Hello, and welcome to Jacquarla Studio. Founded in 2023 Jacquarla Studio began as a response to life's challenges, including grief, living with an autoimmune disease (Sjogren's) and confronting past traumas. Encouraged by my therapist, this page has become an outlet for me to share my voice as well as creativity while reflecting and processing my own personal experiences.
A portmanteau derived from my first and middle names, "Jacquarla" is also a reference to a nickname given to me by those closest to me. Called a "Jacqui of all trades" due to my numerous hobbies and interests, Jacquarla reminded me of the word jackal as well, so being the mythology fan that I am, my mind automatically went to the Egyptian God Anubis (seen in the page logo), who serves as the guide to the underworld. A fitting title for a child of Pluto, the planet of those whose birthdays fall under the constellation of Scorpius, the sign of reinvention and rebirth.
With that my name is Carla, a millennial Londoner turned Caponite (resident of Surrey) who graduated from the University of the Arts London (UAL). Studying Book Arts at the London College of Communication (BA Hons degree in book illustration and binding), I also fell in love with pottery while doing my foundation year at the Chelsea College of Art, which I have continued to incorporate into my routine as a carer, along with making mixed media illustrations and exploring textiles and phytotherapy.
A composite of sketches from my end of year monograph looking at the botany (components plus lifecycle) and medicinal properties (compounds plus nutrients) of a hybrid member of the Lamiaceae (mint) family.
A brief word on one of my bittersweet achievements this year; I was incredibly lucky last year to have the opportunity to study and do practicals (from my apothecary) with “Heartwood." One of the only places you can study herbal medicine (phytotherapy) in the UK that is accredited by the “National Institute of Medical Herbalists” (NIMH). I had initially hoped to continue this course where I had managed to pass my foundation year with a distinction, however I was made redundant due to my employer at that time going into liquidation, thus making it impossible for me to afford the tuition fees needed to complete the degree.
Herbal medicine is something I have been interested in since an early age due to my late Gran. Hailing from Jamaica she was an incredibly multitalented woman who became an inspiration to me as I grew up. Working full time as a nurse, she also practiced traditional herbal medicine at home that she had grown up with in the Caribbean. Making tinctures, poultices and tisanes for the family, my Gran was also an incredible seamstress, knitter, and crochetier as well as catalyst to me using textiles as a form of creative expression.
Some projects over the past few months after receiving a miniature pottery wheel from my mother recently . I have really enjoyed continuing my ceramic experiments in the form of the agates that I adore so much. With the rectangular pots, some of the tiles made unfortunately cracked and broke during the drying process, but I am happy that I resisted the old urge to abandon the project, but rather embrace the imperfection and continue on. The green glass tesserae in one of the rectangular pots reminded me of conk opal, which is petrified wood that has been opalized. Depositing itself in the cavities of fossilised wood, the opal creates this really gorgeous mosaic effect. I just wish I had known about this wood style clay prior to making this item.
Playing around with pottery anvils and some flock grass from my husband's D&D (Dungeon's and Dragons) supplies. The curved mushroom anvil used to make these bowls, again made me think of the beautiful forms found in nature. This time I wanted to recreate the look of mossy composite rocks, blending the wood clay in with the white and stone clay as they resemble siltstone, chalk, and greywacke. In general rocks are associated with durability, but even the toughest sedimentary rocks will crack with pressure. A lot like ourselves...but there is expansion in this process. We can find layers of gold embedded in life's pitfalls. Things may weather us down and surroundings that were once familiar may erode in time, revealing with each season the multifaceted gem you have become. Uniquely shaped by our experiences, we grow and find our true north. Lastly, I tried to recreate the look of rose quartz in one of the pieces, as this crystal is associated with love and compassion, something we often forget to show ourselves when we are doing our best to hold things together. The kintsugi style veins are like roots needed during such times, to nourish and ground ourselves throughout this rebuilding and restructuring.
