08 July 2012

who do I think I am ...

... to call my work Talismans?

... to imply that I am in any way tapped in or gifted?

... to imply that anything I create is anything more than mere ornament?  I have no special training, I have no credentials.  I'm not a healer or a shaman or a psychic. 

This is some of the monkey mind chatter that's been going on in my head as I transition from working on wholesale orders to focusing full time on my talismans.  And the thing is, I think they're valid questions.

But there are a few things that I do know about myself and since I'm asking, this is who I think I am ...

I am a maker.

I am motivated from a place deep in my core, a place that feels nameless, but that I know is the center of my heart and spirit.

I can't explain the origins of the impulse or inspiration for the talismans.  Not long after I started making this body of work in 2008, I had a dream that I made jewelry in a past life.  As I create this work, it really does feel like something remembered rather than learned.

When I'm designing the themes and then assembling the elements, I make every effort to keep my mind out of it.  When I select gemstones and components, I don't choose them for specific properties or attributes.  It's only after the piece is assembled that the message of the piece becomes clear.
 
An on-line friend makes extraordinary work that is talismanic.  She is trained in shamanic traditions and has the credentials.  This is what got my monkey mind going.  I started thinking that I should undertake my own training - but in what exactly I wasn't sure.  Then I got to thinking that what I've been doing since the very start of my jewelry making career and my very best work has come from following my intuition, my heart center ... listening to that voice from the nameless place.

It makes no sense.  I can't explain it.  I think that's best.

What I know and what I've experienced from day one of putting my talismans out into the world is a resonance and recognition and connection with like-hearted people.  The Talismans are a conversation and a creative collaboration between me as the maker and the person receiving the piece.  I can set an intention for a piece, but it is not complete until it connects with someone.  That connection is like the key in the lock, the yeast and the warm water.  The collaboration and connection is everything.  It completes the cycle and gives the piece its power.

Who do I think I am?  I am the catalyst and the medium in a beautiful exchange of love and heart-felt intentions.

l i g a - kvk 

p.s. a big THANK YOU to Clara for the collaboration insight ... a key piece of the puzzle.

12 comments:

  1. who's to say you are not a modern day shaman?
    No one can give another shaman credentials, not really..you can learn techniques,but channeling the creative spirit is a soul thing.. if it's not there..no amount of training will make it appear.

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    1. Like I was saying ... just have to keep my mind out of it and keep it soul centered ... Thanks!

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  2. brava!
    i do not believe that soul work is 'qualified' necessarily - it is authentic, intuitive, heartfelt... the test lies not in how you were trained, but in (as you say) the intention and connection...

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    1. yes, indeed ... it's all about intention ....

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  3. Hey Kathy,
    I've known a couple of folks who have had special training, have traveled and studied under masters. I think they would say it isn't the credentials or where you've been, but what the intention is, or rather in what spirit the pieces are created. I've tried to take the things I've learned and experienced and use those things to make work. I won't make anything when I'm feeling negative, since I don't want that to come through. I have a feeling that you make things with a sense of purpose, with a goal of infusing the pieces with serenity. I think the things you make resonate. They are absolutely magical.

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    1. Thanks Cynthia! I take this as a very high complement indeed. Definitely with you about when to work and when not to work. Always reminds me of "Like Water For Chocolate." xo

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  4. I too believe that the intuition and the connection are very important parts of the process.

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  5. ah... being a true shaman would be exhausting
    unless your soul was truly "there"

    but i can attest to your powers! Your work is blessing manifest.

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    1. I am humbled ... thank you M - blessings to you

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  6. I really needed to read this post today and enjoyed the comments too. Intuition, serenity, the spirit in which you create the piece, the connection you feel with your art ... it is all part of it. I can feel it when I look at your talismans.

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  7. Thank you, Robyn ... a great compliment. So honored to have you visit my little slice of the world ......

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