Candance Parton is a Savannah based artist and designer who’s work, while varied in form, always relates back to the figure. An only child, she spent a lot of her young life entertaining herself drawing what she saw in magazines. These early interests laid the foundation for a career designing accessories for a variety of brands including Fossil, Lucky Brand and Juicy Couture. Currently, her interest in documenting life, culture and loved ones is explored in her watercolor paintings. For the past several years, Candance has been a Professor of Accessory Design at SCAD in Savannah, GA.

This is awesome Lawson. I love his gaze in this image and his beautiful blue eyes. A few folks have been asking about my commissions status. I have a limited number of spots remaining for 2021. If you’re interested in learning more, you can in

Babies in overalls are pretty irresistible and Miss Emily is no exception. She’s the baby sister to Natalie shared in yesterday’s post. I love her expression in this image! She was fun to paint and I learned a lot!! Thanks Stephanie for g

A recent portrait of Natalie enjoying the beach! She’s adorable in her flower sunnies and stripes!

Last summer I joined Ali Cavanaugh’s painting group as a way of coping with the uncertainty in the world. During that time, Ali has mentored me and really help support my interests in painting in a more serious way. Every two weeks she posts a

#artistchallenge🏆 day 5! I’ve made it half way. This is a detail of a painting that I did a while back of a scene from Urban Cowboy. I love painting cowboy hats! #fanart #johntravolta #urbancowboy #lonestarstate #texas

#artistchallenge Day 4- Sam was so fun to paint! He had the most amazing fur!

#artistchallenge Day 3! Kitties are a fun subject too! This is Peppers. He belonged to dear friends of mine and I was one of his dedicated sitters/friend. Painting cats is very satisfying! Their eyes and fur are really intriguing!

To contact Candance, email:

candanceparton@gmail.com

EXPERIENCE

Savannah College of Art and Design- Savannah, GA

Professor

Accessory Design Program, School of Fashion ( September 2013 - Present )

Full time faculty teaching a variety of courses in the Graduate and Undergraduate Accessory Design Program ranging from introductory to advanced. Special focus on handbag design and construction, collection development and technical work- specifications and pattern making. Select courses include Sewing Technology, Computer Aided Design for Accessory Design, Presentation Methods, Introduction to Accessory Design, Sketching and Rendering, Introductory and Advanced Handbag construction and design courses. Serving as Graduate Thesis Committee chair and member for our students."

Fossil Inc Dallas, TX

Senior Designer

Jewelry Designer (May 2007 - August 2013)

Generated and designed Fossil Women’s jewelry from concept to production.
Presented concepts and line to the entire team including Sales, Merchandising, Creative Director and CCO . Responsible for growing Fossil’s charm category internationally.
Responsible for sterling silver and steel jewelry category requiring technical expertise
Sourced new materials and techniques which supported Fossil’s proprietary look
Direct communication and negotiations with overseas and domestic vendors to develop, produce and ship merchandise within pricing parameters
Stayed abreast of current trends through shopping, travel and research Supervised and mentored an assistant and interns.
Travel (New York and Qingdao, China).

Women’s Handbags (August 2004 - April 2007)

Managed the creative design and development of women’s Trend handbag product from concept to production. Direct communication and negotiations with overseas and domestic vendors to develop, produce and ship merchandise within pricing parameters
Sourced and developed materials for production Supervised and mentored an assistant and interns
Presented concepts and the product line to the entire team including SVP of Sales and company President. Stay abreast of current trends through shopping, travel and research.
Travel (New York, Tokyo, Florence, Seoul and Hong Kong,).

Liz Claiborne New York, NY

Designer

Liz Claiborne bags and jewelry, Lucky Brand belts, bags and jewelry, Juicy Couture jewelry and Ellen Tracy jewelry (February 2003 - August 2004)
Responsible for the designs of several product categories of four prominent Liz Claiborne Brands.
Worked closely with the accessory V.P. to launch Lucky Brand, Juicy Couture and Ellen Tracey accessory lines. Designed and developed product from concept to production.
Prepared presentation boards for reviews.
Prepared technical drawings and product comments for production.

J. Mendel, New York, NY

Freelance Designer (May 2002 - January 2003)
Designed one of a kind luxury handbags and accessories, several of which were runway exclusive.

DKNY, New York, NY

Freelance Designer - Leather Product (March 2002 - December 2002)
Designed one of a kind luxury handbags and accessories, several of which were runway exclusive.

Tuleh, New York, NY

Freelance Designer - Leather Product (March 2002 - August 2002)
Designed one of a kind luxury handbags and accessories, several of which were runway exclusive.

MTV, New York, NY

Model maker (March 1999 - January 2002)

Celebrity Deathmatch- 3-D puppet animation show
Responsible for making the heads and mouths of 3-D puppet characters

Cabot McMullen Inc New York, NY

Website Designer (June 1998 - March 1999)

Responsible for the design and development of websites for clients

EXHIBITIONS

Gutstein Gallery Savannah, GA.

Cross Pollination

(August 29 - November 5, 2016)

AWARDS

Presidential Fellowship Recipient

Savannah College of Art and Design Savannah, GA

(Summer quarter 2016)

Received a five thousand dollar grant for a special project proposal where I worked as an apprentice

with the leather artisan Bennett Liberty in his New York studio to build a handbag which I designed.

EDUCATION

New York University, Tisch School of the Arts

Master of Fine Arts, Set Design New York, NY

May 1998

University of Tennessee

Bachelor of Fine Arts, Painting Knoxville, TN

December 1992