Other than that, the other pieces made were inspired by amygdules, vugs, vesicles, tafoni and breccia such as marble. I also really liked the accidental oxidisation (in regard to the purple trinket dish) from the gold and silver leaf around the clear quartz pointers. I also used crushed glass and geodes as part of the creative process as they remind me of druses, which just for fun, are also the name of a group of toxic crystals found in plants to protect them against herbivores. I also spent some crafternoons with my two VIPs (my son and god-daughter), and took part in a pop-up shop with my friend and photographer Susan which was lovely. You will notice that there are a few crocheted items for sale in the photos, these were left over from the Etsy shop (Keturah Crochet) I closed during the Covid19 lockdown, but may reopen under Jacquarla Studio going forward.
Today marks a month away from the day I would usually remember my Gran (5th October), so with that I would like to follow up on my last blog, and briefly talk about the online store I had, because it would not have come to fruition without her.
Recently I have been taking some time out to rest before the upcoming busyness of the festive period, however, here are a few creative bits and pieces that I have made during my downtime (including a festive greeting card). As well as some works in progress of now completed projects. Including some of my first attempts on my larger wheel (bar the photographed terracotta jar that unfortunately cracked), some geode baubles and Rococo style trinket dishes that I intend to gift loved ones over the next few weeks, some underdrawings of art inspired by "Kaos" on Netflix this autumn. I was really gutted to hear the series had been cancelled but was inspired to create my own modern-day interpretations of the Goddesses Selene (Moon), and her sister (Dawn) the Goddess Eos (the later I will share once finished) in response to the joy felt watching it. Lastly, I have added a small drying rack to Jacquarla Studio, plus a pottery bat to my wheel to make the drying process a lot easier.
Touching on my love for maximalism, I have also hung some of my decorative plates and bowls on the wall of Jacquarla Studio alongside my illustrations in hope of inspiring future improvement regarding the crafts that I cherish so much.
So, I finally finished my modern-day interpretation of the Titaness Eos today, which was inspired by the series "Kaos.” As mentioned in a previous update, I enjoyed the hidden Easter eggs within each of the episodes, so I thought I would add my own to this illustration, as well as the previous one I did of her sister Selene. (see below)
In regard to chaos, there seems to be a lot happening in the real world as of late, causing me to become concerned as to where we are heading as a global community. With that, my husband I have decided to leave social media, shutting down my Instagram and Facebook pages due to Mr. Zuckerberg recently announcing (after his previous action to remove fact checkers from both platforms) that he is going to scrap DEI rights for his current and future employees at Meta.
If you are not aware, DEI laws, or Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion laws, are legal frameworks designed to combat discrimination (that evidently existed) and promote fairness in various areas of life, including employment, healthcare, education, housing, and public accommodations. They aim to create a more just and equitable society by protecting individuals from discrimination based on their protected characteristics, such as race, gender, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and age.
These laws vary by jurisdiction and may include provisions such as:
* Prohibiting discrimination in hiring, promotion, and termination.
* Requiring equal pay for equal work.
* Mandating reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
* Protecting individuals from harassment and retaliation.
* Promoting diversity and inclusion initiatives.
*Allowing time off for maternity leave or gender reassignment.
Meaning that remaining in such spaces that advocate for the opposition of such values and the spread of disinformation, just no longer sits right with me as an artist (I am an advocate for Egalitarianism), so Jacquarla Studio going forward will be solely and operating from this webpage instead.
Anyway, here are the aforementioned Easter eggs hidden in these paintings; I hope you were able to spot them all.
*Selene: Is wearing a crescent moon diadem, which represents the passage of time and the cyclical nature of the cosmos. She is also said to represent the full moon, embodying its complete illumination she reveals all that is hidden in the dark. Selene also has silver eyes and hair as this is the colour that is representative of her. She dons a necklace known as lunula, and is adorned with pearls, which are associated with the Moon. Lastly Selene has an emblem of a torch on her vest, which she is always shown holding in her statues.
*Eos: Is wearing a tiara that has a Morning Star on it and was known as one of her symbols. Day is breaking behind Eos in this painting as this was her job as a deity. Eos is also wearing the colour Saffron a herb that was associated with her. Some feathers can be seen floating nearby her, as Eos is always depicted on vases with large white wings. Lastly Eos has a droplet on her necklace as morning dew was also meant to represent her presence.
