A Conversation With an Artist, Part One

By B. Kim Barnes, Barnes & Conti CEO

In these challenging times, we need to call upon our creativity more than ever. We are currently in the process of transforming our Applied Creativity and Managing Innovation programs into webinars to meet the moment. In appreciation of this most precious and important human capacity, I would like to share a conversation I recently had with someone who epitomizes the spirit of creativity in her work and her life.

Sharon Walsh is a jewelry artist from the area around Donegal in Ireland. I met her in a serendipitous way, through a Flickr connection with her brother, a photographer. I was enchanted with her work as seen on her website and how she combined Irish history, mythology, and their tradition of strong women in her designs. She is in the process of launching her business, ST Rose Jewellery. (Spelling is an  example of how our cultures differ and yet are similar.) I thought it would be interesting to interview her as both an artist and an entrepreneur. Below is the first part of our conversation, slightly edited.

BKB: How do you see curiosity linked to creativity?

SW: The drive to see ‘what happens if’ pushes us to pursue possibilities and permits fresh perspectives to emerge. Childhood play is our initiation into creativity. Play allows for fluidity, for failure, for success; it nurtures resilience and tenacity.  Play is curiosity in action and curiosity is a corollary of creativity. Artists retain the desire to play, developing it into a form acceptable for adult engagement, whereupon it is described as creativity. In domains such as science or engineering we talk about invention or innovation – creativity by another name.

Engaging in the artistic process has allowed me to follow my curiosity into the limitless space that is the contemporary art world – an engagement both intellectually rewarding and life- affirming. The only rule in the art discourse is that there are no rules.  My work is an exploration of the threshold between representation and abstraction.  The results of this undertaking manifest in drawings and three-dimensional objects.  A synthesis of many ideas and processes, driven by curiosity, led to the first ST Rose Jewellery collection.  
The job of the artist is to embrace curiosity, to connect seemingly disparate ideas and concepts, to play with ambiguity, to explore the endless possibilities for deconstructing meaning and re-arranging reality.

BKB: How do you ensure that your work aligns with your personal values?

SW: It is important that ST Rose Jewellery is conducted along ethical lines. I am keen to ensure that the business is sustainable by making informed, conscious – and conscientious – choices. I want to grow the business organically, with careful management.  I am aware that extensive choices about how to live are not freely available to everyone, so I want to include less privileged people in the business in ways that are beneficial both for them and their community.  This characterizes the ethos of the business and will inform decisions around methods of production.  Any future outsourcing of work needs careful monitoring to make sure that it is carried out in a responsible way.  It is also important to me that my business is as environmentally friendly as possible.

BKB: In what ways can ancient wisdom inform our current reality? How can myths and legends help us to solve problems creatively?

SW: “The friend of wisdom is also a friend of myth.” – Aristotle.  Much academic literature exists that examines the significance of myth and legend in human society.  Child Psychologist Bruno Bettelheim and Psychiatrist Nossrat Peseschkian, amongst others, have looked at how ancient tales endure worldwide as tools for guidance, for modelling behaviour and for giving meaning to life. 

Irish myths and legends hold a special interest for me, in particular The Táin, the principal tale of the Ulster cycle. Much of the action takes place in the area where I was brought up. The poet Thomas Kinsella tells us in his translation of The Táin that it is “the oldest vernacular epic in Western literature.”  Women are central to the ancient tales of Ireland, and are portrayed in the Táin as strong, vital characters that drive the narrative forward. Whether as deities or as warriors, the female figures of ancient Ireland had agency and power, a power that reaches out to us and urges us to exert influence on the contemporary world, to fight for what we believe in.

Narrative helps us to construct our reality and to create our own personal myth. We tell ourselves stories about ourselves and our place in the world.  We hone and refine these stories all our lives. Inspired by Irish myths and legends, I wanted to create jewellery that contains an implied narrative - not defined by any particular text. I wanted to make pieces that hold space for our own story… a tangible connection to the human need for myth, but also an invitation to re-work our individual myth in ways that bring us joy.  I [want my work to provide a] physical connection to our own story, reminding us to tap into our inner resources, giving us freedom to play with fantasy and fable...never slavishly mimicking the past, but honouring it and adapting it to suit our own particular needs, using it as a source of inspiration. This is not to promote magical thinking, but to challenge it, pushing us to break the constraints of superstition and allow for real growth through playfulness. We need to relish what makes us different and to acknowledge and encourage difference in others as a way to enrich our world.

