RAW - the 52 week journey

mary jane dodd

earth is... fragile

inspired by earth day - using mica, paper, dried flowers, silk fiber... 

~~~

 

 earth is... bountiful

my goddess (she hangs upside down here) 

an open vessel, yet full of all that needs to be given...
reaching up and out into the world,
yet true to and in tune with the essence of her Self...
from the depths of one's soul, the beginning of time,
yet ever present and knowable..

created from the salt of the earth, the energy of the universe... 

RAW - the 52 week journey

mary jane dodd

'thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people

 are beginning to find out that going to the mountain is going home; 

that wilderness is necessity; that mountain parks and reservations are useful

 not only as fountains of timber and irrigating rivers, 

but as fountains of life.' 

~ john muir

don't let anyone - especially yourself - beat you down... be humble... seek your heart's desire... gaze upon the moon... celebrate each day... return to life... 

RAW - the 52 week journey

mary jane dodd

'logic will get you from A to B.

imagination will take you everywhere.'

~ albert einstein

and the natural world will provide more to muse upon than anything else... 

this ring was made after a day spent going in and out of the house, noticing the fresh green shoots and leaves covered with the silvery veil of ici-ness which fell in the way of snow, sleet and hail... how fragile and yet hearty are the first stirrings of spring... 

while walking this week i noticed birds flying with grasses in their beaks; squirrels rustling through leaves, scampering up trees with their mouths filled... 

searching for the perfect fork in which to entrust their new homes... 

preparing for nests and the new life soon to follow... 

after seeing over 20 swans take flight in the river this morning, i was thinking of feathers and things aloft... things aloft and wishes... wishes and dandelion parachutes... 


floating gently away - carrying hopes and dreams with them...

here is the link to the flickr group where you can see some really terrific and imaginative work!

RAW (ring a week) continues

mary jane dodd

'a bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, 

it sings because it has a song.'

~ maya angelou

different days... 

different songs... 

grateful for the opportunity to have a small place in my crowded brain where my imagination soars... 

what sets you free?

lessons learned

mary jane dodd

'nature is an endless combination and repetition

of a very few laws.

she hums the old well-known air

through innumerable variations.'

~ ralph waldo emerson

this is how i feel about rings - a few basic techniques needing to be learned well which are then repeated - but after that... well it's about raising the bar to whatever inspires... this week i added small gemstones to them... 

here inspired by conifers... 

here by the promise of spring... 

i was working on a version of a rustic engagement ring - using brass and nickel - soft silk and a raw diamond... 

lessons learned - 

the engagement ring is the second one i made... the first one taught me that even with the heat required to apply patina, soft solder will lose its hold... 

this engagement ring has a circle in the middle of the etching, so it has to be redone... as there is some etched pattern visible, i am thinking it must have sunk to the bottom of my container...

copper is a very friendly metal, it likes to snuggle - when it comes to chemical techniques, keep your brass and copper separate - unless you want plated brass... which is kind of cool, but not what i was looking for... 


** i just want to add here that i know these rings are simple in construction - i marvel at the skill of smiths creating truly magnificent pieces... one of my personal goals is to expand my knowledge in this respect... 

any casualties this week in your work? while they can be frustrating, ultimately we learn from them and keep moving - 

the beauty of a good challenge

mary jane dodd

'i shut my eyes in order to see.'

~ paul gauguin

i committed to the ring a week challenge this year... for all that deadlines can often fill me with dread, this one sets me free... it is the place my mind goes to play while i figure out what i 'need' to do with other pieces and other aspects of my life... 

RAW 1 - landscape of the sky

RAW 2 - you are here

RAW 3 - broken promise

and this week - 

(unnamed as yet... and unfinished)

what do you like/dread about challenges?

and you still have a couple of more days to enter our call to create for january...