Inspiration from the neighborhood

As I previously mentioned, my new Wrought and Brocade collections were inspired by the wrought iron I see around my neighborhood. Here are a couple of favorites that I snapped pictures of on my way home one night.


In the case of the red doors, I am glad to see that some people aren't afraid to go with bold colors for their entrance (although, this might not be allowed a few blocks over the the historic district). The red contrasts nicely with the tracery of the wrought iron gate in front of it.

This door is my favorite so far. The wrought iron is nice and heavy with some tapering. The other highlight is the addition of the stars into the iron with more stars on the bottom of the doors. With the warm colors in the vestibule shining through, this looks like a very inviting place to come home to on a cold November night. Below is a close-up of one of the window panels.

Below is a new piece in the Brocade collection, which incorporates details derived from wrought iron decoration. The curls overlaying the gold pattern are not symmetrically covering the entire piece, but it is intersting to compare it with the photo above.

Brocade Oval Large Pendant
18K and blackened silver
2007

Another Year

As Sept 30th marked another year of my life, it is nice to reflect on some of the things I have accomplished over the year.

It was almost exactly a year ago that I found out I might be moving to Brooklyn. No looking back there. It is hard to imagine that I haven't lived here for so long. At this time last year, I had to take two trains, cross two boroughs of NYC and two states to get home. Now...just a few blocks to stroll.

I think next to this, the biggest single accomplishment was starting a new series of jewelry in a new direction. I had a new collection brewing for a while, but the moving process delayed the creation of new work for many months.

Coming up this month, I will be sending a collection of this new work to Langman Gallery in Willow Grove, PA for their Art Jewelry Invitational show (actually starts Nov. 1st).

I am also heading to San Francisco (a city I love to have an excuse to go to), for the opening of the 200 Earrings show at Velvet da Vinci, which is loosely based on the 500 Earrings book. I look forward to seeing the show and possible trying on some very innovative earrings in all materials.

Wrought

As I previously mentioned, the move to Park Slope in Brooklyn has been making it's impact on my work. Brownstones, wrought iron, bluestone sidewalks, all giving me a push into new territory. The Wrought Collar, pictured above, is one of the new pieces in the collection. It hangs asymmetrically, with the center curl resting just to the right of center. The curls undulating above and below create three dimensionality in an otherwise very graphic piece.

Here is the corresponding Wrought Cuff bracelet. Same concept as the necklace, but with more symmetry. I made the sample in my size and I love wearing it. It has a definite presence.

I was on fire with this new collection and there is more to come in the next few days. I have finished my two back to back shows and will be travelling only to trunk shows for the rest of the year. More time to make an abundance of new designs in this vein.