Strongarm: Artist Statement

Cast silicon bronze, Cubic Zicronias.

"I lost you
Like I lost my arm
but in my loss
I've found a home
I reclaim these things
that caused me harm
on this plastic arm
I call my own."

In the face of loss and suffering, there are some that, instead of breaking down and giving in to violence, instead pick up the pieces and keep on walking. I have tried to capture their strength in this modern talisman of the Strongarm. It depicts an artificial arm, refrencing the horrific injuries of those who suffered for conflict diamonds, bearing a "diamond" bracelet. It bears a verse, stating the spirit of acceptance and strength.

"Embodied Sympathy": i like the idea, bet there's something tripping me up...

and that is, the author seems to be stating that art is incapable of displaying sympathy (or, as the author puts it, to exhibit a feeling while anticipating the feeling of the viewer or purchaser.) As someone who has lived in the "Art World" for many years, i have to differ with this opinion. Art that is made to be SOLD is flat and feelingless. GOOD ART has a feeling, it is not simply an intellectual exercise made for those that are "in the know". Art is a part of the artist, as the author himself quotes, "When he speaks of embodied meaning, Danto suggests an idea made vividly present, practically given flesh and blood. Alternatively, he connects embodiment to a manifestation of the artist's mind: "It is as if a work of art were like an externalization of the artist's consciousness, as if we could see his way of seeing and not merely what he saw". I found this article very nice, touching on things I've found in other sources- like the Japanese ascetic "Wabi Sabi", characterized by modest objects that get more beautiful as they age. I think that it is important for artists too to think of how the veiwer will recieve it- something comforting to you might be kind of freaky to the veiwer, and vice versa, so it's good to take this into account so you can communicate your message more effectiveley.
However, the ugly "art vs. craft war" completely ruined it for me. Good art doesn't need to prove itself. Craft and Art are one, there is no one or the other, they merely are. The author's idea that Art is distant from the veiwer is fundamentally wrong, and it is cultivated by ignorance. Artists (at least the ones i admire and claim as peers) are trying to tell the audience something. Unfortunateley, it seems that we are like Mimes in front of people on cell phones, it's not that we are aloof and far away from the populus, but that people don't take the time to look at art with anything other than "Modernist"-colored glasses. So much GOOD ART is out there, and it doesn't matter weather it could be called craft or art or entertainment or music, it all shares the same thing: Embodied Sympathy.

special art picks that show emotion and embodied sympathy:

http://www.alexgrey.com/
Alex Grey's Phsycadelic paintings show that the human body is just another manifestation of the divine, and draws the user into the artist's wonder and enlightened feeling through their complexity and glowing colors.

Laurie Anderson (Smoke Rings on YouTube)
Anderson is a performance artist and musician. She likes to talk about how lost and confused people can become in modern society (specifically American society), though her pieces vary, and often speaking about longing, confusion, and displacement. This particular piece haunted me for years, (not the first 60 seconds, i'm not sure what that's about.) People naturally connect with music, and Anderson's work is both enjoyable and approachable (if a little kooky.)

err...that's all i can think of right now. There are a lot of good ones out there, you just have to look, and they are hidden pretty well, because most artists that make art this good aren't looking to be famous. They just want to make art.

Symbols for the Cycle Pendant: Mistletoe

source: http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/winter_solstice.shtml

most people only think of mistletoe at Christmas, but in anchient times it was considered a plant that was very sacred. It bears fruit on the winter solstice, and it grows without touching the ground-between earth and sky. The most famous legend of mistletoe is the tale of the death of Baldur, the god of light and truth:

"Balder was a popular and righteous God, but in a dream he foresaw his own death. After discussing this with the other Gods in Valhalla, the Goddess Frigga offered to make all things living on the earth, or growing in the earth, promise not to harm him.

This was done, and resulted in a new sport for the Gods - 'slaying' Balder with whatever weapons they could find. They knew he would always survive.

During one of these sessions the evil God Loki offered to help Hodur, a blind God, who was Balder's brother, join in.

Knowing that mistletoe, which did not grow 'in' the earth, was not covered by the promise Loki gave Hodur an arrow of mistletoe wood and directed his throw.