Join the conversation on the Barnes & Conti Blog

Editor's note: The photo above is of one of Sharon Walsh's creations. You can see more on her website

Exercising Influence Online has been rescheduled. It is available in two versions on September 16.

Our popular Exercising Influence program is now available as a 2.5 hour introductory webinar on September 16.

For the first time ever, we're offering this webinar either by itself, or to be followed up by two 1-1 influence coaching sessions of one hour each, to be scheduled at your convenience. Here's the info:

Exercising Influence: An Introduction

September 16, 2020

10:00 am – 12:30 pm, PDT

Online Webinar: $435

Online Webinar with Coaching: $1175

Register for the Webinar with Coaching

Register for the Webinar Only

Article on Change Attitude Inspires

This past June, we shared that Kim Barnes recently revised article on change management, “What’s Your Change Attitude? was published in  TD Magazine, (the magazine of ATD).

A follower on LinkedIn so enjoyed the four attitudes (attitudes most people have regarding change in the workplace) which Kim discussed, that the follower was inspired to share the graphic at the right.

Kim only essays four attitudes towards change, and nine glasses are pictured. Which attitude correlates to which glass? You'll have to read the article yourself and draw your own conclusions!

Read the article on the ATD Website (subscription required)

Chicken Shawarma with Homemade Hummus

Lauren Powers, SVP Business Development

Our last family trip at the end of December, B.Q. (Before Quarantine) was to Israel for a family friend’s wedding. While at the Tel Aviv spice market sampling spices, I had a major coughing spell that lasted for four days and was followed by fever, fatigue and other symptoms that flattened me for weeks to come. Sound familiar…who knows what it was. But, we did bring back Pereg Shawarma spice mixture that we liberally sprinkle on everything and our love of Chicken Shawarma continues. Here is a version of the rendition we prepare weekly in quarantine. It can vary based on what is in your fridge and never comes out exactly the same way!

As I began to run low on the Pereg Shawarma spice, I just happily discovered you can purchase it on Amazon.  Thank goodness!

Ingredients:

• 2-3 tbsp of Pereg Shawarma spice mixture (You could make your own using paprika, cumin, coriander, salt, garlic powder, allspice, and turmeric, more of the beginning ingredients and less of the end ones) 
• 1/3 cup olive oil and extra for sautéing vegetables
• Juice of 1/2 lemon or lime
• 10 boneless chicken thighs
• One leek chopped
• One red pepper, chopped
• Salt to taste
• Lavash, Pita, Nan bread or Flour Tortilla Shells, grilled lightly
• Hummus (see homemade recipe, below)
• Tomatoes, diced
• Marinated cucumber salad (thinly sliced Kirby cucumbers marinated in mixture of rice wine vinegar, water, sugar, dill, and red pepper.)
• Plain Greek yogurt or tzatziki sauce (You can make your own by grating and draining some cucumber, adding some fresh chopped dill, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and spices to plain Greek yogurt.)

Method:

1. Mix olive oil, shawarma spices and lemon or lime juice into a plastic bag. Add chicken and marinate for one hour.
2. Sauté vegetables (the leek and red pepper) in olive oil adding whatever spices you like.
3. Grill chicken and then slice.
4. Grill whatever bread type you are using as a shell.
5. Have diners prepare their own Shawarma by spreading hummus on grilled shell and then adding sliced chicken and topping with sautéed vegetables, tomato, arugula, cucumber salad and yogurt or tzatziki.

Serves 4 - 6

Homemade Hummus

We are big fans of homemade hummus! We particularly like this one, taken from Inspiredtaste.net and adjusted, swapping out garlic for scallions. We use this for our socially distant cocktails and as a base for our Chicken Shawarma.

Ingredients:

• Juice from one lemon
• 1/4 cup tahini, stirred
• 1/4 cup scallion, chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil with more for drizzling if you like
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 can chickpeas, drained and well-rinsed
• 2-3 tbsp water
• Dash of paprika for serving

Method:

1. Combine tahini and lemon juice in food processor and puree until smooth.
2. Add scallion, olive oil, cumin, and salt and puree.
3. Add chick peas and puree until smooth.
4. Add water a little at a time to make mixture smoother in texture.
5. Drizzle with olive oil and a dash of paprika.

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