Ep 31: Jen Prox-Weisblat - The Value of Community, Organization in the Chaos, & Prioritizing Time for Art, Side Interests, and Family
I’ve sat here for a bit thinking about what I wanted to say about today’s guest. Jen Prox-Weisblat who may be better known by her business name Prox or ProxArtist, is someone I’ve known and admired for a very long time. I’ve always seen Jen as a prolific jewelry artist, obsessed with quality and detail. Whenever I see a piece she has finished, my first thought is “Man I wonder how long that piece took to fabricate” which is then usually followed by some thought of how I would lose my mind if I had to saw out or solder all of those little details. I’ve had visions of her locked in her studio from sun up to sun down, only taking a break because she really has to pee. Yet in our conversation, Jen talks about the fullness of her days and life. She is not just slogging away at her bench unceasingly. She is gardening, spending time with her kids, and even taking days off back to back. In prioritizing the things in life that matter, she’s found a sense of balance in her days, even when it feels a little chaotic. Equally perplexing to me is the fact that with all the hours of work she puts into each piece, she has absolutely no attachment to it if the end product isn’t something she love. Jen just scraps it, or reworks it if she can without the deep disappointment that I feel when this happens. And let’s not forget that Jen has a huge following of loyal fans on Instagram. What’s her secret? She doesn’t have one. She posts when she has something to post and she’s not worrying one to worry about the results. My friends if you have been following Jen, I think you are going to be as surprised as I was as you listen to our conversation.
Follow Jen...
Instagram: @proxartist
Website: www.proxartist.com