From Angela Fisher's "Africa Adorned"

by Hannah Woodard

Type ‘jewelry’ into Google image search.  Or don’t, because you can probably guess what will come up and it’s not worth the time. Rings, necklaces, earrings, the majority of which involve flashy stones and lots of sparkle. In short, bling.

In psychology, this might be referred to as a ‘perceptual set’- the expectation of a person to see or perceive something based on prior experience. For many westerners, the term ‘jewelry’ likely brings to mind most immediately an image of rings, necklaces, earrings and bracelets. The particular style of those jewelry items is probably relevant to the individual’s particular taste.

But what about jewelry beyond that? What I love and what gets me excited about jewelry of Africa (among many other places) is that it involves what to me is wonderfully innovative adornment.

There is so much more than the usual suspects. There is jewelry that hangs from ear to ear across the face. Jewelry for hair, jewelry that hangs sideways over the chest like a sash. Jewelry that starts below the knee and extends all the way to the ankle.

After much time spent studying such forms of adornment, I no longer see the body in its separate parts (ears, neck, wrist, finger). I now see it as a landscape abundant with planes, sloping valleys, tiny canyons and rolling hills. Forms whose beauty can be amplified by adornment designed for that very purpose.

by Hannah Woodard

I have recently had the fortunate and rare experience of having a collection of excellent opportunities present themselves to me almost out of the blue. One week ago I didn’t know what was to become of the next few months of my life, and then I found myself moving across the country, to where an apartment, car and some of my closest friends in the world awaited.

Ragardless of how this all came about, there was just no reason not to hop on the next flight out of town. And yet somehow I still felt a bit irresponsible, because one last element of this master plan was not in place. I didn’t have a solid job lined up.

Then my mother told me about her decision to move out west when she was my age. Not only did she not have any provisions lined up, but she gave up a good job, car and apartment in favor of trying something new and adventurous.

Which brought me to wonder: Have there been other opportunities that I haven’t taken advantage of simply because there were not enough elements to create The Perfect Opportunity?

Likely. But perhaps I could have located those other elements if only I’d looked a little.

Imperfect opportunities aren’t ones that aren’t worth taking. They require some extra research. Extra research is often dismissed along with the opportunity, because it feels like too much energy and time to figure out whatever is left to be figured out in order to make the opportunity reality.

I’ve found that’s not a good enough reason not to make things happen. Perfect opportunities are rare, and honestly it’s likely you’ll learn more by turning an imperfect opportunity into something doable.

Make it happen. Chances are, it’ll be worth it.

by Hannah Woodard

In reflection of the past year and in anticipation of the coming one, a Kenyan friend of mine recently wrote to me that we are all human regardless of different races, cultures, religion, beliefs and taboos. That although we are from different worlds, in a way we are one and the same people.

Besides whole-heartedly agreeing with this, this brought to my mind something a professor of mine at RISD once said: ‘I believe that art is a cultural necessity.’

Culture depends on art because art and design are in every single aspect of life, from religious objects to the architecture of one’s home to the flip-flops or fur boots on our feet. And then of course there is the more metaphorical art and design of social structures and governments.

Our differences are necessary. They make us appreciate the exoticness of people and practices foreign to us. They make us question humanity.

Where would we be without appreciation and questioning? We wouldn’t be making any sort of advancements.

Why do we need advancements? Because the world, though surely bountiful in meaningful relationships, has a lot to work on. Every culture has something to learn about the way it receives, addresses and respects other cultures

Art reflects our cultural and individual thoughts and beliefs, and allows us to recognize and question our similarities, our differences and our very being. Without it, we’d be a lost and dull species, and it is in this that I find my passion for design.

by Vijeta Rathor, KEZA Design Intern

This has been another interesting week here at KEZA. Each day unfolds a new series of experiences, which cannot be attained at any high status schools or universities. I have learned about new and innovative ways to use a variety of materials available to us in order to come up with jewelry creations. At the end of each day this gives me a sense of satisfaction.

Tackling tricky yet beautiful designs sends an adrenaline rush through me and makes me want to come up with my best solutions for design challenges. The more you get involved in problem solving the more you realize there was no exact problem to begin with, but rather you were not ready look deeper into the solution that was right in front of you from the very beginning.

The process of naming the unique jewelry pieces has been another exciting experience as you have to be creative as well as meaningful with your words. I usually thought naming products was quiet easy but after passing through this stage, I have realized that there is a lot more that goes into it even if it seems as simple a name. The character, personality and materials of each piece have to harmonize with the name. It makes you realize how even a tiny detail on a piece can determine the perfect name for it. That way the piece speaks for itself and does not really need a long detailed story to convince people about its individuality.

I am glad to be part of such an experience as very few people get the opportunity to do what I am doing.

by Vijeta Rathor, KEZA Design Intern

Learning is a never-ending journey no matter how trivial our experiences in life; something we should never take for granted. I have learnt so much from the KEZA team as each of them teach me something new. It is an endless journey of grasping knowledge.

As we harmonize our different lifestyles and backgrounds it still reminds us that no matter what our cultural or religious beliefs are, at the end of the day we are all human and we respect and appreciate each other.

