Michele LeTourneau
Northern News Services

NNSL (Apr 26/99) - Four months ago, when the students of the just-established Aurora College jewelry and metalwork program trooped into the new studio in Rae-Edzo, they were breaking new ground.

Though in Nunavut the program had a proven track record, this was the first attempt ever in the NWT. Hopes were high. The possibilities were endless... self-employment and the generation of income was most important, while creating beautiful jewelry, of course, was a given.

But have you ever tried to saw, sand, polish and shape metal?

Students Rose Bailey and Nora Ekendia agree that it was hard at first. It took patience. It also took trust in their two instructors -- Allyson Simmie and Willa Drummond -- who taught two months each.

"It does pay off," says Simmie. "People do like it. People do buy it. It's worth it. It's important to have good design, important to have quality. They've taken our word for it. Now they know."

They certainly do know. Before their show in Yellowknife, April 22, the students staged a show and sale in their own community of Rae-Edzo.

Two things happened. Anyone with something to sell, sold. They had confirmation of what their two teachers had been repeating for four months.

"It gave the students a chance to show the community," says Simmie. "Nobody's seen this before. Metal is new in the West. They don't even know what it is, never mind how hard it is."

Bailey did find it difficult at the beginning, but she notes that when you stick with the program it becomes easier.

"When there's scratches, the teacher saw them at first," she says. "Then I saw them."

Bailey learned to cut metal, sand and polish it.

Drummond and Simmie have nothing but pride and praise for their students.

"Coming into a group that was oozing with talent was amazing," says Drummond.

"And they had amazing hand skills to begin with."

The group of students includes painters and carvers who have been working with their hands for a long time, she adds.

As Ekendia explains, the class began with brass and moved on to silver. In fact, many of the pieces showcased combined both metals, to great effect.

They make pendants, rings, bracelets, earrings, all manner of delicate, finely- wrought pieces. The themes are Northern -- bison, geese, dog teams, among other familiar lifeforms.

The students learned to design these pieces on paper first, before ever touching finger to metal. And Ekendia, for one, enjoyed the practice sketching before making the piece.

Classes resume in September for another four-month period. There's the possibility of honing already well-developed skills. There's even the possibility of adding gemstones to their creations.