The woman who made the asymmetrical piece above
On my most recent journey home to the Philippines, I discovered Market! Market! in Taguig CIty. Unlike the multi-block-condo & consumer-attached-Manila Malls, this older, smaller building held a treasure inside; it still had classic barter style shops! An entire market for native crafts -hidden away!
Here is where I met the artist; in one of the many shops, hers, tucked away into the bit of magical barter-market chaos. Her original works were also tucked away, at the back of her shop (which is also part of the preventative measure taken to protect from the rampant & prolific copy cats). After chatting for about an hour, I’d found out she’d had ambitions to become an expert in Sharia Law, started to create her jewelry and, at this point, had had her work featured in multiple magazines, here and abroad (these magazines were tucked away in drawers). Her work was a way to express her love for words, expression, & detail; the thought process that went into it, how she chose materials & colours & then there was her desire for those who wore her work. She hoped that they understood the importance of nature in the materials and the colours she chose (how even the brilliance of lapiz lazuli is born naturally), the balance in the asymmetry, & the understanding & shared creation of story when another understands your work.
