Resurgance of Ornament

In the most recent issue of Metalsmith Magazine, there is an interesting article titled Mining History: Ornamentalism Revisited. Contemporary jewelers and designers usher in a revival of ornament, but with a twist.

Authors Lena Vigna and Namita Gupta Wiggers focus on the evolution of ornament, and its resurgence within the field of contemporary jewelry. There are many artists who are inspired and energized by the past, and who also exploit the familiar and resituate traditional historical elements into new, contemporary pieces.

The article states that a contemporary vocabulary is emerging in which the baroque, the rococo, the curvilinear and the unabashedly ornate features of historic jewelry are taking a new, redefined center stage. Artists are ... democratizing forms and patterns previously preserved for royalty through a range of new materials and unexpected vehicles.

This relationship with the past is articulated in five senses: fragmenting and abstracting historical forms, employing new technologies, creating updated versions of familiar jewels, neutralizing markers of luxury, and examining the relationship between jewelry, the body, and space.

Contemporary makers are intervening in traditional concepts of jewelry, subverting and responding to notions of worth and value. Through the democratization of materials and identity, jewelers are making adornment more accessible physically and conceptually to the public. It seems appropriate that in an era of hyper awareness and scrutiny, that artists are able to use their work to question class, taste, and materiality.

I appreciate that this article does not consider the current use of ornament or explorations of the past to be a passing trend, but acknowledge it as an inevitable awareness of the identity of the jewelry field. The work discussed in this article explores the mediums own identity, it is jewelry about jewelry. Not only does it acknowledge and pay homage to makers that came before, but this vein of contemporary work challenges current notions of value, material, and wearablility.

progression

Reclaim, Reuse, Renew

Yay! I just got a letter from the jurors of the exhibition Reclaim, Reuse, Renew at Ball State University, and I got two pieces into the show! This show focuses on artwork made from repurposed materials. I'll be sending Bouquet Necklace, which is made out of rubber gloves, and Honeycomb Necklace (pictured above), which is made out of bicycle inner tube tires.

Mourning Jewelry

I've always been interested in mourning jewelry, and Victorian etiquette surrounding death. During the nineteenth century, strict periods of mourning were observed following bereavement. Widows were expected to dress in black for a year and a day after her husband's death, wearing minimal matt black ornaments.

Gradually, widows were allowed to wear more elaborate mourning jewelry, then diamonds and pearls, and finally a return to colored stones. Mourning and sentimental jewelry typically incorporates hair, usually either in a medallion or braided into a watch-chain or bracelet strap.

I recently purchased black (and white) horsehair, with the intention of creating some pieces of commemorative and mourning jewelry. Here is an image of the first piece that I have finished. I'm excited about the monochromatic color scheme as well as the hints of red from the pearl silk.

Haiku to Metal

This piece, WB1106, is on its way to a show at the Desotorow Gallery in Savannah, Georgia. The show, Haiku to Metal, focuses on simplicity in adornment. Selected to exhibit, this brooch is from my thesis show, it's made of found steel and aluminum wire and gold. I'm excited that it's going to Desotorow, which is a pretty phenomenal non-profit gallery that is run and operated entirely by students from SCAD.

Rusted, decrepit
metal will be worn again.
Luxe embellishment.

Jewels

Video From Fibers Expanded

Here is a video from the recent Fibers Expanded show at the Luke & Eloy Gallery that I participated in. It's footage of a walk through of the exhibition. My piece, Lace Collar, is a necklace made form vinyl table cloth, pearl, sterling silver, and monofilament. You can view it at 0:49 of the video.

STIMULUS

I'm excited to be participating in the upcoming show, The Stimulus Project, at Sienna Gallery. This show is a exhibition of 80 artists producing budget-friendly one of a kind pieces of art jewelry.

This show begins on June 26th, with an opening part on June 27th from 6:00 - 9:00pm. The show will also be available online beginning on July 1st.80

Click on the image to the right to enlarge it.

Established in 1998, Sienna Gallery began representing innovative artists using traditional and non-traditional materials to create handmade jewelry. Now with the addition of a larger space, the gallery is dedicated to exhibiting and promoting exceptional work by artists both emerging and established working in the realm of the object and image both functional and not.

The gallery is located in Lenox, Massachusetts, in the countryside of the Berkshire Hills. The Berkshires, known for their natural beauty and cultural institutions, have been an inspirational home to artists for generations.

From the New York Times

I recently came across an interesting article in the Fashion and Style section of the New York Times. ‘The Jeweler’s Art’ focuses on an exhibition of 12 contemporary art jewelers at The Goldsmilths Company of London. The exhibition, titled Creation II, brings together work by twelve of the most distinguished art-jewelers working in Great Britain.

Traditionally, jewelry making was dominated by famous couture houses that focused primarily on the value of precious metals and stones incorporated into the
designs. However, this exhibition celebrates the rise of the independent art jeweler. Participants in this show articulate a desire to move beyond technical or design challenges and explore stimulating ideas and mediums.

Creation II gives an insight into the mind of the modern designer-jeweler, while focusing on a group of elite craftsmen actively working in the UK today. Open at Goldsmiths’ Hall from Friday May 29 to Saturday July 11 it follows on from the exhibition Creation I held in 2004, which concentrated on silversmiths.

Pictured above: arch ring by Anthony Roussel in birch wood, Pictured Right: necklace by Eric Lopez.

Unexpected sensations

I'm still thinking about the Gijs Bakker lecture that I went to last night at Harvard University. Trained as a jewelry and industrial designer at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in the Netherlands, Bakker is an internationally renowned jewelry and product designer. An avant-garde promoter of cutting edge design, Bakker confounded Droog Design in 1993 with Renny Ramakers, and also founded Chi ha paura…? with Italian gallery owner Marijke Ballanzasca in 1996. Gijs is currently the head of the Masters department at Design Academy Eidhoven.

“Form is just the wrapping of the idea.”

One of the most interesting points that I left the lecture with was the relationship between the object and the human-being; these elements are in constant competition. Or are they symbiotic to each other? I’ve been reading a series of essays on the psychology of objects called Evocative Objects: Things We Think With. This text, edited by Sherry Trukle, articulates the role of objects as emotional and intellectual companions that anchor memory, sustain relationships, and provoke new ideas.

I’ve been seeing the relationship between people and jewelry as much more intricate, these days. Thinking about the unexpected sensations that jewelry can ignite in the wearer, I've come up with a list of commandments for making:

Endless contamination
Experience
Body language
Irony
Simplicity
Familiar, not so familiar
Use it again
Inevitable ornament