I feel so honored to be given the opportunity to work at KEZA. We not only strive to come up with exquisite designs and products but rather it goes deeper than that. It is our passion to fuse the appreciation of culture, love and unity. We want to share our life stories and experiences and the cultural explosion of beauty and diversity in Africa which goes beyond droughts, famines or wars so commonly used to portray a negative picture of Africa.

Through KEZA, Africa has been given a new platform to show the world a true African fighter spirit. Even amidst difficulties we still stand tall and smile with a hope in our eyes by looking forward for a brighter future for this beautiful continent.

Humanity is a race that God created for us all and here at KEZA we live by it.

I received two books recently, both of which I was first acquainted with in Kenya. One is Africa Adorned by Angela Fisher, a collection of magnificent photographs and documentation of tribal adornment from all over Africa. The other is We Are All Weird by Seth Godin, an author to whom I have our own Jared Angaza to thank for introducing me to.

“Human beings prefer to organize in tribes, into groups of people who share a leader or culture or definition of normal“. -Godin

As I was looking through photographs of women with large coins sewn into their braids and men strapped into beaded corsets, I thought immediately of the phrase ‘definition of normal’.

How often do you look at others and feel that they are behaving in a way that you would call ‘weird’ (or something of the sort)? How often do you take a step back from that first instinct and think about how the person you are perceiving to be weird is perhaps just behaving in ways that are fulfilling the same needs in him or her that you have in yourself?

I doubt if any person on this earth isn’t familiar with that feeling. We are all brought up learning ways in which we are supposed to behave and ways in which we are not. We are all brought up with different notions of what is “normal”.

The next time you feel that initial discomfort or sense or superiority at being in the presence of someone behaving in a way that is weird to you, think of the idea that perhaps they merely have a different definition of normal.

And while you’re at it, take a little pride in the diversity of our world, and the willingness of some to break the norms of the masses. Then go break some norms yourself.

How would you behave if you were being completely honest and true to yourself?

by Hannah Woodard

This past weekend, I was in a shop in Burlington, VT when I came across a bracelet exactly like ones a friend of mine in Kenya makes for a living. I smiled.

I turned the label over: ‘MADE IN KENYA’. My smile widened. I might very well have been sitting with this friend the day he made this bracelet, and now here it was thousands of miles away in the place where I grew up.

But I was smiling because I know the story behind it. I know that this man’s wife sells vegetables, and that they are raising three children on the income from that and the man’s jewelry making. Unfortunately, none of that story is captured in a bland ‘MADE IN KENYA’ label with a barcode next to it.

I wanted others that would pick this bracelet up to know its story too. I believe that even just a little bit of that information would spark a feeling of connection for the person who will eventually buy and wear that bracelet.

I believe that most objects carry much of their value in their individual histories. And I believe that knowing the story behind objects in our lives, especially ones we wear, has the ability to contribute to a feeling of fulfillment and connection in every day life.

by Hannah Woodard

I was recently looking through photographs I took in Kenya, and came across one of a child pulling a toy truck fashioned from a plastic water bottle. Sticks were stuck through the sides with bottle caps on each end, such that the wheels actually turned.

For a moment, this brought to mind all of the comparatively ridiculous amounts of toys I had growing up; play mobile, farm sets, soft stuffed animals and dolls whose eyes really opened and shut.

But it also brought to mind the limitations I had as a child, at least compared to many of my friends. Our television received only four working channels, one of which was in French. We didn’t get high-speed Internet until I’d moved out of the house.

These circumstances resulted in me spending much of my childhood either inventing new forms of entertainment with whatever I could find around, or else creating ‘civilizations’ (forts, invented languages, etc.) in the woods in which I lived.

Limitations are an excellent spur for creativity, and I feel privileged to have had some form of limitation in many areas of my life.

I’m not saying that what many Westerners think of as ‘underprivileged’ folks in Africa (and anywhere else in the world, for that matter) wouldn’t benefit from fewer limitations. Only that such limitations have likely taught them things and caused their minds to develop in ways that many Western minds have not. That they have as much to teach and share with us as we do with them.

by Hannah Woodard

As holiday time draws near, I find myself recalling the things I valued about my family’s holiday (Christmas, in our case) as a child, and what I value now. Unsurprisingly, I was terribly excited about the gifts I would receive. That felt like the most important part of the holiday. But it was also equally important to me that I found gifts for all of my family members that I was sure they would love and appreciate.

I remember the question that adults would be asked of me over and over; What did you get for Christmas? And I remember, as a teenager, realizing that perhaps that one innocent question had fueled the perception that what I received for the holiday dictated how much I enjoyed it.

I resolved then to always ask of the children in my life what they gave for the holidays rather than what they got.  I think we influence our young in ways that we don’t even realize, and that’s it’s important to be deliberate even (or perhaps especially) in small, daily interactions.

Nowadays (again unsurprisingly) what I appreciate most is spending time with family and friends and eating good food. Listening to festive songs. Enjoying the general holiday atmosphere.

Thus, I ask everyone to keep in mind this holiday season the question, What did you give? And not only to direct it towards children, but to people of all ages. I believe that taking the opportunity to change perspectives in small, everyday interactions has the potential to make a world of difference.