A little bit about who I am and how I got here:
I am an artist, craftsman, gardener, naturalist, musician, farmer’s wife, and mom… not necessarily in that order. I love storytelling as a means of connecting to each other and the planet. I enjoy telling these stories with many different folk art techniques and consider myself a “jack-of-all trades and a master-of-none” character. I primarily work in the realm of the natural world, gravitating toward plants, flowers, humans, and animals for my inspiration and use natural materials like wood, clay, copper, glass, and stone in my pieces. I lean on traditional crafting techniques like woodcarving, metalsmithing, quilting, and herbalism as my guides in creating my varied body of work, exploring techniques rooted in the folk traditions of my Armenian and Eastern European ancestry.
I create installations, paintings, sculpture, block prints, home goods, clothing, quilts, jewelry, scents, and soap. This may sound like a wide range of art and craft, but they all work together as a shared language that expresses my love for the beauty, ferociousness, and wildness of coexisting with the natural world. My work can be found in galleries, gift shops, and art centers around Central Florida and the US.
About Bodhi Basics, my organic self care company:
After years of trial and error with store bought products causing terrible skin problems I decided to start tinkering with making my own soap. While living in a kind friend's living room I turned the kitchen into a makeshift laboratory on the weekends while working as a studio assistant to two artists during the week. There was a lot of trial and error in the beginning, but I knew even then that I only wanted the highest quality, organic, botanical ingredients in my products. No junk, no artificial crap, no synthetic fragrance. I wanted everything to be directly traceable to something that grows or comes out of the earth in its pure form. My company, Bodhi Basics was established in January 2011. Since then it has gone through many transitions, storefronts, and sizes, to bring us to this current version of a small handcrafted soap and self care company that caters to my steadfast client base, with products available online and with select retailers around St Pete and the country.
The name Bodhi Basics has multiple meanings for me personally. Bodhi was the name of my best friend and constant companion, a rescue dog born on a farm outside of Chicago. He was a legend in his own time, comforting and charming customers who came to the shop and inspiring me to remain tenderhearted and connect with nature more deeply. We said goodbye to him in November 2024 after almost 15 years together. I miss him dearly. It is also the sanskrit term for knowledge and awakening. I think of Bodhi, the dog and the term, whenever I am creating a new product or fine-tuning our branding. Bodhi Basics: It's simple, it's pure, it is a striving to get back to the basics that have been part of our existence for centuries, a practice that grounded us and connected us to the land. Plant-based, handmade, authentic, and infused with the wisdom of nature.
Thank you for taking the time to explore my work and share it with your loved ones. In this period of history it is a revolutionary act to create art AND to buy art. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting my efforts to make the world a better place. I truly believe we can make a positive change, but only if we do it together.
Love,
Kim
Kimberly is an emerging artist who works in the mediums of installation, mixed media painting, collage, glass, metal, wood, jewelry and sculpture. She has exhibited within Central Florida in local galleries and has private collectors throughout the United States, England, and Spain. She graduated with her BA in Visual Art and Experimental Music from New College of Florida in 2009. In 2014 she completed an Artist Residency in Manchester, England. In 2010 she created a successful artisan soap company called Bodhi Basics which she still operates today. Kimberly currently lives in St Petersburg, Florida with her partner Will, daughter Ziazan, and dog Loretta. The whole family commutes back and forth to Lakeland where they own and operate their small family farm.
