Today is always a difficult day, as is one in October. It would have been my eldest sister’s birthday, which makes it another reminder of the day in October, nearly 21 years ago now, that her life was taken much too soon.
I had planned to feature another piece this morning, but this one spoke to me instead. There’s a reason.
One of the wonderful (in both senses of that word) aspects of Wings’s chosen medium is its susceptibility to symbolism. Better, the proximity it provides: If a particular symbolic image means something to you, if it provides you with spiritual sustenance or it resonates in your soul, jewelry provides a constancy of access that almost nothing else does. You can wear it whenever you want — every moment, if you wish — and feel the security of that image against your skin, next to your head, close to your heart. It’s one of the reasons his art speaks to people in such fundamental ways. I can’t count the number of people I’ve watched it touch; in the gallery, I’ve held more than a few while they cried, because something in it spoke to something so deep — and sometimes deeply buried — in their spirits.
What it means to one person may be something entirely different from what it means to someone else, of course. And that’s another facet of the essential beauty and wonder of art: Whatever it means to the artist him- or herself, every viewer, hearer, wearer will always take something different from it, something unique to that person,m making the understanding of a piece entirely his or her own.
And so it is likely to be with the piece shown above. It was one of a series of cuffs he created, in part, for his recent one-man show. Each, of course, stands on its own, as well; they’re the latest in a long line of cuffs in a style that he’s done for years. They’re called “triangle-wire cuffs,” because the bands are made of heavy-gauge sterling silver formed into a length that is known in the business as triangle-wire, for its shape: If you look at either end of the length of silver, it’s flat on the bottom and slopes upward on either side toward a central apex at the top, making the end look like a triangle (or, perhaps more accurately, a pyramid). They’re a popular style in Indian jewelry generally, and among his clients specifically — solid and sturdy, and wearable by men and women alike. What distinguishes each is the stampwork he puts into it, imbuing it with symbolism unique to that piece — and, ultimately, to the wearer.
Circles and hoops are symbols that have been part of our peoples’ traditions from the earliest of times. They’re visible in petroglyphs, rock art, words and pictures in stone that date back thousands of years. They take shape in the ancient medicine wheel, rock formations deliberately laid out on the ground on the sacred lands of some Northern Plains peoples. They appear in our symbolism and traditional practices in cultures all over Indian Country: our habit of sitting in a circle for gatherings; of dancing (more or less) in a circle; of our conceptualization of life itself as a cycle, a circle, a sacred hoop.
On days like today, that conceptualization, of life as a circle, as infinite, is especially meaningful to me, and especially welcome. Our traditions afford us the hope of seeing our loved ones again someday, of being able to dance with them again, and a reminder of that possibility can soothe a spirit abraded anew with a sense of grief and loss.
It’s one of many reasons why circle imagery features prominently in Wings’s work. Their varied symbolism, layered meaning layered with meaning, make them especially well suited to his art and his chosen medium: Tiny hoops draw pictures, tell stories, provide hope and healing and comfort, and honor the old ways, all in one spare circle.
The piece featured today is no exception. From its description in the Bracelets Gallery here on the site:
All the Sacred Hoops
Our stories are ones of interconnectedness: ancient symbols and patterns that link our present irretrievably to our history and our future, that link our own existence with that of our ancestors long ago and our descendants not yet born, even unto the seventh generation. Such stories are woven into the sacred hoop of life, reminding us that there is no beginning and no end. This interconnectedness is rendered here in sterling silver: Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of tiny hoops dance along either side of the apex of this heavy-gauge triangle-wire cuff bracelet, joining atop subtly random traditional symbols to embody life’s infinite nature.
Sterling silver
$475 + shipping, handling, and insurance
Today, I see something anew in this piece. To me, the “subtly random traditional symbols” over which the hoops are layered look to me like nothing so much as a “peaks and valleys” pattern — matched triangle shapes in an alternating, positive/negative pattern that creates an impression of mountain peaks and deep valleys.
Over the last 21 years, there have been many peaks, and at least as many valleys. Sometimes, when deep in the trough of the latter, it’s difficult to remember that eventually, we’ll not only come out the other side onto the former, but occasionally, we’ll reach its summit and be afforded a facsimile of Spirit’s own view. The overlaying of the hoops, overlapping, interconnected, linking together through the pattern beneath and yet still above it, remind me that no matter the peaks, no matter the valleys, no matter the powers of life and death, we remain linked with those we love in this one eternal sacred hoop.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2016; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owners.
