The last talisman of my Faith series looks like a serpent. I didn't intend it to be this way, but I hardly control what I create. Most times, I just see a single image in my mind. I capture it on paper, trying to grasp the transparent form as it lingers before me. Then I draw it with wire, add volume and texture where necessary, and it comes to life. As I hold it I ask, who are you? What are you? Where have you come from? 

This serpent owns her power. She is sensual and focused. Wise and dignified. She trusts her instincts and glides effortless between the land of dreams and reality. 

Fearless Talisman.
100% recycled sterling silver and chalcedony.
Soon in my online shop.

In 2001 I sold everything I owned and moved to the United States. I got rid of furniture, artwork, books, clothes, and music. But the last thing I held on to was my favorite CD: Moby's Play. I loved that album, but I didn't know where I'd live, and I wanted to travel light, so I let it go. I thought: something better will come my way.

A few years later, I moved to New York City and got a job at a boutique in Nolita. One day, as I threw out the trash in the building's dumpster, I noticed a frame leaning against the wall. I looked closely, and under shattered glass, glued on black velvet, was a CD. It was Moby's Play, with an inscribed metal plate underneath that commemorated the sales of his album. 

I removed the glass, grabbed the CD and the plate, and rushed back to work. When I showed my co-worker what I'd found, she said, that's because Moby lives upstairs. The frame probably fell of his wall and he didn’t want to repair it. As it turns out, I now literally own Moby's album Play.

Magnetic Talisman.
Labradorite and 100% recycled sterling silver.
Soon in my online shop.

Yesterday I saw The Salt of the Earth, a documentary of life photographer Sebastião Salgado, made by his son, Julian, and Wim Wenders. Since the 1970's, Salgado has witnessed and captured human exodus, the lives of workers around the world, pristine landscapes and animals in their natural habitat.  

After years of raising awareness of the terror lived in places like Ethiopia, Sudan and Yugoslavia, Salgado returned to his childhood ranch in Brazil to recover his faith in life. Together with his wife Lélia and his crew, they transformed thousands of hectares of devastated cattle land into lush jungle, setting an example of how nature can fully recover with our help. 

His black and white images and his life story are a legacy of how profound suffering can be transformed through compassion into hope.  

Hold the Light Talisman. 
Transparent quartz and 100% recycled sterling silver. 
Soon in my online shop.

Black top by Remigio Mestas. Striped top by Fabrica Social.
You can see more of Sebastião Salgado's work on Artsy. 

What is Art? Why is it relevant? How does it affect our lives? I've been asking myself these questions as I realize how much Art has shaped my life. 

To appreciate Art, I need to see with my eyes, listen with my ears, and feel with my heart. Art is beauty, emotion and ideas made present. It captures the spirit of life in a way that reminds us that existence is precious. Art tells our deepest story and transforms our darker moments. It has the power to change not only the maker, but the observer. Art gives meaning to tragedy and pain, and generates hope and possibility. This is why I am an artist.

Hope Talisman.
Moonstone and 100% recycled sterling silver.
Soon in my online shop.

Black top by Remigio Mestas. Striped top by Fabrica Social.

The Faith Talismans begin to take shape.

Chalcedony, labradorite, transparent quartz, moonstone and sterling silver.

I spent a week in New York City with my mother and sister. I had not returned since I lived there in 2003, and I have fallen in love all over again. Nothing beats a pedestrian town; a city that is both old and new; that combines cultures from all around the world –many within the same block; that is on the cutting edge of design, food, architecture, art and fashion; and has green everywhere. For a visual junkie like me, it is paradise. 

I shared some of my pictures on Instagram as I took them, but you can see my entre journey here. I hope you enjoy my perspective of New York, but most of all, may these images inspire you to look closely, wherever you are.

I'm off to New York City, and my shop on Etsy will be closed until May 14. I will return with lots of new ideas!

Mountain rings.
Now in my online shop.