 594 Congress St-The Hay Building-2nd Floor.

I will be exhibiting with 5 other MECA Alumni, William Christopher Keene, Molly Vogel, Jayne Redman, Ivy Derderian and Melody Anderson as a group show effort to represent MECA Alumni from 1977-2009. This should be an exciting and diverse feast for the eyes and body! Come check us out at
Maine College of Art, top of the stairs on the second floor next to the library.

Dec.2-3,

First Friday 5-10pm
Saturday 10-5pm

http://www.meca.edu/holiday-sale

A Metal Heads Redux group show at the beginning of many that then became The Metals Collective.
This show was exhibited in the gallery of Patty Daunis-Dunning Fine Jewelry.

A group show of Absinthe spoons residing in Portland's Bar of Chocolate.

'The Butterfly Collection' will be exhibited at Portland's newest and finest gallery, Flat Iron Gallery, at 594 Congress St. above Starbucks and across the street from the Portland Museum of Art.

Yarmouth Clam Festival July 15th - 17th

First Friday Open Studio May 6, 2011