Metta Metalworks sits at what might seem an unlikely crossroads; It is a collision between a Masters in Fine Arts degree a career in the costume jewelry industry and years spent sitting on cushions cultivating a spiritual practice.

As a designer, Kathy Cherry is a classically trained metalsmith with a BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from SUNY New Paltz. After years of teaching and bench work, she fell into the world of costume jewelry and fell in love with the fast, new, now pace of the industry- after 10 years of daily fast, new, now – she started looking for something with more meaning.

Kathy has been practicing meditation for many years – the last 10 have been spent running a Buddhist group called Dharma Punx NYC with her husband, Josh Korda. In 2014 Kathy finished her facilitator training and started a weekly meditation group in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

"There were so many powerful images from the teachings that I wanted to remember and incorporate into my day to day- that I did what has always come naturally to me- I made something that I could keep with me as a reminder."

Though the work is grounded in my spiritual practice- it is not above humor. "My circle of friends are an unusual bunch. I don’t think that being spiritual means you need to speak in hushed tones- wear organic cotton outfits and carry a blissful smile at all times. Quite the opposite- being awake to the madness is a revolutionary act. It flows against the stream of most of what we hear in our day-to-day lives."