Sydney Brown Artist Statement

I am fiercely dedicated to telling the truth. As I strive to be fearlessly honest, I learn more about myself and life’s miracles and tragedies every day. Just as I lay out one clear truth in the completion of a work, it is instantly changed with the inevitable new knowledge learned through the process of making that piece. My experience as an artist is a labyrinth of gaining traction and moving forward in a series of circular movements. The nature of traveling around the circle sometimes means I am moving backwards, and covering already travelled paths, often re-learning uncomfortable lessons over and over again until my body and mind accept them.

Over the years my art has changed, relapsed and grown. A common thread has remained an empathic spirit. I make art from a place of desire for connection, longing for healing, and belief that we need each other. I work through darkness openly because I believe that vulnerability reaps bravery and living a life I will be proud of requires that courage. While in the past my work was much more about recognizing pain and presenting physical representations of emotional trials and trauma, it is transforming. Currently I work within the theme of identifying and healing past wounds. This takes the form of jewelry infused with history and meaning through recycled materials and poetic text worn close to the skin, or it can manifest through tiny altar objects that are held in the hand or carried daily in a pocket. 

Wearable-art/jewelry has a beautiful way of physically meeting the desire to connect. I am consistently touched by how the heart can be translated so exactly, if desired, through this art form. That possibility is largely why I choose to lead a studio-artist's lifestyle, despite its unpredictable and often isolated nature. The potential for meaningful connections is very motivating for me. Whether it is through creating a way for a bride to feel like she is a work of art, or providing a talisman for grieving, I find this work extremely rewarding.