Dave Stephens wrote:
You “white men” and your darned money.Always money,more money more
land more of that or more of this…The Indian in me doesn’t understand
developing necessary skills using minimal tools.The tools don’t give a
voice or beauty to an item you and I do…G.Chando
Gavin: I have to agree with you, I do like tools, though
I don’t stand anywhere near most of you in your mastery of skills and
don’t even have access around here to instructors to learn things such as
stone setting. I don’t rely on jewelry making to make my living (yet), but
I will tell you if I make a piece thinking how much money its going to
bring me then I usually turn out a piece of crap. All my stuff is unusual
one of a kind pieces that end up really “speaking” to the person who takes
posession of it. Its taken me awhile to have the guts to put higher prices
on my work and realize I need to be compensated for putting way too much
Dave,
I suppose it comes down to what a person wants in their life or
what they choose to seek from their life.I know a fellow who is a very
good bench jeweler and he went the to school for two years to learn the
trade with an eye toward making a living which he does.He is bound to a
shop and they don’t particularly like it if he markets his work anywhere
else so his design work(he is very good) falls by the wayside and he is
busy with repairs and work the shop dictates.He does earn a good living
by most standards and that is what he started out wanting from jewelry
in the first place.This is all well and good but not the same as the
driving force behind what I would seek to gain from jewelry making.
I started because I like making things and ever since I was about 4
years old I was always nailing boards together or sculpting mud
representations of birds or similarly trying to speak out in some way
through representation of the things I saw around me.In short I just
like building things and it gives me a sense of freedom and
accomplishment I don’t find elsewhere.
I never really worried about making a living and I suppose it’s
because I was raised by a father and mother who were not driven by
material things so much as guided by the spiritual ones.
As for the tools I love new things there but there seems to be a
misconception at least to my way of thinking that more tools always
equal better work.I don’t see it that way really although I am also one
who always wants more/better tools just I never seem to use what I have
to their fullest capabilities and in rethinking this tool thing I wonder
if maybe we shouldn’t be striving to produce with what is at hand
instead of always seeking what is available…Capitalism and advertising
you know how it gets when they work to feed consumers desire for a
product…Gavin
