My Aunt sent me some photos of my Dad when he was a baby so that we could keep them to treasure. I was flipping through his book the other day and realized that the way we treat things matters beyond surface level. Old photos are perfectly aged so handling them is an act of meditation in itself. I am certain at my ripe age of nearly 47 that our relationship to objects is what makes them heirlooms or not.
It is all fine that we buy someone else’s basket from the 18th century and call it an heirloom - but is it really our heirloom? The definition of an heirloom is “An object—such as jewelry, a watch, furniture, or a quilt—of special emotional, sentimental, or historical value handed down from parents or grandparents to their children” according to the internet.
I am beginning to see that something new can also be classified as an heirloom simply by making it one because we love, cherish, and claim it as important. I am beginning to see that everything outside is symbolic and an “outpicture” of what is in our interior.
So what do these pieces do for our inner interior? Have you ever been to a place where it was filled with things that mattered? A museum? A botanical garden? Someone’s house that is filled with beautiful artwork, pottery, books, sculpture, and things that nourish the soul? You can feel the difference. It doesn’t have to be grand, it just has to be authentic. I have been to Buckingham Palace and also to the smallest cottages in the countryside in France that are barely 500 square feet and they both felt equally as special.
The ornaments I have made this year have taken on an entirely new vibe - they feel like they have lived a lot, and witnessed many joyful people celebrating together. This is why I love making art, I get to have a full life with it first before it genuinely becomes an heirloom for someone else.
Thank you for being here,
Jocelyn xx
p.s. in case you missed the newsletter the ornaments will be offered on my website on November 17th at 9 am MT - jocelynkempe.com