Jewellery Design

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Jewellery Design
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How to plan the essay

• Paragraph 1 Introduction -using your own
  personal knowledge of jewellery and slides 4,
  5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
• Paragraph 2 First piece of jewellery
  (contemporary modern). Slides 13 17.
  Remember to introduce the piece of jewellery by
  writing who designed it. Describe the piece in
  detail. Analyse this using the Analysing
  Jewellery slides, numbers 10, 11, 12.
• You can write notes on each area first and then
  write a paragraph on the piece. Glossary of
  jewellery terms is on slides 26, 27.
• Paragraph 3 Second piece of jewellery
  (historical). Slides 18 -21. Analyse this in
  exactly the same way as the first. Use slides
  10, 11, 12. For this piece of jewellery you will
  need to mention if the designer worked in a
  particular style, for example Art Nouveau. The
  background information on Art Nouveau is found
  on slides 22, 23.

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How to plan the essay

• Paragraph 4 Describe the similarities, if there
  are any, between the two pieces. Are they
  both bracelets, or pairs of earrings.? Are
  they both made from similar materials? If
  there are no similarities then you will need to
  write more for the next paragraph.
• Paragraph 5 Describe the differences between the
  two pieces.
• Paragraph 6 Which piece appeals to you most?
  Why? Give reasons.
• Short conclusion any other comments about
  the two pieces that you have been looking at.
• Your essay should be approximately 1000 words.
  Maximum length (i.e. do not write any more than
  this) is 1500 words.

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Jewellery (for intro.)

• All materials may be used to make jewels,
  provided they can be manipulated in one way or
  another.
• Carlos Pastor, Spanish Jewellery Designer

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History of Jewellery (for intro.)

• Jewellery is one of the oldest decorative arts.
• Jewellery is the term to describe objects which
  are used to decorate the human body.
• Jewellery has been worn since ancient times as
  ornaments, emblems of religious belief or even to
  protect a person against disease, misfortune or
  witchcraft.
• There are many different functions of jewellery.
  Some are rings, bracelets, necklaces, crowns,
  belts, earrings, brooches, cuff-links, clasps and
  jewellery for hair..can you think of any more?

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Jewellery Now (for intro.)

• People still buy jewellery today. There are a
  lot of High Street shops which sell jewellery
  Next, River Island, HM, Top Shop, Top Man
  Debenhams.. (remember jewellery is not just for
  women)
• Jewellery ranges in price and value from 1 to
  millions. This varies because of materials used
  and who has designed the piece of jewellery.
  Gold jewellery is more expensive than metal spray
  painted gold!
• Fashion designers use jewellery on their catwalk
  shows to complete an outfit. These can be very
  expensive, large pieces of jewellery designed to
  grab attention.

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Jewellery (for intro.)

• Jewellery is meant for show it is designed to
  attract attention and to impress the viewer.
• From the beaded necklaces of ancient Egyptians to
  the flashy, large-scale bling bling worn by
  hip-hop stars, sports heroes, and their fans,
  jewellery has always offered complex social and
  cultural meanings.

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Costume Jewellery

• What do we mean by costume?
• This is jewellery that is made from non-precious
  materials.
• Its appeal is in the original design, skilful use
  of colour, high standards of craftsmanship and
  sometimes how exotic or extravagant it looks.
• Work by Grainne Morton is costume jewellery.
• It can still be expensive but it the price is
  usually hundreds at the most and not thousands of
  pounds.
• Precious jewellery (Tiffanys) is precious and
  therefore very expensive.

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Words that you may find helpful

• Attached
• Classic
• Colourful
• Constructed (made)
• Contemporary (modern)
• Contrasting (opposites)
• Curvaceous (curved)
• Detailed
• Dull
• Expensive
• Fragile
• Heavy
• Manufactured
• Moulded
• Neutral (plain colours, beiges etc)
• Opaque (doesnt let light through)
• Opulent (rich)
• Patterned
• Reflective

• Rounded
• Scale
• Shiny
• Size
• Sleek
• Strong
• Surface
• Textured

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Analysing Jewellery

• Like any other area of design, Jewellery has been
  designed. A designer has worked through a
  similar design process that we work through at
  school. The pieces that you are looking at are
  their solutions.
• When studying jewellery designs, consider the
  following
• Form What does the piece of jewellery look like?
  Describe it in detail. Imagine the person
  reading your essay has not seen the item of
  jewellery.
• Function What is the function? Is it a necklace,
  bracelet? Does it look as if it would be
  suitable to be this particular piece of
  jewellery. Give reasons for your answer.
• more

