Betty Gerich, Artist, Painter and Sculptor

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Is each work of art a new start?

Heartfelt Jewelry Box, Ceramic Sculpture, 9” x 5” x7”

Looking at Art:

In a New York Times article, “Feeling stuck? Five Tips for managing life transitions”, author Bruce Feiler concludes that doing something creative means a fresh start for people. Since each work of art is an invention conceived and created differently than what came before, artists essentially start anew with each creation. The first step may be coming up with an idea and steps that follow involve making that idea come to life using art materials. Do you think that a creative practice can help anyone overcome the challenges we face during transitions in our lives?

Work in the Studio:

The piece shown here belongs to a series of boxes that contain parts of a face. Each box shows a piece of jewelry and the series was addressing beautification in a post-modern age. I had a lot of fun coming up with box shapes and face parts to go along with the concept. Although the pieces belong to the series and theme, each is unique. For earrings, two ears appear in a box, and noses are in a box with nose rings. Toes are in a toe ring box. I do believe there is a therapeutic aspect to my work as an artist. Coming up with ideas is enjoyable, however when it comes to executing them, the work begins.