My Life
As a kid I grew up in an ideal country town in upstate New York. Nestled between mountains, there were always plenty of creeks and waterfalls to swim in and hiking trails that lead to the breathtaking views. I guess growing up here was like a fantasy, making me think I could be anything and do anything I wanted. I was not naive enough to think that everyplace in the world is the same, I just knew there was no place quite like this.
We are told that if we go to school and major in something that offers a multitude of job opportunities and makes money that in turn we will be happy. So when I went to college it took many change of major forms and attempts to be what society thought was "normal" to realize that I am still a little girl living in the middle of nowhere who doesn't care what anyone else wants me to be. I just wanted to do what makes me happy.
My parents have always supported the idea of me being an artist and I realize I should never have fought doing what I enjoy. That only ends in misery and now I always hear my parents say "I told you to go into art". Love you Mom and Dad! I know I should have listened, but I had to figure it out myself. My sister realized that silversmithing makes her happy, and maybe it is just a coincidence or maybe it is the sisterly similarities that made us fall in love with making jewelry. I love making unique, handmade items and hope that I will always be able to give in to the urge, the need to create.
My Statement
Everyone is searching for a feeling of comfort, and the experience once they find it may not be the same. For me the search for comfort was found in making sculptural, pod shaped jewelry. The forms are something you never want to let go of. Rolling the rounded, hollow object around in your fingers creates a calm and soothing effect. Fabricating the work has been therapeutic, and by creating work that is worn on the body I have the ability to carry these comfort spaces with me. I hope that others can see the passion that has gone into each piece and find them comforting as well. The work has been created to the highest degree of craftsmanship, but still has not reached its full potential until a person has a chance to hold it, feel it, wear it and experience it.
As a kid I grew up in an ideal country town in upstate New York. Nestled between mountains, there were always plenty of creeks and waterfalls to swim in and hiking trails that lead to the breathtaking views. I guess growing up here was like a fantasy, making me think I could be anything and do anything I wanted. I was not naive enough to think that everyplace in the world is the same, I just knew there was no place quite like this.
We are told that if we go to school and major in something that offers a multitude of job opportunities and makes money that in turn we will be happy. So when I went to college it took many change of major forms and attempts to be what society thought was "normal" to realize that I am still a little girl living in the middle of nowhere who doesn't care what anyone else wants me to be. I just wanted to do what makes me happy.
My parents have always supported the idea of me being an artist and I realize I should never have fought doing what I enjoy. That only ends in misery and now I always hear my parents say "I told you to go into art". Love you Mom and Dad! I know I should have listened, but I had to figure it out myself. My sister realized that silversmithing makes her happy, and maybe it is just a coincidence or maybe it is the sisterly similarities that made us fall in love with making jewelry. I love making unique, handmade items and hope that I will always be able to give in to the urge, the need to create.
My Statement
Everyone is searching for a feeling of comfort, and the experience once they find it may not be the same. For me the search for comfort was found in making sculptural, pod shaped jewelry. The forms are something you never want to let go of. Rolling the rounded, hollow object around in your fingers creates a calm and soothing effect. Fabricating the work has been therapeutic, and by creating work that is worn on the body I have the ability to carry these comfort spaces with me. I hope that others can see the passion that has gone into each piece and find them comforting as well. The work has been created to the highest degree of craftsmanship, but still has not reached its full potential until a person has a chance to hold it, feel it, wear it and experience it.
Three Rivers Arts Festival Emerging Artist Interview 2014
The silver jewelry created by Leah Beal contains more purpose than merely adorning a body. In her Pod Series, Beal works on the idea of “comfort spaces.” As she explains, the silver pieces are made to be “held in your hand and give some sort of comfort,” because, “Rolling the rounded, hollow object around in your fingers creates a calm and soothing effect.” Beal sculpts the silver to create “safe spaces, like what you would want to be in if you could have them life-size, but on a miniature scale.”
Beal also has a Line Series, inspired by a flatter form that contains thin vines of overlapping silver, creating nature-reminiscent pieces.
The creative process for Beal is less about inspiration than the act of crafting the silver itself. The marvel is in creating dimensional pieces from a dimensionless material. “I usually start with flat silver sheets,” states Beal, “and it’s really interesting to see something that’s completely flat, that has no shape, no texture, nothing, that’s all hand-cut, hand-formed and soldered and to have it all come together to create something is really amazing.”
Although Beal now refers to silversmithing as “her calling,” she wrestled with the idea of being an artist for a while before she fully embraced it. Like many people, Beal entered college without a clear path, but facing pressure to pick a major that would yield successful job opportunities. She attempted to appease society instead of pursuing her own happiness, and chose a major in interior design. Beal also initially resisted working with metals because her sister was a metals major and she “didn’t want to be anything like her.” However, after taking a metals class Beal said, “I knew that I’m exactly like her and [metal working] was my calling, too!”
Leah Beal will be showing her work for the first time as an Emerging Artist scholar at the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival. Stop by to see her work at booth 10 in the Artist Market presented by People’s Gas from Friday, June 6 to Tuesday, June 10.
By Rebecca Faix, Artist Market Intern