Wind

Wind
Originally uploaded by cosmosmoonjewelry

Every April the winds shift in Tucson- signaling the start of our 6 months of summer. We have been fortunate this year to have had record rainfall and a very cool winter. The winds are exhilarating, but they also bring with them the knowledge that Tucson will soon become a gigantic frying pan.
Most of us "desert rats" spend this time of year frantically planning our escape from the summer sun. Meanwhile, we spend every possible second that we can outdoors, knowing full well that we will be holed up in swamp cooled, air conditioned darkened houses until late October.
It's basically the opposite schedule compared to most of the rest of the Northern Hemisphere. (except instead of skiing, we go swimming)
The winds of change are upon us....and soon we will have our Ice break (the first time the temperature gets to 100 degrees)
Just a warning to you Northern folks...you may have some leathery lizards begging for a respite from the desert sun. Any old shadow will do
:-)

dear spammers

This Bug's for you.

I won't publish your comments in any language so just give it up already!

sheesh.

Bundled Treasures

This "caviar spoon" necklace is part of my new series "Bundled Treasures". In this series of work I am bringing forth my little found object treasures that I have found over the past 8 years.

Wait- are you thinking "why does this Tucson artist have sea shell jewelry??" well, I've tried to explain it in this simple back story......

I am from a New England family- (we also lived in Ohio and Delaware for a while)- For me, summertime was beach time- The same is true for my husband, who spent summers as a little boy in the south of France.( nice, huh? yup, I'm jealous too) 

Even though we live in Arizona now, we try to get to the beach once a year- Because the beach is removed from us by a long stretch of desert I believe we have become even more fond of the sound of lapping waves on the shore...and so I commemorate it, by using my found shells and glass that I've collected over our years of vacations.

I've always loved seashell fragments- and  find myself constantly picking them up when I'm at the beach- with the intention of making jewelry with them when I got home- I've been doing this since I was a little girl- collecting shells- I think it's a common thing that many people do when at the ocean-we want to have a treasure from the ocean to bring back with us and remind us of that fantastic day of sun and surf.

(The only thing is that most of us just put the shells in a bowl and forget them- leaving them to collect dust...)

I also have bowls of bugs, of rocks, of pieces of wood, plastic and metal street junk....all sorts of little things that I have treasured as interesting pieces of my world that I feel the need to protect and appreciate. My latest mission is to set these treasures free to roam the world as parts of beautiful one of a kind jewelry! As you wear a bundles treasure you become officially entrusted as a chaperon for these delightful snippets of beauty-
bon voyage!- MBZ

april 9 2010 chalk outline ring #71

april 9 2010 chalk outline ring #71
Originally uploaded by cosmosmoonjewelry

I'm trying to get some work done to prepare for the upcoming summer season- so my ring-a-day rings have become much more spur of the moment and quirky. I'm simply finding ways to satisfy my personal commitment to the ring a day project without letting my other work time suffer. It's been fun coming up with these more bizarre rings- I like it when my work makes me laugh:-)

celebrated anxiety 11

celebrated anxiety 11
Originally uploaded by cosmosmoonjewelry

This is a piece that I just finished last week-
it's fabricated pewter, about 10" tall, and has 3 box compartments when it is dismantled.

The title is "Celebrated Anxiety" - it's about that twitchy nervous feeling you get when you are late for something.

The text that encircles the top and middle box reads "I'm Late, I'm Late, for a Very Important Date" then "No time to say Hello Goodbye I'm Late I'm Late I'm Late" (from the Lyrics of "I'm Late" in the Disney Version of Alice in Wonderland"

In making this piece I came to realize that "Late" means different things for men vs women- I'm not saying this as a criticism or anything- it's simply a natural fact- women's bodies are ruled by the moon, the changing of seasons and time- and being "late" can mean wonderful and horrifying things to a woman depending on the state of their lives.

Men have a very different relationship with time- late is a fact-
and I wonder if they experience a similar anxiety or if it is completely different, if we secrete diverse chemical responses- similar to the diverse responses that prey animals feel vs predators when startled by a loud noise.

In any case- this is the piece I made- it's a cross between a wedding cake and a trophy- I was thinking these thoughts wile I made it, and I hope you enjoy it- I'm planning on entering it into some shows this year- so hopefully it will be seen in a gallery soon!
thanks for your comments-
ciao ciao- Maureen BZ