[Jewelry making - Article 00296] - Re: [Orchid] Is Jewelry Making an Art?

[Karen Christians]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========

    Personally, I think art is a visual expression of a metaphor.
    Conceptual jewelry, unwearable jewelry is an expression of art. Art
    also needs intent. 

    Say there is a large room. 50 ft x 50 ft. In the room is one tiffany
    diamond ring. Is that art? Was the ring intentionally placed there
    or just lost. Now with the ring on the floor, you place a wedding
    dress and a bouquet of flowers. Your brain says, what happened here?
    Did the bride die? Did she leave and not want to become married? This
    becomes a rather powerful statement. It has intent. It has metaphor,
    and for me, it is art. 

    If a simple band ring holds a simple set stone with a bezel, then,
    no, for me, it is not art. 

    Art is as subjective and as misunderstood as the concept of love.
    Art provokes an emotional response and not everyone likes the same
    thing. Is photography an art? Oh, you bet. Sculpture? Sure. Is a
    perfect reproduction of a fine piece of furniture art? Maybe. Is a
    platinum flute art? No. It is fine craft. 

    Is a Chinese Scholars Rock art? Many critics think so. What makes a
    Scholars Rock art, but a natural mineral specimen not art. Don't
    know. I would like to ask an art critic that one. 

    If I see a VanCleef and Arpels trackless broach with rubies,
    diamonds and other small stones, which are created in the form of a
    bouquet of flowers, is that art? Yes, for me it is. It is using
    stones and precious metal with the intent to capture an image of
    nature. 

    I love pushing boundaries and edges of art. I'm working on a
    commission with five oval opals; tiny little suckers. I had to come
    up with a design using these stones. This for me becomes the process
    of creating a sonnet in the form of jewelry. The recipient is from
    Brazil, so my design is incorporating his travels to Australia to
    pick up the opals, and druzy from her homeland. I'm combining the
    opal and druzy earrings with my style of granulation. It is meant to
    be wearable, but the whole design process, the metaphor of joining
    three continents together to make a jewelry suite works artistically
    for me. 

    Now is the making, the CRAFTSMANSHIP an art? Debatable by some, for
    me yes and no. When you go out to a fine restaurant and the food is
    arranged perfectly on your plate with color and style, is it art? If
    it is beautifully arranged but tastes terrible, is that art? Is there
    an art to cooking well, raising decent and ethical children? Is it
    the same kind of art? 

So, what is art?

-k

M E T A L W E R X
School for Jewelry and the Metalarts
50 Guinan St.
Waltham, MA 02451
781 891 3854
www.metalwerx.com
____________________________________________________________________
T h e   O r c h i d   L i s t
Open Electronic Forum for Jewelry Manufacturing Methods and Procedures
____________________________________________________________________
Orchid FAQ:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/faq.htm
Orchid Archives:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/archive
Orchid Galleries:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/gallery.htm
Invite a Friend:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm
____________________________________________________________________
Tips From The Jeweler's Bench - Article Archive
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/tip_sear.htm
The Jeweler's Selected Bibliography List
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/jewelry-books
Buy Orchid Jewelry:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/shop
____________________________________________________________________
-Unsubscribe:
-Email: orchid-request AT ganoksin.com Body=unsubscribe subject=blank
____________________________________________________________________