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Analysing Jewellery

• Target market Who would buy this? Is it for a
  man or woman? What age group of customer
  would buy this do you think?
• Materials used What materials have been used in
  this piece of jewellery? If you do not have
  this information, then make a sensible guess.
• Has the design
• been successful? Do you think that the designer
  has succeeded in creating a good design? An
  important point to consider, would the target
  market buy it?
• more

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Analysing Jewellery

• Your opinion This is the most important part of
  your essay. You might really like or dislike
  the examples of jewellery that you have been
  looking at. You are not expected to like
  everything that you see. As long as you can
  justify your opinions about a design then your
  views will be valued. You have to give
  reasons for example I do not like this
  design as I do not think the colour of the
  stones works well with the colour of the
  leather chosen. I think that a darker colour
  would have provided more of a contrast.
  Remember to give reasons.

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Jewellery Designers working nowGrainne Morton

• http//www.grainnemorton.co.uk
• Grainne is originally from Northern Ireland.
  She now has a workshop in Edinburgh where she
  creates contemporary (modern) jewellery. From
  fashioning jewellery from flowers to trawling
  antique fairs for one-off items to complete her
  compartmental jewellery, Grainne is happy making
  a living doing exactly what she wants.

• Grainne says Ive always been quite creative.
  My parents always encouraged me to work with my
  hands taking up needlework and craft hobbies when
  I was younger. My aunt, Alison Kinnaird is a
  famous glass engraver, so I suppose I have been
  influenced by her too."
• When Grainne left school, Edinburgh College of
  Art beckoned and although she studied many
  subjects, jewellery appealed because she liked to
  work on a smaller scale.

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Jewellery Designers working nowGrainne Morton

• Grainne says "My work is appreciated by American
  buyers because I make bigger pieces. I make a lot
  of compartmental jewellery for which I use old
  materials - the Americans like that because they
  know about history. The old paraphernalia isnt
  worth a lot of money but I piece it together into
  very attractive jewellery.
• See some more examples of her work on the next
  slide

• Grainne makes jewellery made up of smaller parts
  pieced together. She uses bits and pieces
  including old buttons as well as materials like
  silver, gold and oxidised copper.
• A lot of her high fashion work - necklaces and
  bracelets - are made from laminated flowers. The
  artist has work in galleries abroad and has found
  favour in the States. She already supplies
  Barneys in the US and Japan as well as taking
  orders from Libertys in the UK.

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Jewellery Designers working nowGrainne Morton
Charm necklace 240
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Jewellery Designers working nowGrainne Morton
Large sampler brooch 595
Laminate petal flower necklace 270
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Jewellery Designers working nowGrainne Morton
Colour button necklace 230
Charm bracelet 220
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Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933)

• After his father's death (father was Charles
  Lewis Tiffany, co founder of Tiffany Co.) in
  1902, Tiffany became vice president and Design
  Director of Tiffany Co..
• His familiarity with jewellery manufacturing at
  the firm, as well as the collaboration with his
  father on several pieces for the Paris Exposition
  Universelle in 1900, undoubtedly inspired him to
  produce jewellery at his own workshops.
• He began experimenting, in much secrecy, with the
  design and fabrication of jewellery intending to
  introduce his work at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase
  Exposition in St. Louis.
• Tiffany Co. is still a famous jewellers. There
  are stores worldwide. See how the company has
  evolved by looking at slides 24 and 25.

• Tiffany broke new ground with his work in
  jewellery. In the necklaces, brooches, and other
  forms he made, Tiffany, like his counterparts in
  Europe, transformed jewellery from mere jewelled
  ornament to art.
• He used semiprecious stonesopals, moonstones,
  garnets, amethysts, and coralin contrast to the
  precious gems set in pieces by Tiffany and
  Company. The semiprecious stones embodied the
  properties that he valued in other media.
• The milky quality of moonstones, for example,
  resembled his creamy opalescent glass, and the
  fiery glow of opals, the glowing iridescent
  surfaces of his Favrile vases. Tiffany set the
  stones in novel and inventive ways, often in
  combination with colour, combining one or two
  hues with subtle variations.

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Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933)

• Beginning in 1907 jewellery designed by Tiffany
  and fabricated under his direction was made at
  the workshops of Tiffany and Company, where
  production was supervised by Julia Munson, who
  had transferred from the enamels department at
  Tiffany Furnaces.

