2022 Senior Exhibition Artists 2022 Senior Exhibition Artists: Ria Gameros

About Ria Gameros

Ria Gameros is a Jeweler based in Taunton, Massachusetts. Originally a painting major, shetook a jewelry metals class as a free elective and fell in love with the art. She has spent years developing her skills and style through the University of Massachusetts in Dartmouth’s Jewelry program. Now she is a bench jeweler for a business that works with well-known companies, including Tiffany. In her personal work, she explores the complications of mental health, specifically PTSD, and how it affects day to day life.

Statment

In this series, I focus on the impact of PTSD on those affected by exploring my ownexperiences. When I was in high school, I was assaulted by a classmate, which caused me immense post-traumatic stress. Through my art, I try to take a closer look at my symptoms andface my past head on. Each piece has a different series of words etched into a chain. These phrases were taken directly from a police report that I recently made about the event. They range from the retelling of the event itself to the struggles I faced going to the school about itand being ignored. I attempted to work through my complicated, and at times, contradictory feelings through this process. Part of me wants to share my story with others; another part wants to keep it to myself. Part of me is angry and wants justice; another part wants to forget it altogether. PTSD is a complicated illness that is difficult to understand and even harder to work through. By making jewelry about it, though, I find that I have drastically improved. Now I can put the art that has helped me to heal out into the world.