I have worked as an architect for more than 25 years, and my work partner is a landscape architect (and a regular architect too), so I've learned to see the world as integrated, the natural and the man made places. I can't help but have that attitude about jewelry too. A few years ago I went to Eatonville, FL for work, and was very taken with the "lakes" in Eatonville. Ponds, really, they are small bodies of water surrounded by tall willowy grasses, that were golden brown when I was there. I imagined living there before cars, or Disney, and how children might play near the edges or dare to jump in if they could manage to get out. Zora Neale Hurston wrote about Eatonville and the ponds in her books, and I created the Zora Lakes necklace in tribute. Each link is the shape of a lake, organic and flowing.
Living in Texas water is a treasured commodity. We are usually either in drought or deluge, and my hometown of Austin has some spectacular swimming holes. I decided to pay tribute to our water resources here at home, with two new links, Lake Austin and Barton Springs. Each one is hand made and I'll roll out the line in the coming months.
My final addition to the water features inspiration is political and environmental. The existing border wall in Brownsville, Texas is nowhere near the river that separates the two countries, and in between is No Man's Land. American soil and residents on the wrong side of the wall. My NML link is the outline of this geographical space, an example of physical solutions to economic problems.
My new line will be available this spring. Watch this space for more details about upcoming shows where you can see them in person for yourself and sit and visit for a while.