Dawn Blair crafts unique pieces of jewelry from her studio
in Topeka, Kansas. Each piece is one of a kind, and is the result of Dawn's
highly individual creative process. Follow the links above to learn a little more about Dawn and her art, or
click
here to go straight to the Gallery.
Dawn Blair's Artist's Statement:
"I draw influences literally from everywhere. It could be a tree, or a
bird. It could be seeing a beautiful garment, and how the fabric flows
when it's wearer makes a gesture. It could be a word, or something
someone has said. Or, the influence could just be a color, or the
materials themselves, or music. The qualities that are most important
to me and my wearable art are high craftsmanship, grace and flow of
lines and form, textural interest, and movement (whether actual or
perceived). I pursue all of these characteristics passionately in my
work, and appreciate and consider these when collecting the work of
other jewelry artists. My color palette is influenced highly by nature,
but also by colors in things that I see in my dreams, or in the
personalities of the women I create my pieces for. Music is often a
catalyst for creating unique color palettes.
I start, create, and finish each pendant one at a time. I never
work on more than one piece at a time, unless it is a series and I want
the pieces to relate to each other and share the same energy and moment
in time. This is not to say that I work on all series pieces this way
either. I will often finish one piece, and then I become flooded with
more ideas relating to the already finished piece. Or, there is a story
not quite completely told in the one piece, and it is evident that it
is meant to be part of a larger whole. I never plan out a piece. I just start working on it and let the materials and inspiration determine the
direction the piece will go. That way the story isn't interrupted. As I
am working through the piece, each design choice leads to the next, and
the next. I never know what a piece is going to look like until it is
complete. I work in a very intuitive way, allowing all of the elements
to work together and flow naturally.
More than once, I have created a piece for myself or to sell. And
after viewing it in its completion, I realize that it is supposed to be
worn, owned, and loved by a certain client, friend or family member.
Sometimes, I try to resist this, but the piece has a spirit of its own.
My clients often tell me that they were drawn to a piece right away,
and they knew the piece was meant for them, and they often tell me why.
One of the most unexpected pleasures that I have gotten to experience is
when a client comes back to me and tells me a story of something that
happened while they were wearing my work, or about when they gave the
piece as a gift. I really value the connections I make with these
unique women. They inspire me to keep creating and expressing my artist
self.
My purpose and passion in creating my pieces is for the woman who
wears my art jewelry to feel special and elevated, that she feels joy
and whimsy, and most of all, that she feels and appreciates her own
unique beauty, voice, and purpose. Everything that I am... my joys, my
pain, my curiosities, faith, and my music, are poured into each piece.
Each piece is unique and expresses something of that particular moment
in my life and what I was thinking about or experiencing. They are
special to me, and represent a kind of diary or biography of my inner
life, where words would be inadequate."
- Dawn Blair, May 2008
