Artist Spotlight: The Artemisian
Can you introduce yourself for us - who you are, where you’re from, what you do?
I grew up between a mountain town outside of Rome, Italy and Buffalo, New York, the only child of an Italian father and Polish mother. Informed by this cultural diversity all my life, I explored what it meant to fit, what it meant to be wanted and desired and why these things were of such importance to me. I completed a bachelor’s in printmaking from Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, though most of my degree was completed in Rome’s study abroad.
Physical expression for me has been the thread that ties most of my disparate aspects of self together, and each of the ways in which the expression takes shape inform the other aspects of me.
So who am I? I am, an artist, a lover, a mother, a chef, a yogini, a writer, and in perpetual study. Working on a Master’s in Somatics ( mind body medicine) my work has focused on mindful use of materials, upcycling, one of a kind and repurposing Art Deco and Georgian jewelry. Still all of those things now each piece has evolved taking on delivering the message of bodhicitta, a spontaneous wish to attain enlightenment motivated by great compassion for all sentient beings, accompanied by a falling away of the attachment to the illusion of an individual self. The current collection in store the simple mantra is “I am” not what I do but “how I do what I do, not who I am but “how” I am in the world and an awareness that we all contain the universe within.
What's your zodiac sign?
Libra
How did you get your start in your field of design?
I began at Tyler in the jewelry program and moved swiftly to printmaking still keeping metal as my medium of choice but moving from craft to fine art.
How and where do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration least of all in other jewelers and most in life, popular culture film, music, fine art and most of all observation of the mundane, the passing of seasons, cycles of birth and death and the emotional state of the human condition.
What’s your favorite part about the design process?
My favorite part of the design process is the muse that sparks the idea, that sweet moment when music, art, life imparts a way to render feeling, emotion, idea into physical object.
Who are some other artists/designers/brands you look up to?
Polly Wales, Foundrae, Jacob Hashimoto, Mark Rothko, Pema Chodron, Hillapea, Grainne Morton, Arrival, The Matrix, Gertrude Stein poetry and Sidney Bechet!!
Any words of wisdom for fellow makers or peers looking to get their business off the ground?
Know that your vibration, attracts like vibration, when you find yourself saying "I can't, or "not good enough" statements you are attracting this vibration. Be disciplined, be informed and know the potential of keeping your vibration high!
What is a dream project/goal for you?
When we finally emerge from this pandemic I have been building a sanctuary for restoration in my mind...what does it mean to restore? How do we access the parasympathetic nervous system, our rest and digest system? Tools, putting all my tools under one roof, physical pieces or talismans as reminders, the jewelry, nourishing food, water, art, movement, sound and meditation therapies.