Balder was killed by the blow, thus fulfilling his dream. A period of significant mourning followed, during which Hel was visited in an effort to resurrect Balder, and mistletoe was designated a plant of peace."

source: http://www.mistletoe.org.uk/home/mtoetraditions4.htm

as an epilouge, it was Frigga who designated the mistletoe as a plant of peace, to remind people of Baldur's goodness. Baldur will only return at Ragnarok, the end of the world, and he will be the only god to survive, leading the people of earth into a new age.

Mistletoe's role as a plant of hope is a good match for the "Winter" panel for my cycle pendant because that part is about rebirth. It is also about the state between life and death, and because it grows between the earth (land of mortals) and "heaven".

Propaganda Assignment for Computer class(aka giant can of crazy aka proposal of idea)

WARNING: this is a free-flowing prose peice. It may not conform to a main idea, conventional veiws of grammar, or common decency. Anyone reading this should be informed that they are about to be exposed to the contents of on GIANT CAN OF CRAZY. Management of this blog is responsible for the content, but not for any emotional damage caused by it.







signed your waiver? Good. Nothing pisses me off more than the way people treat animals. My pets have always been like family to me, my cats in particular have always been very close to me, and i try to treat them as best as i possibly can. But many people either are ignorant of their pets needs, both emotional and physical. This results in terrible crimes against animals. The thing that makes me the most angry is the pet overpopulation problem.
People don't neuter their pets. It's cheap, it's fast, it has very few side effects.

They think, "Oh! But little Butch or Tiger need to be a man! They can't be manly without their man-bits!" Wrong! Cats and dogs have no sense of manliness. They just do what their instincts tell them.

They think, "Well, I enjoy sex, shouldn't my cat? Or dog?" Wrong again! Mating is actually painfull for domestic animals like dogs and cats. Don't need to go into that.

"My children should witness the miracle of birth!" Okay. Mommy kitty has her babies, which is already dangerous. Then, when they are all grown up, you can't find a house for them. What to do? You can't take them to a shelter, they might put them to sleep! And you can't keep them all, it would be too expensive. So what do you do? Drop them in the countryside! What have your children learned? That adults- specifically adult humans- have control over the life and death of other animals, and that the aforementioned animals are disposable.

And finally, the greatest bane of them all: "Won't the Kittens be so cute? And Princess is so pretty-Maybe we can sell them!" This is wrong in all the most shallow ways. It'll just turn into the scenario mentioned above.

As you can see, this makes me very angry. People's ignorance has always pissed me off, mostly because I've been the brunt of it many times. So when i see innocent animals, who rely on us for care and life, being needlessly killed, it makes me see red. I want them to pay. I want them to feel like dirt. Because that's what they are.


WARNING! GRAPHIC IMAGE BELOW! TURN AWAY IF YOU ARE A WUSS!












that's the cremation area of an animal shelter. Almost all of these animals were perfectly healthy. The could love. They could make you smile, they could catch mice, they could fetch a ball. But now they can't. There are too many of them. So now they are dead. All because some dipshit was too cheap to get their parents fixed or too lazy to even look at the prices. This blood is spilled for no reason. These animals, who are our brothers and sisters in spirit and only a few chromosones away from us, give us nothing but love. And this is what we do to them. 70,000 cats and dogs are destroyed every year. This image haunts my sleep. Now i hope it will haunt yours.

Blood Diamonds: The Strongarm Progect final Sketches

the final plans for my Blood Diamonds response, now named "Strongarm". Originally conceived as a piece about the reconciliation of the folk of west Africa and the diamonds they mined, it evolved for me into a piece about strength and moving on. As an amulet, it invokes the spiritual strength of those who were hurt and who carry on, rebuilding their lives with only one arm.

Droog pt. 2

okay, i still don't trust Droog. But i figure i got to find some common ground, so i'll adopt some of their quotes.

