BARBARA JUDY
from Franklin, Tennessee
Season of Mystere
Doll named Mystere
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Land of Odds, Be Dazzled Beads,
The Center for Beadwork & Jewelry Arts, and
The Open Window Gallery present…

Mystere
Gourdian Spirit of Catching Dreams

I explore my beadwork with my fingers and all my senses. I feel my doll's creative aura -- "One hundred years from now", I say, "when someone picks you up and holds you, they too, will be at one with Mystere, The Dream Catcher Spirit."

I imagined a Dream Catcher Vessel. Created entirely from intuition, this Gourdian Spirit Dream Catcher called Mystere holds and catches dreams within her being and nurtures them with healing energy from her heart. The vessel represents the essence of Feminine energy which nurtures and creates. Standing serenely in her power, Mystere dreams and creates art as a reflection of her Feminine spirit. She is an artist with the desire to be an inspiration for creativity in our daily lives as we journey to the essence of our beings and to remind us of our deep inner connections and evidence of the creative spirit.

When I experience her she reminds me of a side of myself which is also full of dreams and creativity from the heart. As an Art Doll, Fiber and Bead Artist, I often feel as if I am a vessel to transport that energy by creating something that comes from within the depths of my soul. I am often reminded of why I create and she represents this for me. Her detail is free yet controlled to a form while the sculptural nature of her being is illuminated with tiny bits of colored glass. Mystere is a Venusian type of being, as reflected by her colors and the feelings of love and beauty she projects. She is the Gourdian Spirit of Dream Catchers. Catching dreams, throughts and feelings to create beauty and love from the depth of the soul.

Life constantly offers us choices. Experiences come our way to challenge us and help us grow. We can respond to those challenges with love or with fear. Mystere displays her heart proudly in the center of her body as it reflects the light and shows her intention of love. Sometimes when challenges are met with fear, her heart retreats and she appears to be missing something, but if you look closer you will see that her heart is still there, only to be shining from within. The balance that life requires allows the true beauty of her soul to show brightly when her heart is displayed.

Mystere displays her heart


Sometimes her heart retreats

She appears to be missing something

But if you look closer, her heart is still there,
shining within.

The fascination and joy of combining beads with my art doll creations was very inspirational. I created her by first deciding that I was going to use a gourd for her body and then I made a face from polymer clay. With no real plan as to how I wanted to do the beading, my intuition led me along the path of creating. After determining the size of the gourd and cutting an opening, cleaning and painting the gourd, I then beaded a freeform peyote band around the opening. I created another piece of freeform peyote for her body. I attached some beads on the inside along with bits of glass hearts to give her some weight as I anticipated that she might be top heavy. I attached the beaded pieces to the gourd and then I attached her face and an embroidered piece for the back of her body. She was then woven together using a freeform netting technique. Woven into her dream web are several gemstones which promote dreams, intuition, healing and love.

Side Image

Back Image

Detailed Image

Mystere
(rotation)

Materials Used:

Gourd -- approximately 10 1/2" tall by 7" wide. Painted with metallic acrylic paints
polymer clay face
delica beads
11/0 seed beads
8/0 seed beads
6/0 seed beads
dichroic glass beasd
glass hearts
fresh water pearls
fire polish crystals
amethyst
larimar
lapis lazuli
charoite
wire
2 hand charms
beaded trim as the inside weight