I think a lot of people are drawn to the Fibonacci sequence in nature. There's so many examples of it, and it’s just aesthetically beautiful to the eye. I think it's fascinating how there's a mathematical pattern in nature where things become symmetrical in an expanding fashion. You can see that similar structure of a hurricane or the whelk shell, where there's a centerpiece and a huge spiral and everything's just expanding. Kind of like the universe.
When I started working in the Rigging Shop, it was no secret that I was making jewelry in my off-hours and I was learning how to use more tools. And that's one of the coolest parts about working at WHOI, all the people are so incredible. I'd wander over to where some of the guys were taking a break with some cookies or something and be like, “So, does anybody want to give me some ideas or tool suggestions for how to cut this shell?” And some of them were like, “Well, maybe you could try this, or see what we do on the water jet.”
I would just look at the different technologies and tools and how the scientists and engineers were working. A lot of the work is very methodical, but some of it is experimental and you're just trying things. You don't know if it's going to work or not. I had never realized that's what engineers do. So that in itself was very empowering.
In the Rigging shop, we had these various types of swivels. They're massive. They have to be able to move with the ocean currents and waves to keep the buoys afloat. And I did get to go to sea one time and see them in action, which was extremely helpful. I was making my Talisman Twist earrings at the time, and I could see them dancing on my ears. And I would think about those giant swivels and how they worked in the ocean, and how a swivel would make the earrings twist and turn. But I couldn’t find one made from fine metal in the catalogs. So I made one myself, and it worked! I put 'em on and they danced around my ears just like I imagined, and I was like, “Yes!”
It's a piece of Cape Cod. It ties you to a a place that you love and is so miraculous.
You can get anything you want in this world now, and anything can be manufactured and copied, but it's really special to have something that’s one-of-a-kind. Nature is the designer in these shell pieces. They're literally made out of sea. And then I sort of enhance them by hand polishing them and making them into something beautiful you can wear.
A selection of Rogers' whelk jewelry is available for sale at the WHOI Store. A full collection is available at her website, Cape Cod Booty.