Featured Artist: Göksu Şimşek
Meet the Artist
I’m a jewelry artist who aims to create concrete pieces of magick, talismans which are embodiments of hierophanies, the manifestation of the sacred. I was an apprentice of a craftsman for a short time then I taught myself. I live in Istanbul.
Featured Artist Göksu Şimşek
“Everything is possible to him who wills only what is true! Rest in Nature, study, know, then dare; dare to will, dare to act and be silent!”
-Eliphas Lévi
I prefer poetry but I like this quote because first it is the essential wisdom: study, be patient, and only then dare to will. Secondly it emphasizes the importance of actions, being a contemplator, and not a rattling empty vessel.
-Göksu Şimşek
Featured Artist Göksu Şimşek
What is the process of making a piece of jewelry? How can you compare it to Alchemy?
I design and hand carve every piece. Every piece holds different intentions, emotions, power, and wisdom. The will to transform these to a solid item is parallel to the opus magnum of Alchemy.
Can you describe your work?
My work consists of silver and bronze jewelry adornments, it does not belong to a particular art movement and it is not limited to a single style or subject. I like to think it has many roots.
What is your dream project?
My dream project is to work for a dark fantasy movie directed by the great Guillermo del Toro.
“The imagination is not a state: It is the human existence itself”.
-William Blake
It may not seem like it is esoteric but considering Blake’s world, it is. Imagination is the ultimate source of art and science, humans are spiritual beings and have to stay in touch with their nature, their souls.
-Göksu Şimşek
Would you share with us what inspires you and your art?
Ancient manuscripts, archeological finds, occult history and fiction, mythology, folklore, and nature are the pillars of my inspiration.
What led you through your personal journey into the occult and esoteric realms?
My dreams which are full of symbols, fascination towards history of religions and mythology, fantasy literature, escapism, the need to establish a link between past and vanishing spiritualism. Particularly reading Ursula LeGuin and H.P. Lovecraft made a lasting impact on myself. I dreamt of performing ritualistic dances in front of cat shaped temples or shouting the true name of a tribe so that they can’t hurt me, before I knew about the nature of spells. Discovering the greatest historian of religion, Mircea Eliade, was a factor too.
If you weren’t making art, what do you think you would you be doing now?
I studied law but I doubt I’d continue as a lawyer. I can’t decide between these three intertwined professions: Once I translated a book about the history of photography and it was fun, I would like to be an art historian. A linguistic scientist suits me too because the origin of the words and their evolution interest me. Naming things and beings reflects the human urge to categorize and collect them, which brings the third one: A museum curator.
What artwork are you excited to work on next?
I can’t stop thinking about my next project which is to create a piece which will represent the Hermaphrodite of Alchemy, the Sun and the Moon, Mercury and Sulphur.
What’s the best piece of advice you can give another artist?
As a young artist, I feel I may only give advice to aspiring artists: Be original and channel all your passion into your work, whatever you seek, spiritual and personal satisfaction or recognition will follow.
Visit MoonSerpentJewelry to see more of her surreal and stunning jewelry.
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