Artist, professor, and mentor to many jewelry-makers and designers Fred Fenster died June 24, 2024, at age 90.

Fenster may be best known for his skills at metalsmithing and his ability to translate those skills to all ages, his daughter, Rachelle Fenster, says.

“My dad affects so many students’ lives by seeing something in them that no one else could see. They have gone on to become successful in their own metalwork and teaching careers. His support literally changed their lives,” Rachelle adds.

One example is Pat Garrett, who describes Fred Fenster as a great teacher with a distinct vision who changed the field of metalsmithing. Her story of how Fenster changed her life involves luck, timing, and Fenster’s ability to see what others might not. Fenster had taught Garrett’s teacher Fred “Skip” Hunter, and she had heard of him from Hunter often.

“After undergrad and grad school, I started doing shows—more like trying to do shows…but no one took copper seriously and I could not get into street fairs or venues where I could attempt to sell my work,” Garrett says. “I was getting desperate, and friends told me about Baltimore and the Winter Market America Craft Group.

“They encouraged me to apply for the show coming up in February 1978, so I took awful slides of my copper pieces on arty backgrounds that were just as wrong as possible, sent them off, and…what? I got in,” Garrett says. “Turns out one of the jurors loved my work. Really? Who was that? Fred Fenster. Fred Fenster loved my work. And I got into the show because a miracle had happened. My teacher’s teacher. Things took off from there. It was a wonderful ride. I was very, very lucky.”

Among his career awards, Fenter received The Gold Medal, American Craft Council (2005): Master Metalsmith, Metal Museum, Memphis, Tenn. (2011), and the Lifetime Achievement Award, Society of North American Goldsmiths (2015). Additionally, many of his pieces are featured in collections of major museums across the country, including the National Museum of Art and the Smithsonian American Museum of Art.

Fred Fenster was the second of two sons to Charles and Silvia Fenster, who raised their family in New York City. Fenster received a bachelor’s of science in industrial arts from City College of New York in 1956. While there, he taught metalworking techniques to area children, learning that his skills with problem-solving often helped them learn as well.

Fenster moved to Michigan to attend the metalsmithing program at the prestigious Cranbrook Academy of Art, earning his master’s of fine arts in 1960. He worked for two years in its metal shops before moving on to teach design, jewelry, and metalsmithing at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he would stay until his retirement as professor emeritus in 2005.

At Wisconsin, Fenster and his colleague Eleanor Moty transformed the art metal department into one of the finest in the country, Fenster’s family says. He also taught workshops and summer school around the world, sharing his metalsmithing techniques with an international audience.

In his personal work, Fenster used gold and silver for jewelry as well as pewter for home and religious goods. He often returned to his Jewish roots for design inspiration, his family says, creating a series of Judaica pieces such as kiddush cups, Torah pointers, and candelabras.

Friends and family gathered for a celebration of life in Wisconsin. He is survived by three children: David, Mark, and Rachelle. He is buried in Sweet Cemetery in East Bristol next to his wife, Valmai Kirkham Fenster, who died in 1984. A tribute page where students, friends, and colleagues can share remembrances is on Facebook.

Top: Fred Fenster, who died in June 2024, is remembered for his contributions as an artist and a teacher (photo courtesy of Rachelle Fenster). 

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