My name is Dawn and I'm from Wirral, Cheshire. I'm married to my love Lewis, and have two lovely kids. I'm lucky enough to have my studio in the garden, a very spacious large shedio just for me.
For years I have been searching for something I could do that would use my creative skills and make a career out of it. Once the kids both start school next year I hope to achieved my goal, it won't make me rich, but at least I'll be happy!
The creative streak goes way, way back. I was top at school for art, so off I went to art college, I did fine art, ceramics which I adored, enamelling, and the boaring bit - history of art. I was a good artist, but hated art school. Then I got into horses, owning them and getting a job in a saddlery shop, I soon learnt the art of saddlery. Life took over and I put the tools down permantly. The arty side was never far away though, I tinkered with polymer clay, something else I adore and am planning a return to very soon. Then came jewellery making, card making, back to jewellery making. One day, when I was searching for books I came across Cindy Jenkins book on making lampwork beads.....you can guess the rest!
Artist on the edge.....
This featured artist thing has come at a very odd time for me, I am indeed an artist on the edge. I did beads up north not so long ago and stood admiring my work, it suddenly stuck me, I was never going to have work like that again, you see I feel everything I have done so far has just been learning how to make beads, but not work I can call my style. Then the other day I was telling a customer about my work, that I like doing dots and twists and what I had been doing in the past when a thought stopped me in my tracks, the dots, the twists, the pokes, it's like a complusion to mess up the glass, I LOVE TEXTURE. Then I knew why, ceramics, polymerclay, saddlery, carving, wood carving, power carving. It's all about hand applied TEXTURE! It's like a bomb has gone off in my head.
Early beads with twists......
More beads with dots and twists......
My favourite beads.....
See what I mean! these are typical beads for me, these bead sets typically are all made along the same lines.
The work that follows shows more recent beads, that are typical of what I like to do.......florals and silver glass, more dots!
Artist over the edge......
But the winds of change are a blowing and whipping up a storm, you see on top of the texture revelation somes another realisation, that I have come full circle. Two years of making beads has taught me how to make beads, now I have this desire express and create my own, not just make, if you see what mean. This work is me on the way.......I'm starting to explore colour, teamed up with the theame 60's flower power. I'm also exploring chinese knotting.......... there will be a lot more of this to come......
And beyond........
Two nights ago I shocked my self. You see I was ill, and still in a quandry about what to make with my head still in bits, so I just picked up a rod and thought I'll have a go a horses head pendant, well I made a horses head, not a pendant, a head. It has ears, eyes, neck, cheeks, nostrils, it has details, and it is most definitly a horses head. I have never made one in glass, I have in clay, and I have painted them countless times, but not in glass. I know I can do better still, and I will.
My Dawn Horse...
Well, I'm now over the edge and into the next chapter, so whats next. Sculpural horse beads, pendants for sure, flower power and big bold bright beads that reflect the 60's hippy chick look. It's going to be fun and fab. Do check back, because this journey is going to be fun.
Love all,
Dawn, Lampwork Artist.
Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/dawnsbeadboutique
Website: http://dawnsbeadboutique.co.uk/
1 comment:
Fantastic interview Dawn. It's lovely to get an insight into how your creative thinking leads you on from one idea to the next and draws from your past experiences.
Thanks for sharing it with us.
Julia
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