• When Munson retired in 1914, her post was filled
  by Meta K. Overbeck. Tiffany, who valued the
  dexterity and skill that women demonstrated in
  delicate handwork, staffed the jewelelry
  department predominately with female designers
  and artisans.

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Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933)
This hair ornament is one of the most
extraordinary pieces of Tiffany's jewellery to
survive, incorporating a remarkably realistic
rendering of two dragonflies resting on two
dandelion puffs, or seed balls. Thematically
characteristic of his work, it shows the plants
not at the height of bloom, but in a natural
fading state, just before the seed pods are blown
away. Remarkably, one of the puffs is portrayed
as already partially stripped of its pods. The
dragonflies, a familiar Tiffany motif, feature
shimmering black opals along the back and in an
almost unbelievable creation in metal filigree,
gossamer like wings. The hair ornament was
originally owned by one of Tiffany's most ardent
patrons, Louisine W. Havemeyer.
Hair ornament , ca. 1904Louis Comfort Tiffany
(18481933)AmericanPlatinum, enamel, black and
pink opals, garnets, H. 3 1/4 in. (8.3 cm)The
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New YorkGift of
Linden Havemeyer Wise, in memory of Louisine W.
Havemeyer, 2002 (2002.620)
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Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933)
This necklace composed of grape clusters and
leaves is one of the rare examples of Tiffany's
earliest jewellery. Tiny circular black opals
represent the fruit, and enamelling in shades of
green on gold forms the delicate shimmering
leaves. It was among the twenty-seven pieces that
Tiffany made for exhibition at the Louisiana
Purchase Exposition in St. Louis in 1904. The
necklace was a gift to the Museum from Sarah E.
Hanley, Tiffany's nurse and later companion, to
whom he must have presented it.
Necklace, ca. 1904 Louis Comfort Tiffany
(18481933)AmericanOpals, gold, and enamel, L.
18 in. (45.7 cm)The Metropolitan Museum of Art,
New YorkGift of Sarah E. Hanley, 1946 (46.168.1)
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Background to Art Nouveau (style of Tiffany
jewellery)

• Art Nouveau was a late 19th Century international
  design movement (trend). The timeline for Art
  Nouveau was mid 1880s to approx 1910.
• Art Nouveau involved design, architecture and the
  decorative arts.

• Art Nouveau used the natural world as inspiration
  for designs. Flowers, leaves and birds are
  common features of work.

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Background to Art Nouveau (style of Tiffany
jewellery)

• Words used to describe Art Nouveau work
• Decorative
• Elegant
• Ornamental
• Elongated shapes (tall as if stretched)
• Flowing lines
• Stylish
• Natural motifs (images)
• Detailed

• Designers whose work was in this style are as
  follows
• Louis Comfort Tiffany 1848-1933 (jewellery, lamps
  and glassware)
• Charles Rennie Mackintosh 1868-1928
  (architecture, furniture, textile design,
  interior design, painting)
• Antoni Gaudi 1852-1926 (architecture)
• Emile Galle 1846-1904 (glass and furniture)
• Rene Lalique 1827-1886 (jewellery and glassware)

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This is Tiffany jewellery as sold today. Find
out more by visiting www.tiffany.com/uk
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More jewellery as sold today
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Glossary of jewellery terms

• Amulet something worn to protect a person
  against disease, misfortune or witchcraft.
• Bakelite first synthetic plastic invented in
  1907-09. Used a lot in jewellery of the
  1920s and 1930s.
• Cameo jewel decorated with a carved design in
  low relief (slightly raised from the surface).
  Usually the design is a profile of a person
  (the side of their head).
• Costume jewellery
• This is jewellery that is made from
  non-precious materials. It is often made to
  look like expensive jewellery but is not
  expensive to buy.
• Diamante non-precious stones that have the look
  of diamonds. Often found in costume jewellery.
• Enamel opaque (cant see through it) substance
  similar to glass. Used to decorate the surface
  of metal.

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Glossary of jewellery terms

• Fibula a type of brooch similar to a safety pin.
• Hallmark stamp on gold or silver which guarantees
  the metals purity.
• Lapidary related to the cutting, polishing and
  engraving of gems and stones.
• Paste glass made to look like gemstones.
• Repousse back of metal punched to create a relief
  (raised) design on the front.
• Setting the space where a stone (diamond,
  gemstones) would be positioned or held.