My Artististic Journey - From Salty Dog to Desert Rat

I grew up in California and left to study NW Coast Indian art history and textile design at the University of Washington in Seattle. I finished with a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Arizona State University. I took a slew of anthropology & art history courses and developed a passion for Pre-Columbian, African, Haitian, Native American, Mayan, Inca and Viking archaeological designs. I found a cheap way to travel so I could experience some of these artifacts first-hand.

For 10 years, I had a dream-job working for an Art Gallery in the Caribbean. I lived on my (old) boat and sailed island-to-island. I even made it as far as Cape Town, South Africa.

Sadly, I lost my boat in a hurricane and limped back to sunny Tucson, Arizona, to regroup (and dry out my wrinkled toes). I bought an old fixer-upper house in the Tucson mountains and began creating tribal designs inspired by the Shamanistic symbols and artifacts I had seen. It became an obsession - I painted tribal theme designs on wood furniture, gourds, wind chimes, mirror frames, even walls of my house! I built a trellis for growing gourds, and a small art studio, as every room in my house was crammed full of ongoing art projects.

A few years ago, I discovered Etsy and have been grateful ever since, for the opportunity to share my passion with symbolic, ethnic designs. (I don't think I could ever stop creating things, even if I won the Lottery!)

I use hundreds of design stamps for Precious Metal Clay and porcelain. I had so many requests to share my design stamps that I decided to open this shop on Etsy: Design Stamping Tools.

I hope you find my symbolic design stamps meaningful, and that their spirits "speak" to you, as they "speak" to me.

Warmly from sunny Tucson, Arizona,

Virginia & 3 English Springer Spaniel furry kids

www.VagabondFolkArt.Etsy.com
www.EspritMystique.Etsy.com
www.Vagabond-Folk-Art.com
www.Zazzle.com/WitchesHammer
email: Designstampingtools (at) Gmail (dot) com