Jewelry

Historically jewelry has filled a functional need to keep our clothes on, our hair out of our face and as adornment. If you’re going to make a fibula to hold your toga together or a thong to tie your hair back why not make them pretty while you’re at it. Man has always been creative, acquisitive and, need I say, vain. They wanted to display the riches that they had acquired as a sign of wealth and good taste.

This holds true today as well, but with the advent of the industrial revolution much of jewelry’s functional uses no longer need be addressed in a handmade way. Those needs are fulfilled by machines, and the subsequent reduction in price has steered most people away from the more expensive, custom made goods.

Today’s studio jeweler thinks beyond function and has been freed to give more consideration to the decorative aspect. While weight, size and safety are still considerations, when someone buys a handcrafted piece he or she is buying more than a functional object. The buyer is connecting with the heart and soul of the artist/craftsperson. Adorning oneself with so special an item conveys to the world something about the wearer that describes his or her individuality and authenticity. Such a mark of distinction comes at a price, however. For those who can appreciate this, it is money well spent. Labor, tools and raw materials are not cheap and creativity and skill come only with a prolonged period of hard work and study. When these are all factored in, it is easy to understand why handmade items command a higher price than the mass produced.

I consider my pieces of jewelry small sculptures or compositions like paintings with similar consideration to line, shape, color, pattern and texture but on a much smaller scale. The fun of it is that it doesn’t sit on a wall but is worn by the owner for all the world to see.