Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Laura Stamper. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Laura, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I have been fortunate to be able to support myself through my art for over 30 years. I think there are a few key elements that have allowed me to do this. First is the understanding that creativity is not static. Being willing to always learn new things and the understanding that reinvention is crucial have been paramount in my artistic journey. Secondly, failure is part of the process. There are so may things that I have worked on, that never made it far enough for anyone to see.
Rejection is part of the process as well. You have to develop a thick skin when applying for exhibitions or shows. I have learned that I can’t take rejection personally, but as a challenge to be better.
Ironically, I also struggle with “impostors syndrome”. When my work is accepted, I always wonder. “Am I really good enough?”, and I get nervous with every new venture.
Thirdly, and maybe most importantly, find your own voice. Art is an expression of the soul.

Laura, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I cannot remember a time when I wasn’t creating something. As a child, when I ran out of paper, I started to draw on the walls. In my early teens, I drew and painted pictures on my clothes and painted pictures on seashells that I turned into jewelry. Although my art background is painting, I have been making art jewelry for over 30 years, My work is in a constant stat of evolution. I love experimentation and I love to break the rules. Recently a collector of mine sent me a box of dead cicadas. I have been encasing their beautiful, fragile wings in optical quartz with 24kt gold. Using lapidary equipment, I have been making cabochons of the wings to create one of a kind wearable heirlooms of the future. This process has opened up an entirely new rabbit hole for me to fall into!
Another passion of mine is working with clients to create something uniquely personal and memorable that they will treasure. I am always honored when I am approached to make a personal reliquary for someone to memorialize a loved one. Whether it is a cloisonné portrait of a fur baby or a wearable hollow vessel to hold the ashes of a beloved, there is no honor I consider more dear.
Then there is the constant endeavor of reinventing myself, I am currently exploring new options in teaching jewelry arts, including teaching classes on line with Zoom.

Creating is as much a part of me as breathing. I have always thought that reincarnation has to be real, because one lifetime is not enough for me to make everything, that my mind imagines.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I don’t really pay any attention to trends. I make what wants to be made. Several years ago, when I was still working with porcelain, I made a wearable sculpture of a leopard that had a woman’s face climbing a tree (fossil coral) to a nest that held a creature that had a bird’s body and the face of a girl. I made this piece in the month of November and it did not sell for an entire year.

It was my favourite sculptural brooch, so I really didn’t care that it hadn’t sold. I just liked looking at it. The following November, a woman saw this piece at an art show and began to cry. She told me that her grandmother had died the previous November. Her grandmother was called Kitty.

Her grandmother’s pet name for her was Birdie. She went on to tell me that she always knew that she was her grandmother’s favorite and that her grandmother would always find her. To this day, I believe that Kitty reached out to me when she died and inspired this piece for Birdie to find a year later.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

There are many times when I have had to change directions with my business, but perhaps the most significant one was in 2017 when my husband died. After almost 40 years together, the suddenness of his death put me in the position of needing to sell my home and the studio he built for me. I sold my ceramic kilns and the era of incorporating porcelain sculpture into my jewelry pieces came to an end. There were several months where I did not have access to my jewelry equipment. I immersed myself if illustrating images for a tarot deck, which I launched in a successful Kickstarter campaign. The ability to have the creative outlet crafting “The Tarot of Little Secrets” was a life saver for me. I included the likenesses of my husband, family and close friends in these illustrations. This endeavor was a labor of love and I really believe it helped me to heal.
When I was able to gain studio space again, I invested in an enameling kiln and began to explore techniques in enameling to include in the next generation of my jewelry designs.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.laurastamper.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurastamperdesigns/

Image Credits
Cole Photographic Images Larry Sanders Visual Images