"Droog stands for a luxury of content rather than luxurious materials."

this is almost a personal motto for me ^_^. I make jewelry out of anything- i've got plans for anything from a prayer locket made from plumbing parts to construction paper origami.

designs that: "change perspective on daily life, informed by the local context, yet in relation to urgencies on a global scale."

this makes so much more sense than what they said in the little brochure. i'm still not so good at the whole "look at the new world in a new way" thing, but i'll give it a try.

i like the hidden meaning show they put on in New York. i love puzzles, i even have a puzzle box in my purse (to be feature in a future "cool things" post) and i love finding the hidden meanings behind works of art. i did, however, find the Da Vinchi Code improbable, along with all of Dan Brown's very silly books.

some other things i like:
Trim your own glowing bonsai! :D
Cute little critters! (note on this: i appreciate the artist's effort and creativity. however, i do have a real problem with this: making things out of trash has become a big fad in the "craft" community now, and as such things like this have started to underwhelm me. they do show some specialness in that they actually have electronic and animated components.)
they look so squishy :P

Droog Rant

According to Droog's statement, that i was required to read, they want to make solutions. How am i supposed to make solutions to global problems with jewelry? I'll happily make peices that react to global problems, but i just don't see how i can possibly help people with jewelry-at least the jewelry i like to make. I think what i'm trying to say is perfectly summed up by Maya Angelou's famous poem:

The caged bird sings not because it has an answer,
But because it has a song.

I can sing a song about the boy that comes to the lighthouse to escape from his life of poverty, but i can't imagine a way out for him. I can sing a song about a box of abandoned kittens, but i can't convince their former owners to take them back. I can sing a song about a bruised child hiding from his daddy (who always comes home smelling of booze) but i can't get him and his mom out of there. Not with Jewelry, at least.

How do you make a pendant that saves the world?

Suicune Ring

Suicune (diamond clarity ring)
silver- peirced, soldered antiqued w/ liver of sulpher)

often i have come to the theme of "Suicune", the spirit of the north wind. Based on a Pokemon that is the "embodiment of pure springs" who moves with the purifying north wind, this spirit cuts through illusion and removes disease and corruption. (think a laxative, only cold.)
I envisioned this ring as a protective amulet that protects its wearer from various...entities. When it came out all beat up (they told me not to use pliers. why didn't i listen? I had to find out for myself...) I wasn't upset- it looks like an ancient magic ring that has been through a lot.

"Mary Moon" slide

"Mary Moon"
mulberry paper, metallic paper, glitter glue, stamped image, glass slides, metal frame.

There was this big fad a while back in Mixed Media circles (that have since degraded to "bad craft") that you made a little collage and put it between two slides. Held together with either solder or a metal frame, you could wear it as a pendant and carry around a bit of your art with you. I've never been big on the babies-with-clown-hats-and-wings thing, so i made my own kind of design.
One of the best things about this particular piece is what i did with the papers. I layered translucent mulberry paper on top of metallic origami paper, using a glaze to make the mulberry paper even more see-through. It makes a really cool, layered effect on the ocean part of the picture, and I've used the technique many times since.

"Mary Moon" slide back
stamped images, pigment chalk.

much of the base of the Mary character in my artwork is based on a poem by T. S. Eliot, my favorite poet. Through his words I realized the spirit of this Goddess, who has become very important to me. The full text is Here, but some of the most influential bits of it are as follows:

Who walked between the violet and the violet
Who walked between
The various ranks of varied green
Going in white and blue, in Mary's colour,
Talking of trivial things
In ignorance and knowledge of eternal dolour
Who moved among the others as they walked,
Who then made strong the fountains and made fresh the springs

Made cool the dry rock and made firm the sand
In blue of larkspur, blue of Mary's colour,
Sovegna vos

Here are the years that walk between, bearing
Away the fiddles and the flutes, restoring
One who moves in the time between sleep and waking, wearing

White light folded, sheathing about her, folded.
The new years walk, restoring
Through a bright cloud of tears, the years, restoring
With a new verse the ancient rhyme. Redeem
The time. Redeem
The unread vision in the higher dream
While jewelled unicorns draw by the gilded hearse.

