They say that all children are artists and many adult artists can trace their origins to childhood.
Not Anita Hearn.
“I never dreamt in a million years I would do anything like this,” said the Brookfield woman, a jewelry artist. “I had a friend that introduced me to some beading (about 15 years ago) and next thing I knew I was starting to wrap wire and try chainmail and learn different things.”
Hearn is “mostly self-taught.” although “I did take some metalsmithing classes at the Appalachian Rock Shop (in Harmony, Pa.). It’s just kind of grown from there.”
Hearn has an Etsy.com store, through which she sells to people in the United States and Canada, and attends many regional arts and craft shows.
“I like working with metal and natural stone, and I think it’s the organic feel that appeals to me and the look that appeals to me,” Hearn said. “I love stone because it’s mother nature’s art. It’s just stunning, the beauty and everything around it. It’s already there.”
Hearn recently started making soldered pendants, and wine cork jewelry.
“I’ve been trying to get into some things that men maybe would like, but I’m not sure I have men’s tastes down,” Hearn said. “My husband’s not a jewelry lover, so it’s kind of hard to determine what men are going to like.”
It’s a slippery slope to try to appeal to people’s tastes, anyway, she said. Generally, the pieces that sell are ones that she likes.
“Sometimes I make things and I have them for two or three years and I think, ‘This is just never going to sell,’” Hearn said. “And, all of a sudden, somebody comes along and says, ‘I like that.’ You just have to find the right fit and the right person.”
Hearn’s work can be seen in the Random Acts of Artists gallery in Cravings, the coffee shop in Sharon.
