[Jewelry making - Article 01151] - [Orchid] Santa Fe Symposium

[Eddie Bell]

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    Have you ever wished you could be a fly on the wall so you could
    listen to what people say about something you are interested in the
    recent string of posts on Orchid regarding the Santa Fe Symposium
    have been quite gratifying for me to say the least, but I will talk
    about that later. First I want to set the record straight. For any
    of you who don't know me, I am founder and organizer (with a lot of
    help from friends) of the Santa Fe Symposium on Jewelry
    Manufacturing Technology, so please forgive me if my point of view
    is a bit biased. 

    They say that the best advertisement is unsolicited third party
    endorsement. To see what was posted about SFS from people who have
    been there was amazing to me. I couldn't have expressed the purpose
    and spirit of SFS better then they have. When we started the SFS we
    had specific goals in mind. In part we wanted to make it friendly
    and accessible, to make everyone comfortable no matter their job. We
    wanted a place where academics could talk to jewelers so we could
    learn from one another. We wanted to encourage a rich exchange among
    people interested in making the best jewelry they could. And we
    wanted to publish what we did so the next generation will not have
    to invent it all over again. SFS is casual, people are relaxed and
    while the speakers take their work seriously, I think it is fair to
    say that none take themselves seriously. They come to share, teach
    and learn, but mostly they come back year after year because of
    friendship and because they had fun and look forward to the fun we
    have. 

    I am in the process of editing the papers to be printed in the 2005
    SFS book. Tonight I am working on a paper by Gregg Todd from
    Stuller. The title of the paper is Standardizing the Designation of
    Karated Gold Solders. It made me think about one of the posts asking
    about the content being appropriate for the designer gold or
    silversmith. The title does sound kind esoteric; but before you
    decide you=92re not interested, hear me out. Gregg is a goldsmith and
    he has something to say that we should all hear. He starts by
    explaining the technical difference between various solder grades
    and the kind of joint each makes. You learn why it would be
    beneficial for you to have some kind of guide so you could quickly
    and correctly pick the best solder for any particular job =96 even if
    you were using a new alloy you had no experience with =96 or what
    solder to use for joining white and yellow gold if you want to be
    sure one joint can be separated later by heating (changing a head)
    while the joint next to it would never separate accidentally.
    Further, he suggests that we could have a system for classifying
    solders that would make it easy for goldsmiths to understand what
    they were buying and offers a format for it to start the dialog. The
    esoteric title aside, this is a well-written paper with a lot of
    research, thought and time invested on a subject that should
    interest anyone who picks up a torch and hopes to do the best job
    possible. 

    I'll close with one of my favorite stories. Thirty-five years ago
    when I first saw the Sistine Chapel it was dull and grungy, so I was
    excited to see the paintings again after the recent restoration. I'm
    sure you can imagine how stunned I was by the brilliance and the
    magnificence of the art. Then, being me, I started to think about
    the technology. No matter how great an artist Michelangelo was, we
    owe our enjoyment of his art to his understanding of the technology
    of making fresco stick to the ceiling. If he wasn't in equal parts
    technologist and artist, perhaps his painting would have fallen down
    50 years after he painted it.  

    I hope we will see a lot of you in Albuquerque in May at the SFS.  I
    promise you will have a great time if you join us. The SFS is
    non-commercial and non-profit. 

Eddie Bell
Founder
Santa Fe Symposium
http://www.santafesymposium.com

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