Saturday, June 12, 2010

Hi All-
Yes I consider my making jewelry Art. It is a peculiar medium because Jewelry is a common item and most of the time it is machine made and we get it at a Stores. Unlike Painting or making Pottery which are very commonly considered Art and always win the awards at Juried shows, it is more utilitarian. So we are used to it having a price tag on it and NOT thinking of it as Art, more like an accessory and similar to the way we think of clothes or shoes. Actually I don't think that ALL jewelry IS Art and much of the jewelry people make nowadays is definitely not Art, it is more like craft. Okay so what's my point?

Today I was working on some jewelry while sitting in a public place and a friend happened by. They said to me... ''you are making jewelry" and I replied, "yes, I make it all the time". She then said the inevitable "where are you selling it".... like since I haven't been doing any shows or trying to sell it in public lately means I stopped making it. NOT! For about 20 years now making jewelry has been my main artistic outlet and during this time I have taken different approaches to ridding myself of all the stuff I have made. And yes it is important and nice to gain some monetary reward for my effort but this is where I want to express myself.

I do not make jewelry to make money. The type of jewelry I make involves many hours of tedious process and many of the steps are not actually fun, like sitting at the buffing wheel for example. I make jewelry because I like the materials, I love fire, I am able to create pieces that will not only endure but are wearable and also have some value beyond the weight of the metal itself. Most importantly and primarily, I do this as a MEDITATIVE process. I have been able to convey this a few times to people I have met at shows and other places. The little steps and processes I have made my work require that I be PRESENT. So it is a way for me to BE in what I consider the best state that I can be as a human. Making Jewelry for me is a Labor of Love. I know this sounds like a cliche. I do not spend the time making jewelry to end up with the piece. It is good that I do derive some result, a product that I can sell, but I am literally making jewelry to spend the time doing it. It is very similar to making pottery -- there is a saying that "a Potter changes the clay, but what really changes is the Potter".

Okay, so what I am getting at is that Yes, I am still making jewelry, and Yes, I have some for sale... in fact I have it laying all over the place. However if you are waiting for it to be on a table or in a showcase somewhere like you presume it should be because it is jewelry, you are not going to see my work and you are dissing me as an Artist. I am always ready to show it to anyone and I will also sell it, have your checkbook ready.

PS This is also why I call myself a Jewelry Artist rather than a Jeweler, because if I call myself the later the next question will be "can you repair this?"
I don't do repairs except on jewelry that I have made, which rarely breaks.

All of the above is my opinion, which is a vanity (of course) and therefore worthless =).

Please feel free to use this space to discuss Art, making money, etc. Your comments and replies are welcomed.

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