...the wrong door

Sometimes, the wrong door opens and fate invites you to step inside. My friend Dara would tell you to dare...let me tell you about the time I did...

I should have met her earlier that day...but the hours flew by at Artful Fest 2006...and each time I approached the table laden with Dara DiMagno's treasures I found myself facing a throng or being called away on some task...I ended the day feeling as if I had missed something great.

But just minutes before the day actually surrendered to it's successor, I found myself wandering the halls of the hotel trying to find Laurie Meseroll's room. Ahh.... there it was, I knocked, but Laurie didn't answer...instead, there was Dara....it was almost midnight but no, I wasn't shopped out, and since I had roused this artist not from sleep, but just bad late night tv I thought I would be brazen...

..I told her who I was and that I had missed her at the show...had she sold out? ....was there a chance I might see what she still had for sale? She had three necklaces left, I bought two...and the third tempted me! Moments later I was already in love with the texture, the feel and the layers of humor, wisdom and character imbued in her work. I left to find Laurie's room which I did...a jumble of Dara's room number a few doors away...

As if that wasn't enough of a message, the next morning ...nursing baby on New York time in tow, I wandered into the hotel cafe just after 6am...of course I was wearing one of my new necklaces...and who alone was in the cafe...yes, Dara!

I considered this divine intervention ...so I sat myself across from her and over breakfast we hatched a plan to work together. I wanted to garner some attention for her wearable art...I knew it needed to be seen, worn and celebrated beyond her West Virginia studio.

Dara dares to knock at the door of whimsy and mystery with a brave and seasoned hand....her view of things is sweetly tainted with living, with intellect and a love of the written word. She hears more than a different drummer, perhaps a whole different band playing for her...she captures what she sees and hears and catapults these sentiments into jewelry. Her hands know how to work metal, snip magic from old books and see stories in the faces form old photographs.

Using all vintage objects and original images, Dara creates one of a kind art collages with a balance and proportion that is divine. She is a master of structure and can maneuver metal to host her nuggets of songs, the wee words she adores and her daring sense of humor. The results are utterly fantastic, going far beyond the moniker of jewelry. She bravely asks us to celebrate the everyday by elevating castoff treasures and calling attention to tidbits of memories.

Each of her necklaces and bracelets are kaleidoscopes of vintage metal, found objects and forgotten faces. Dara finds beauty worth sharing in old silver utensils, odd findings, scraps from long-ago played games, tin types and old photos, steel cut Victorian buttons, Bakelite charms and baubles galore. She unties these disparate objects as the inanimate ingredients of her work. She melds them into new life under her drills. They emerge as charming stories, fancifully adorned with words and images.

She is sentimental, smart and very spunky…I admire her. Her work is a true reflection of her spirit and talent. So I wear one of her necklaces almost daily and remind myself to knock bravely at each door...one never knows what treasures are in store...

Cheers to all who wear her work...Debbee, Carolyn, Linda, Janet and Dana (the California Girls)...and Dawn and Ro too, you are exceptional models! It is wonderful that we share an affection for Dara and her work!

xxoo Jen O'Connor

Earth Angels Toys

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