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Noga Zerubavel grew up with a love of beautiful, delicate
things. Although she grew up as an urban child, she was drawn to the
treasures produced naturally by the earth from the time she was very
young. On trips to visit her family in Israel, she would spend
hours picking up seashells and sandstone rocks along the shores of the
Mediterranean Sea. She would find small objects in nature with
attractive qualities that called out to her. As she grew older,
this developed into a deep love for gems and minerals.
Creative crafts are full of warm memories for Noga,
having been handed down to her from truly beloved people throughout her
life. The legacy began with her mother, who sewed and embroidered
with her from the time she was very young. Years later, when a close
friend taught her macramé, it was a profound gift – one that transcended
into a new opening in her life. She immediately started combining
intricate knotwork with gems, enjoying the process of working so closely
with the crystal while creating the art. It felt deliciously
inspired. Learning to use art and creativity to honor and express
her love of these earthy treasures added another dimension to Noga’s
connection to rocks and gems. A few years later, a dear friend
showed her how to form a tubular peyote stitch in beadwork, and this
medium truly sparked her passion – she dove into this creative process,
using tiny little seed beads to fashion beauty in the process of nesting
a jewel. The designs are created spontaneously, reflecting the
qualities of the stone being used and the mood it fosters.
Noga’s sense of spiritual connection to nature is deeply
intertwined in the expression form of bead art. The process is a
meditative one, requiring great patience, and a lot of the artist goes
into the making of each piece. In keeping with Noga’s intention to
honor the natural beauty of gems and minerals, Olive Branch Art uses
only the highest quality, untreated (no heated, dyed, bleached, or
radiated) gems and minerals. Sometimes the gems are kept raw in
their natural formation. The beads she uses are natural stone or
precious metal and the seed beads are glass. There is no glue or
adhesive used in her work. As much as Noga’s work honors nature,
it also seeks to express her love for people. When she isn’t
designing wearable art, Noga works as a counselor and case manager at a
domestic violence & rape crisis agency. Both the creative personal
and professional workplace arenas represent to her an opportunity to
offer support to others. Each piece of jewelry from Olive Branch
Art is an offering, a tool that may be used to enhance one’s life in
meaningful ways. They are meant to inspire and to balance. They
are meant to make the one who wears them stand taller, with feet more
firmly planted on the ground, and breathing deeply.
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