Seed Bead ‘Chakra Badges’ by Birthe Havmøller

Photos and artist’s statement by Birthe Havmøller, editor of Feminine Moments

Chakra badges by Birthe Havmøller, 2022.

Artist’s Statement by Birthe Havmøller

Birthe Havmøller: After my mother passed in 2020, I got her British Columbian seed bead broach and I found my childhood collection of seed beads which she for some strange reason had kept for all these years. Her native Canadian Indian (commercial) broach was the initial inspiration for my glass seed bead, chakra badges or buttons if you like.

I find making chakra badges a quiet, pleasing thing to do this winter (2022). We have had a semi-lockdown with corona pass here in Denmark, defining where one can go and where one is not welcome. The second lockdown of 2021 spilling over into 2022. Having no corona pass, nor wanting to take a flawed test, I have found myself barred from going to cafes, restaurants, libraries and museums for the last 2 1/2 months after a couple of months in the autumn where the country was open and regulation-free. But yesterday, Denmark followed England’s example and opened up again, canceling the mask and corona pass regulations. Now, I may start a new social life, making new friends. However, it will probably take some time for me to feel confident again and have a proper sense of belonging in my local art scene. The conflict between old and new worldviews is bad. I guess it is all about letting go of old structures and expectations, following the flow of the water of the Aquarian Age, adopting the new ideas if they resonate with me, and then I’ll see where this takes me into a new world which looks rather unpredictable.

The world is changing and it seems to be so divided that it is unsettling, sparking my insecurity as an artist. I am worried that there may not be a niche for me as a “dissident” (unvaxxed) queer feminist artist when the dust of the spiritual war of divide and conquer has settled… This kind of emotional “wincing” is totally subconscious as I know that I am fine; that the world is fine and moving forward on a positive organic timeline, and that it is “game over!” for the negative powers and the old guard within a few years or a decade at the most.

Chakra badges, energy portraits of Andara crystals. Birthe Havmøller, 2022.

The seed beads I use for my badges are of different sizes and shapes. I prefer this to, sowing with beads of the same size and shape. It makes the surface of the piece uneven and it is likely to make the rosette pattern break and bend in organic ways for me which I find very interesting. Some of my pieces (below) are “portraits” of the energy of the rare crystals such as the (noble) Andara crystals and the totally unknown true Ethereum (from Latin: ethereal, heavenly, divine, celestial) crystals. Both are crystals of the new Age of the Aquarius.

Chakra badges, energy portraits of Etherium crystals. Birthe Havmøller, 2022.