I think I’ve been riding the high of getting an extra hour of sleep this past weekend for days now. Sure it’s a tossup if Daylight Savings Time actually benefits us, but boy oh boy do I look forward to falling back every year.
And while I’m not sure what that says about my sleeping habits, I do like to think that this shows how I like to enjoy the simpler things in life. Finding happiness in beauty in the world around us.
And in the Berkshires that’s easy right? We get to look out at our own backyard and see the beauty in the world around us. It’s why we live here, and it’s why so many artists and creative types call the Berkshires their home.
One artist in particular has found such artistic inspiration in the Berkshires, and we have gotten the chance to showcase her work in The Shop! And wouldn’t you know, she’s our Artist Spotlight for the month of November!
This month I had the pleasure of sitting down with Natasha Wein who’s resin art encapsulates the essence of the Berkshires through simple and elegant jewelry pieces. Here’s what she had to say about her work, the Berkshires, and the future.
When did you start your work as an artist, and when did it evolve into the work that we see and sell at The Shop? Five years ago, I moved to the Berkshires from the San Francisco Bay Area and began working creatively with almost anything I could get my hands on: paint, canvas, clay, fiber, photography, collage, and writing poetry. I founded my creative process on intuition, projection, and analysis, processing the dialogue between abstract experience and language in order to make sense of the human condition.
Just before the pandemic hit, I moved into a new apartment with fantastic light. Ladybugs, flies, and stinkbugs gathered on the floor in large quantities—I swept them into the corner for a future project. I read up on how to work with resin, turned my second room into a resin studio with decent ventilation, and began harvesting.
Based on your two Instagram profiles your work is very eclectic. What led to you wanting to focus on resin work specifically? What keeps me so engaged in this project is that there are multiple processes involved: harvesting, drying out the flora and fauna, actively working with the resin, sanding the edges, and finishing with jewelry fixings. I find the harvesting process absolutely delightful and full of surprise. It keeps me connected to nature and the natural rhythms of the Berkshires; each season brings its own excitement and plenty to capitalize on and also grief in learning to let go in the transitions between seasons and the cycle of growth, compost, and death.
This project has also equally excited the people in my life to join in on the harvesting. At my physical therapist’s office I am known as the “bee lady.” My friends—who I now call my “bug dealers”—drop off found bugs, snake skin, feathers, and pinecones in little tupperwares. One of my friends—who I now call my “mushroom man”—started drying out mushrooms in silica in his apartment for me and went on mushroom foraging walks in south county. I was even able to get my hands on a handful of 17-year cicadas this fall! I also take commissions and have been honored to create sentimental gifts for people including a butterfly symbolic of a friend’s late sister, a sentimental crayon in a necklace, and most recently, a pride bracelet with six tiny charms that each contain something natural from each color of the rainbow.
With my resin work I preserve the space between death and decay—which is a space we rarely bear witness to—so this liminal space can be studied and appreciated.
Is there an artist or mentor in particular that inspires you and your artwork? Two years ago I knew close to nothing about plants. I am grateful for the mentors in my life who know a lot about plants, trees, gardening, and ecosystems, and who teach me how to practice integrating into nature in a respectful and wild way. In terms of artistic inspiration, I am most inspired by the artistic processes and perspective of artists, musicians, philosophers, psychologists, and poets. I often listen to music, meditations, or scientific talks while working with resin.
What’s your favorite spot in the Berkshires to tell people about (besides The Shop of course)? One humble spot in the Berkshires that I am very fond of is the giant Ginkgo tree in downtown Stockbridge. I’ve been told it’s probably about 150 years old. I visit this tree regularly and it has become a sort of symbol of my work. The Ginkgo leaf in my logo is extracted from a photo I took of a leaf a mentor gave me from his Ginkgo tree three years ago. Other than that, I enjoy the Monument Mountain Hike, Benedicts pond in the winter when the pond has frozen over, and a hidden pocket of the Green River in Great Barrington that is fantastic for cold plunges all year round. My father actually grew up in North Adams and I grew up visiting my aunt working at Mass MoCA and playing on the bug structures at an elementary school in North Adams.
As an artist living in 2021, what is one message you want to spread to the world? Play. Let yourself play with anything and create for the sake of creating. We are taught so young that there is a correct way to create and a correct way to be. And all too often we internalize a harsh self-critic that limits us and hardens our innate creativity and desire to explore everything as if it is new. The moment creating art truly became liberating and full of possibility for me was when I chose to respect what I create as if it is another being—and often a lost part of myself—that has something important to teach me about myself and the world.
Thank you so much to Natasha Wein for telling us your story. If you’re interested in Natasha’s work you can check out her Instagram for Resin Art here and her artist Instagram here. And, of course, you can purchase Natasha’s work at The Shop.
Until next time!
Philip
