Bold or Stubborn, Either Way...

It takes a certain chutzpah to be able to look at people and say I want to make a difference. I want my work to mean something to you and to others. Who am I to say I want the world to be a better place because I create in it? But I do. I want my work to be that good. It isn't about me, or wanting to convince anyone of anything. I want to make really good work. 

A while ago, I stumbled upon how much fun it is to make jewelry and have people wear it. I get a thrill everytime I see someone wearing something that I made.  It is this really cool progression, where love and energy and attention goes into a peice of jewelry, a mini art peice if you will, and then  someone puts it on. If it does its job, it looks beautiful, but it also brings something out in the person that shows their beauty a little more clearly. The better a piece of jewelry is, the more it disappears and the beauty of the person who is wearing it is on display. 

I want my jewelry to do this. I want to make pieces that are bold and vibrant and that reveal something about the person wearing them. But I also want it to go even beyond that. As an artist, I am aware of how hard poverty hurts. And I have lived with only first world poverty. I don’t always know where the next months rent is going to come from, but I have tools like this computer to create work that gets me through. Poverty is much harder without those tools. 

I have this vision for my jewelry. I make jewelry that makes the person wearing it feel beautiful. In return, I am able to support myself. I am also able to invest 50% of my profit into projects of other artists/ entrepreneurs that I believe in. KIVA.org is a four star non-profit that connects lenders with micro-projects to alleviate poverty. The connection economy has so much potential. Even if it is just the same chunk of money that artists keep passing around to make their work, we can make sure that we all have the tools we need to make the work that is on our hearts. In places where the tools of art are not as accessible, I want to offer those tools.  

I am trying this approach with this first online sale of my jewelry. It is the line where business and art intersect, and I would like them to be friends and do something more than just tolerate each other. Thanks, friends.