Foundations

"Art is not always about pretty things.

It's about who we are,

what happened to us,

and how our lives are affected".

-Elizabeth Broun

I read this quote the other day and thought whoever Elizabeth Broun is gets it. Then I realized Broun is an art historian and curator who was the longest-serving female director at the Smithsonian- humbling.

I've been working on a new body of work since the spring. I hesitate to call it a "collection" because it feels more than that. I even hesitate to call it a "body of work" as I see it extending beyond a season or a select number of pieces. If you've been here a while, you might recognize that I've been contemplating this since 2020. I never jumped "all in" due to my own fears and not feeling ready. This idea has been living chaotically in my mind for the past four years. Ideas bounce from one corner to the other, all the while I am chasing after them trying to put them in a box. Until I realized, that nothing in my life has ever fit neatly into a box and felt ready to dive in.

In an effort to put some organized context to the chaos, I settled on three thematic foundations for this body of work; "Sense of Place", "Environmental Ethos", and "Reconnection". My work has always been inspired by my time spent outside and my deep appreciation for the environment. I've always been guided by a feeling; something I felt compelled to convey and the only way that felt natural was through metal. Through these foundations, I hope to share some of the inner workings of my mind, what informs my design, and my approach to metalsmithing.

It's not always about pretty things, sometimes it's about grief for lost friends and changing environments/landscapes. Sometimes it's about the changing relationship a person has to a place and themselves. And sometimes it's about being dissatisfied with the jewelry industry's lack of environmentally conscious practices. This new work explores my relationship to the Cascades. My observations of the changing environment, coming to terms with grief on multiple levels, and how I want to pay respect to this place. All the while, I will be exploring new techniques and challenging myself- something my time in the mountains has taught me all too well.

I will share these foundations piece by piece in upcoming blog posts. Thank you for being here and I am excited to share this new journey with you. And sometimes it is absolutely about creating beautiful things.