My work offers a view into the things I've seen, the ways I encounter the world, and pushes the limits of what I have learned. I endeavor as a maker to create objects that have life – functional objects built for use, meant to stretch, and wear, and change as they grow old. I strive to understand the energy of the materials I use as living beings of my same locale, working with them not as inert substances but as collaborators shaped by landscape, history, and process. My work is of Earth, and It exists within the context of the land on which I am a practitioner.
My relationship with making started by spending time with my grandfather in his garage. He was an electrical engineer for NASA during the Apollo and Gemini missions, and was a resourceful maker. From a young age, I learned to take things apart, ask questions, and work through problems from as many angles as needed. Metal was his medium, and by extension it became mine – a lineage that continues to inform how I think, work, and learn.
I have studied casting, mold making, blacksmithing, furniture design, and toolmaking across a range of contexts. These experiences have shaped my practice to be rooted equally in function, experimentation, and process. I am particularly interested in the logic of forging: understanding mass, movement, and sequence through volumetric geometry, drafting, and the design of specialized tools. Often, the act of building a tool reveals new forms or questions, extending the cycle of investigation.
Whether working with sheet metal, solid bar, or industrial-scale stock, I am drawn to the plasticity of metal—its ability to move, hold memory, and remain structural after transformation. My work explores the tension between force and finesse, use and gesture. Through this practice, I seek to understand how material, motion, and function can coexist—objects that are grounded, responsive, and alive to both their making and their environment.
About
Jan Rybczynski (yawn rib-chin-ski) is an Artist and Maker from Boulder, Colorado. Jan graduated from The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) with a BFA in Furniture Design and a Concentration in Nature Culture and Sustainability studies in 2023. Jan primarily works between wood and metal incorporating a large range of techniques from the blacksmithing, metal smithing, woodworking, and photographic fields. He has shown work in Providence, RI; Manhattan, NY at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) in 2022 and 2023; and in Spruce Pine, NC most recently. In 2020, Jan interned at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass, Colorado and was a Core Fellow at the Penland School of Craft from 2024-2026. Currently, Jan is participating in the inaugural year of the Passport Program at the Center for Metal Arts in Johnstown, PA.
Selected CV
Education
Passport Program, Center for Metal Arts, Johnstown, PA | 2026-2027
Core Fellowship, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2024-2026
BFA with honors, Furniture Design, The Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI — with Concentration in Nature, Culture, and Sustainability Studies | 2023
Work Experience
Food Preparation and Catering, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2024-2025
Art Handling for Penland Benefit Auction, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2024-2025
Sales Assistant for Jason McDonald during Penland Benefit Auction, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2025
Sales Assistant for Daniel Garver during Penland Benefit Auction, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2024
Custom Furniture Commission for First Congregational UCC Church, Boulder, CO | 2023-2024
Independent Contractor, Rybczynski Studio, Boulder, CO | 2023-2024
Student Trustee, The Furniture Society, Brooklyn, NY | 2022-2023
Peer Tutor, RISD Co-Works, Providence, RI | 2022
Metal Shop Monitor/Studio Assistant, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI | 2020-2023
Woodshop Monitor/Studio Assistant, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI | 2020-2023
CNC and Digital Fabrication Lab Monitor/Studio Assistant, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI | 2020-2023
187 Benefit Studio Monitor/Assistant, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI | 2020-2022
Blacksmith’s Apprentice, Iron Mountain Forge, Providence, RI | 2019-2020
Internships
Design/Production Intern, Grain Design, Bainbridge Island, WA | 2022
Intern/Studio Assistant, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass, CO, Assisted in sculpture, digital fabrication, woodworking and furniture design departments | 2021
Blacksmithing and Metal Sculpture Internship, Bliss Studio and Gallery, Monument, CO | 2019
Assistantships
Studio Assistant, “Stories in Steel: Vessels and Embellishment” with Andrew Meers, 8 Weeks, The Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2026
Teaching Assistant, “Sophomore Design Methods” with Dale Broholm, The Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI | 2022
Residencies
Winter Residency at The Penland School of Craft, 4 weeks, Bakersville, NC | 2025 & 2026
Continuing Education
“Stories in Steel: Vessels and Embellishment” with Andrew Meers, 8 Weeks, The Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2026
Marketing Coaching with Cami Leisk, Loam Marketing, Spruce Pine, NC | 2025-2026
Small Business Strategy Coaching with Deanna Lynch, Mountain BizWorks, Asheville, NC | 2025
“Making Plans and Letting Go” with Abraham Pardee, 8 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Iron Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“Octagon Collaborative Sculpture Workshop” with Jake James, 2 weeks, Center for Metal Arts, Johnstown, PA | 2025
