Jess Henshall - Writer and Jewellery Maker
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Jess Henshall.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Finding my creative voice. Studying at Falmouth University has played a huge part in that, and so has the battle with my mental and physical health, that fight to be well and to find my place in the world. My happiness is definitely intertwined with my creativity, and finding that voice has allowed me a sense of belonging and purpose.
What motivates you to do what you do?
Writing has always been a form of relief for me, and a way of connecting with the world when I felt alienated from it. When I was in my first year at uni studying creative writing I found my creativity exploded in that nurturing environment but I needed a physical craft, something that could take me out of my mind as a balance to writing, and this is when I started making jewellery. There was something about its process and the finality of reaching a point of completion which was quite different to my experience with writing where I often wouldn’t feel satisfied with the end result. Writing and making jewellery balanced my creativity, and in turn balanced me.
At the same time as this, I became disabled by chronic pain and mobility restrictions due to a debilitating hip condition, which rapidly altered my everyday life. Jewellery making became not only a relief from writing, but an escape from my body because it was something external to me. When I’m making jewellery or writing, I find I reach a meditative state either through the repetitive motions of working with silver, or through connecting to my surroundings through distilling it into words. I’ve found I struggle to connect to traditional meditation, because when I tune into my body I become intensely aware of all the pain it is harbouring.
Writing and jewellery making are two halves of a whole which keep me balanced. They are different channels of my creativity which work together to keep me connected to the world and offer relief from my physical restrictions.
Jess making jewellery for Shadowed Earth.
What do you owe your mother?
Everything. My compassion; my ethics; my strength. She’s the woman who gave me life and taught me to fight to be alive. She’s always encouraged me to seek solutions to problems instead of being consumed by them, and to know my own power. She’s my favourite thing about the world.
Which women inspire you and why?
So many women inspire me, but especially the young female makers I’ve got to know through my own craft. I’m constantly inspired by their passion, their drive, their support for each other. I’m in awe at their creativity and how they translate the world through their works. There’s so much power in creativity, but it often isn’t nurtured or valued. I’m a big believer in the potential for creativity to enact positive change on the world, so being able to see these incredible makers grow and flourish in a world that often doesn’t support that journey is so inspiring.
What are you reading?
At the moment I’m in the last term of my degree at Falmouth University, so most of my reading is research for final assignments, although I am slowly reading Jay Griffiths’ Wild and savouring every page. Her ability to weave ecology, travel, etymology, history, and personal narrative is quite extraordinary. I also find myself constantly returning to Isabel Galleymore’s Cyanic Pollens and Isabella Tree’s Wilding.
What gender barriers have you had to hurdle?
There are likely embedded gender hurdles I’m sure I’ve had to overcome, but are so ingrained in our lives it’s like I’ve stopped noticing, and many gender hurdles I’ve been very privileged to not have to face. I’d say the main gender barriers are the ones I’ve put up myself, the ones society teaches us and we subliminally absorb. Through language (both verbal and how I hold my body) I find I’m constantly softening myself in an attempt to be palatable, as if occupying space and speaking up were in some way off-putting. I have had to consciously change my judgement of myself and my judgement of others. As women we can just as easily perpetuate patriarchal ideologies as men, and studying Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber taught me a lot about how women must not collude in their own victimisation, or that of others. As Simone De Beauvoir once famously wrote, ‘one is not born, but rather becomes, a woman’; society teaches passivity and objectification, and each of us has a part to play in dismantling that.
How can the world be made a better place for women?
Ensuring the rights of ALL women. It has to be more intersectional; until everyone who identifies as a woman has equal rights and are equally valued and listened to, the world is not a good place for women. We need to broaden our definition of what a woman is. We’re often given such singular, white-cisgender narratives as examples of a woman, but whole societies aren’t made up of that singular narrative, and neither are individuals. The history of woman’s rights movements have been incredibly whitewashed, with many movements only fighting for the rights of white, English-speaking, upper-middle-class women, in many ways matching the dominant voice in society of white, heterosexual, privileged men. I have no doubt that I’ve benefited from many aspects of those systems. Thankfully this is now being challenged, but there is still so much work to do to ensure we don’t leave whole groups of women behind.
Describe your perfect day?
Morning: waking with the late-spring sun for a dip in the sea, drinking hot chocolate on the beach to warm up, then going home to make jewellery, working on new designs and fulfilling orders in my tiny shed studio overlooking the bay. I’d then make something simple for lunch using whatever veg we have in the fridge – I find these are often some of the best meals.
Afternoon: after lunch, a bit more time in the studio, and then around mid-afternoon I’d read and write in the garden where the sun’s warmth spills into early evening.
Evening: spending time with my family, cooking flatbreads and vegetables over an open flame, our hair filling with the smell of wood smoke.
In an ideal world, I would spend the day up and active, walking miles and absorbing myself in this incredible landscape. Unfortunately the reality is I don’t have a body which will allow it, so my days are broken up by a lot of physical rest and my evenings are spent in pain in bed with hot water bottles and painkillers. I’m managing to build a life around my disability, but sometimes I wish I could have a pain-free day to not feel trapped in my body.
We've noticed there really aren't many (if any) statues of women around Cornwall - who would you like to see remembered?
Fishing is an incredibly male dominated industry, I see it everyday in Newlyn, however throughout history there has been a very strong female presence such as the women working behind the scenes gutting fish as part of Newlyn’s old pilchard works. In the heart of Newlyn we’re also lucky enough to have the UK’s first female master fishmonger, Elaine Lorys. I think recognition of this side of the industry would be incredible, not necessarily a statue of one individual, but something representative of these women who have historically and presently played a key role in Newlyn’s fishing industry.
Give us a tip?
Where you can, create choice for yourself.
Trust that the decisions you make are the right ones in those moments.
Forgive yourself for being human.
About Jess
Jess Henshall is 21 years old and is a writer and jewellery maker based in Newlyn, Cornwall. She is one half of the father and daughter collaborative studio Shadowed Earth, and makes sustainable jewellery from 100% recycled silver and gold from her tiny shed studio overlooking Newlyn harbour. Her writing focusses on distilling the world around her, looking at our small connections to the landscape and each other.
You can find Jess at www.shadowedearth.co.uk, and @shadowedearth on Instagram and Twitter.