The silent sister veiled in white and blue
Between the yews, behind the garden god,
Whose flute is breathless, bent her head and signed but spoke no word

But the fountain sprang up and the bird sang down
Redeem the time, redeem the dream
The token of the word unheard, unspoken

Till the wind shake a thousand whispers from the yew

And after this our exile

...

Will the veiled sister pray for
Those who walk in darkness, who chose thee and oppose thee,
Those who are torn on the horn between season and season, time and time, between
Hour and hour, word and word, power and power, those who wait
In darkness? Will the veiled sister pray
For children at the gate
Who will not go away and cannot pray:
Pray for those who chose and oppose

O my people, what have I done unto thee.

Will the veiled sister between the slender
Yew trees pray for those who offend her
And are terrified and cannot surrender
And affirm before the world and deny between the rocks
In the last desert before the last blue rocks
The desert in the garden the garden in the desert
Of drouth, spitting from the mouth the withered apple-seed.

O my people.

...

Although I do not hope to turn again
Although I do not hope
Although I do not hope to turn

Wavering between the profit and the loss
In this brief transit where the dreams cross
The dreamcrossed twilight between birth and dying
(Bless me father) though I do not wish to wish these things
From the wide window towards the granite shore
The white sails still fly seaward, seaward flying
Unbroken wings

And the lost heart stiffens and rejoices
In the lost lilac and the lost sea voices
And the weak spirit quickens to rebel
For the bent golden-rod and the lost sea smell
Quickens to recover
The cry of quail and the whirling plover
And the blind eye creates
The empty forms between the ivory gates
And smell renews the salt savour of the sandy earth This is the time of tension between dying and birth The place of solitude where three dreams cross Between blue rocks But when the voices shaken from the yew-tree drift away Let the other yew be shaken and reply.

Blessed sister, holy mother, spirit of the fountain, spirit of the garden,
Suffer us not to mock ourselves with falsehood
Teach us to care and not to care
Teach us to sit still
Even among these rocks,
Our peace in His will
And even among these rocks
Sister, mother
And spirit of the river, spirit of the sea,
Suffer me not to be separated

And let my cry come unto Thee.

and that is a secret between us.

the Walnut Locket Project (working title)

step 1: Concept: people will look at things they consider ugly or disfunctional and ignore them or look the other way. someone with a mental illness or physical deformity is shunned from society because they are considered damaged goods. however, these people can have very valuable things to contribute to society. though they're outside can be ugly, inside they are beautiful.

step 2: planning the process-this hasn't really worked out so well. first of all, the nuts are too hard for a x-acto knife to cut, so they just started to shatter. this actually fit into my idea, that shattered and broken looking people are just as important as good-looking people. so i started to look for easier (and less dangerous) ways to break the nuts. in the absence of a nutcracker, i threw a nut on the floor. it shattered quite niceley, despite making a mess. after that, i put a nut in a plastic bag and threw it, and that created the effect as well as contained the mess.
i took the pvc glue i wanted to use to tape the two halves together to reconstruct the nutshells, and let the two halves edjes remain ragged. i then glued the ribbon between the halves and let it dry.

step 3: expiriments to come-
i'm planning on trying out different ways of gilding the inside, including gluing in leaf and using a leafing marker. then, i'm going to try different finishing techniques for the outside of the shells, including ink, staining, and sanding. finally, i'll mix and match charms and crystals for the insides and maybe add text- from books, movies, or poems talking about the beauty inside.

hope that clarifies things.

Artist's Statement

All people are created equal. I have to believe this. I have to believe that we are all equally skilled, that if boring, unimaginative and unskilled people just tapped into their secret internal reservoir of magic then they could make art like me. Because the other half of me knows that's not true. That part of me knows that we are not created equal. It knows that I am both more and less than the average woman. Small talk confounds me, conversation terrifies me, I never know whether I'm doing the right thing, tormented by doubt. Though I can pull these images out of my heart with the flick of my wrist, I can barely look another human being in the face. And nobody wants avoidance. That's why I keep looking for this mythical place where everyone is as creative as me. Where people are inspired by the same thing as me. Because if I'm different, I'm not equal. And all people are created equal. They're all worth the same.