“Design on Fire” with Vivian Beer and Hannah Vaughan, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Iron Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“Pâte de Verre and Foam Glass” with Joshua Kerley, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Glass Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“Wet-Plate Photography” with Rashod Taylor, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Photo Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“Corrugated Cardboard Construction” with Jason Schneider, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Wood Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“Seeing Double” with Lars Shimabukuro, 1 week, Penland school of Crafts, Textiles Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“The Everyday Shelf” with Hoss Haley, 1 week, Penland school of Crafts, Iron Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“Persuading Metal” with Adam Whitney, 8 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Metals Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2025
“Pizza Box Stool” with Pat Quinn, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Iron Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2024
“Kiln Casting: Digital and Traditional” with Norwood Viviano, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Glass Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2024
“Damascus: Introduction to Pattern Welding” with Andrew Meers, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Iron Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2024
“Capsule Wardrobe Design/Build” with Libby O’Bryan and Jonnie Rettele, 2 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Textile Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2024
“Twined Sculptural Basketry” with Lois Russell, 1 week, Penland school of Crafts, Textile Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2024
“Tongs, Hammers, and other Slammers” with Anna Koplik, 8 weeks, Penland school of Crafts, Iron Studio, Bakersville, NC | 2024
Exhibitions
2026 | Toe River Arts, “18th Annual Blacksmithing Exhibition ” Penland, NC
2025 | Penland School of Craft, “Encore: Core Show ” Penland, NC
2025 | Rabbit Hop Gallery, “House Sitting” Bakersville, NC
2024 | Treats Studio, “Embers” Spruce Pine, NC
2024 | Penland School of Craft, “Sardines” Penland, NC
2023 | The Furniture Society, “FS23 Member’s Exhibition” New Orleans, LA
2023 | The Rhode Island School of Design, “Measure Twice, Cut Twice” Providence, RI
2023 | Wanted Design and ICFF, “Rewilded Domesticity” Manhattan, NY
2022 | The Rhode Island School of Design, “RISD Furniture Department Design Triennial” Providence, RI
2022 | Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park, “Witness-Tree Project Exhibition” Woodstock, VT
2022 |The Rhode Island School of Design, RISD Regenerative Earth Collective “Eco-Tonal” Providence, RI
2022 | Wanted Design and ICFF, “Embodied and Imbued”, Manhattan, NY
2021 | The WaterFire Arts Center, “26th Annual Fine Furnishings Show”, Providence, RI
2021 | Anderson Ranch Arts Center, “Turnover,” Snowmass, CO
2020 | Fleet Library, “6th Baker + Whitehill Student Artists' Book Contest and Exhibition” Providence, RI
2020 | Woods Gerry Gallery (RISD), “Experimental Foundations Studies Triennial” Providence, RI
2019 | History Colorado Center, “Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Exhibition” Dever, CO
2019 | Imagination Celebration Urban Space, “57th Annual Young Peoples Art Exhibition” Colorado Springs, CO
2018 | History Colorado Center, “Scholastic Art and Writing Awards Exhibition” Denver, CO
2018 | Imagination Celebration Urban Space, “56th Annual Young Peoples Art Exhibition” Colorado Springs, CO
Public Collections
The Colorado Springs School, Colorado Springs, CO | 2018
Gallery Representation
Penland Gallery, Bakersville, NC | 2026
The Warehouse, Colorado Springs, CO | 2019
Honors/Awards/Scholarships/Grants
Windgate Individual Artist Grant, Administered by the Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC | 2026
Tuition and Housing Scholarship to Attend the 2025 Octagon Collaborative Sculpture Workshop with Jake James at the Center for Metal Arts, Johnstown, PA | 2025
Business Coaching Scholarship through Mountain BizWorks, Asheville, NC | 2025
Faculty Award for Academic Excellence, Rhode Island School of Design, For a student who demonstrates consistent academic excellence in their three years in the Department of Furniture Design | 2023
Faculty Award for Consistent, Creative and Academic Excellence, Rhode Island School of Design, For a student who demonstrates consistent, creative, and academic excellence in their three years in the Department of Furniture Design | 2023
Windgate Foundation Scholarship, Rhode Island School of Design, Awarded to an Outstanding student by the faculty of the Department of Furniture Design at the Rhode Island School of Design | 2022-2023
Tage and Emma Frid Scholarship, Rhode Island School of Design, Awarded to a student pursuing furniture related studies by the faculty of the Department of Furniture Design at the Rhode Island School of Design | 2021-2022
George B. Rome '62 Scholarship, Rhode Island School of Design | 2019-2023
Academic Honor Roll/Dean's List | 2012 - 2023
3D Best in Show, 57th Annual Young Peoples Art Exhibition, Imagination Celebration Urban Space, Colorado Springs, CO | 2019
1st Place in Sculpture, 57th Annual Young Peoples Art Exhibition, Imagination Celebration Urban Space, Colorado Springs, CO | 2019
3rd Place in Printmaking, 57th Annual Young Peoples Art Exhibition, Imagination Celebration Urban Space, Colorado Springs, CO | 2019
Gold Key, The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, Denver, CO | 2019
Silver Key, The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, Denver, CO | 2019
3D Best in Show - 56th Annual Young Peoples Art Exhibition, Imagination Celebration Urban Space, Colorado Springs, CO | 2018
Silver Key - The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, Denver, CO | 2018
Artist Talks
March 2026 | Studio Assistant Slides, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC
November 2025 | Core Fellow Artist Talk, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC
November 2025 | Core Fellow Artist Talk, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC
April 2024 | Core Fellow Artist Talk, Penland School of Craft, Bakersville, NC