Designer
Simple absolute truths. When we were children we unwaveringly believed in our dreams and they were a part of our absolute truths. As we grew up, social, cultural, or financial pressures often silenced those initial truths and we focused on building lives based on more "practical" dreams and goals. When Surita was in college, waffling between majoring in economics, law, or sociology, her father told her, "Do what you love and you will have a successful life." She ended up combining sociology and law. She revered Justice Thurgood Marshall and was passionate about the inhumanity of capital punishment. But, after a year in the field, the idea of spending a lifetime in this line of work no longer resonated with her. Her father's simple, yet life altering statement had awakened something within her which sent her on a journey to discover what it was she truly loved. She appeared to be on a mission to demonstrate that her parents had succeeded in making her well-rounded, landing jobs in politics, various types of law, and investment banking. Fearing that her search was leading her in the wrong direction, she opted to go down a different road and tried her hand at interior design. “I want to be an artist when I grow up.” This was her truth at the age of 5. And, it had remained so until high school. Interior design was the necessary stepping stone in order for her to revive her dreams. Painting, sketching and jewelry design have been hobbies throughout her life and have served as peaceful, creative outlets during stressful times. She chose jewelry as a medium because it is so personal in nature and evokes such powerful memories. It can be worn for good luck, to remind us of our successes, or to remind us of a special occasion. In 2001, after seeing her struggle for years to find her way, a friend suggested that she turn her love of drawing and jewelry into a career. Her friend aptly pointed out that Surita had tried the conventional careers, so why not try making a living doing what she loved the most? "The beauty of jewelry design is that it allows me to view the world again through a fresh perspective. I see color in terms of gemstones, from the vivid apatite hues the ocean takes on off of Point Lobos to the buttery yellow to coral gradation in the roses in my parents’ backyard. I am inspired by the architecture of palaces in Jaipur, the fluidity of Art Nouveau paintings, and the raw emotion embodied in the music of women today (and, the fiery ladies of the last 40 years who paved the way)." Surita Ghosh creates her jewelry in her idyllic studio by the sea in Half Moon Bay.
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