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

Zoe , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with education – we’d love to hear your thoughts about how we can better prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career

I believe the path to fulfilment requires self-awareness, understanding our values, desires, and boundaries, and the ability to communicate these. Education should play a pivotal role in this discovery, and foster self-expression and expansive thinking to build towards knowledge and skill development. Instead, we are eroding, to the point of near extinction, creative and critical thinking in the education system. These are skills that need to be embedded into the core curriculum every step of the way. These include programs focused on languages, philosophy, arts, and social analysis. Creative and social arts expand our capacity for abstract thinking – a fundamental skill for network thinking, problem solving, and clear communication. These can build a foundation for empathy and connection. Rather than limiting the course structure to silos of information, allowing children an opportunity to utilise the arts to analyse information and integrate it into demonstrable projects for applied learning, self-discovery, and experimentation, we will begin to build a bridge between the child, their self-expression, their environment, and their long-term goals.

In my own life, I attended 9 different elementary schools before reaching high school (an interview for another day) and never found a learning environment that connected with me. Other than an incredible first grade school, I spent most of my childhood being herded into learning structures that didn’t acknowledge my basic need to be curious and express myself. I quickly became disengaged from education; I was unmotivated and my primary concern was memorising the base amount needed to pass a test. I was well on my way to floundering as a student, when my mother introduced me to a performing arts high school in the area. I had been taking theatre classes for a few years and she suggested I audition. With my mother by my side, I worked my 8th grade year to do so, and was honoured to receive an acceptance letter. My entire education and outlook on life changed after that. In a school guided by creative principles, I had the space to explore my artistry, discover my own identity, and question everything. I tried personalities on like hats and it made for a terribly awkward and at times misguided adolescence, but that’s ok – it ensured as I grew into an adult, I had a pivot point to build my identity on. I knew what made my heart sing, I knew my values, I knew who I wanted to become and who I didn’t, I knew I was a creative, and I knew I wanted to say something. While there were several years of non-linear movement in my life to build on those fundamentals, what I learned from that time always became a beacon for me to move toward my own fulfilment. A part of that ended up being silversmithing and ultimately opening Zed|Eh Designs

It’s important for me to add that I think the idea of fulfilment, in life or career, is complicated (if not made moot) by the tremendous social and economic inequalities facing society – for most, accessing the resources, time and security that affords this is beyond the scope of possibility. While essential shifts in the education system are a crucial step towards progress, there is no single idea I can propose that can address the broader systemic issue that gatekeeps access to life purpose and personal satisfaction. Survival and fulfilment are often in conflict.

Zoe , 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 am the owner, designer, and silversmith behind Zed|Eh Designs, a small, woman-owned business, specialising in one-of-a-kind, hand fabricated statement art jewelry. I work with precious metals such as sterling silver, fine silver and 18K bi-metal, and occasionally accentuate my creations with distinctive, hand-cut semi-precious stones. I draw inspiration from mid-century contemporary art; featuring modern, bold geometric shapes, roughly-textured brutalist abstractions, and periodic hints of art-deco intricacy and sparkle.

My creativity is rooted in the complexities and narratives of the human experience, our vast emotional spectrum, and my quirky inner world. Zed|Eh Designs intends to encourage storytelling and uses my jewelry as an outlet for clients to access art that enhances their unique self-expression. I am deeply invested in my work, learning as much as I am creating. This interplay fuels each design and I maintain a low-production environment to nurture both.

I hail from Canada, and a decade ago I took my first level 1 fabrication course at Jewel Envy, in Toronto, ON. Shortly after, I relocated to San Diego, CA, where I dedicated 6 years to learning under the guidance of master goldsmith Jay Whaley, and became a teaching assistant at Whaley Studios. Along my journey, I was fortunate to meet esteemed studio jewelry artist Lesley Aine Mckeown, and have continued to benefit from her mentorship. In 2021, I established my independent studio, Zed|Eh Designs. I had scaled back from online sales and reduced my social media presence to focus on intimate one-on-one referral-based sales. However, I am currently transitioning back online to make my work available to a broader public and devote more time making the art I am passionate about.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Despite spending a significant part of my life advocating for and participating in the arts, I still had to unlearn the social messaging that diminishes the value of artists, and their career paths, as less valuable than academia. As a society, we have revered art for its product, but judged artists for their lifestyles and choices. How many scientists had a backup plan? By delving into academia to acquire a degree in Communications, I thought I was giving myself credibility and a secure future. Instead, what followed was many years of unhappiness trying to fit into a mould that didn’t suit me. When I finally returned to the arts, it was a practice in learning to speak about my work with pride, to see the value of my contribution, and to disentangle the message that I had chosen poorly. Ironically, or not, I ended up marrying an engineer in molecular biology who develops lifesaving diagnostic products, an empirically noble task – yet when he comes into my studio to see my work, I watch him pick up my pieces with fascination. He listens with awe to my stories about how hard I worked on them, has emotion when I share their meaning or most importantly, tells me how they make him feel and what they remind him of. I remember all the clients’ lives my art has found, and I remember that I can create magic in this world too – and while I have not saved any lives, I’ve certainly connected with some.

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

Really, how I came to this career as a silversmith was probably one of the most significant pivots in my life. I came to the arts at a young age, exploring not just theatre, but dance, children’s writing, ghostwriting, music making, book editing, poetry reading, and textile arts. However, as adulthood rolled on, creative endeavours were fewer and less frequent. For several years I drifted further from my creative core out of financial necessity. I sought a degree in academics, and shifted my focus to precariously managing my security and stability – there was little room for seeking joy. I balanced this on the head of a pin for several years, until a severe physical and mental health crisis shut down my life entirely. I was unable to perform routine tasks, hold a job, take a walk outside, eat the food I enjoyed, I struggled to find small pockets of joy – the pain, the brain fog, the exhaustion, and the myriad of unsavoury symptoms consumed the days. During this time, I also relocated to San Diego from Canada, during a very tumultuous political time. Immigration was particularly contentious and resulted in ongoing modifications to visa policies that effectively barred me from working, and remained thus for 6 more years. I was undiagnosed and sick, living in a city where I knew only my husband, and unable to find purpose or community through work. My mind started to eat itself. I was reminded to search out my creativity once again, to find purpose, to process what I was going through, and to keep my body and mind engaged. So, building off the class I had taken in Toronto the year prior, I began my pivot to silversmithing in earnest, the beginning of a decade long journey to where I am today with Zed|Eh Designs.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.zedehdesigns.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/zedeh_designs