The world in black and white - a jewelry designer point of view

Lately, I find myself attracted more and more to black and white.

Moonlight and a palm tree in our garden, photographed by Amy Kanka Valadarsky 

Months ago, when writing the post on silver jewelry, I wrote about the specific characteristic of silver that allows to turn its color to black.
I found a few pieces that demonstrated this beautifully......but did not really use this in my work.
I started spending more and more time looking for ways to emphasize the shape and texture of my pieces.
And not surprisingly, the more I worked on this, the less color I used.

Our bedroom window. The drape is almost transparent.
The beautiful shadows almost invisible ... unless shown
in black and white.
Photographed by Amy Kanka Valadarsky

Color has a way of demanding attention to itself. And rightfully so, since it can be sooooo beautiful - but this comes at a price. It steals attention from the more subtle aspects, the ones that do not shout, they only whisper...

In parallel to my jewelry work, I started to photograph.
Not just my jewelry pieces, but really start using the camera to get another angle of the world.

Unlike working on a piece of jewelry, that can take days to complete, in our digital era, 'creating' a photo takes seconds.

Results are immediate, there is no real cost of making a mistake ( ...most of the time).

So here I am, camera in hand, finding myself photographing light. Trying to capture the essence of places, of people. And slowly.....moving from color photos....to black and white.

My beloved adopted granddaughter, Alma. Look at the beauty of her eye-lashes.
The delicacy of a single strand of hair on her forehead.
Nothing, including the pink dress distracts you from seeing it - in a black and white photo.
Photographed by Amy Kanka Valadarsky

There is nothing like black and white to emphasize light and shades, the purity of a contour, to make us look, really look at the picture without being hijacked to the 'ah....what a beautiful sunset'.

My stepdaughter, Ayelet.
Would you notice the freckles if you would have the sunset colors in the background?
Photographed this one evening on the beach

 Sterling silver pendant

Back to my jewelry workbench - molding a dry cactus leaf into necklaces.

Realizing for the thousand's time how nature is the best artist of all.

How can I show these artful veins to their best advantage? You guessed right.

Black and white.

Working with silver, oxidizing it to a pitch black shade, then polishing it to reveal the shiny silver color on the upper part of the veins - and here it is.

Another version of the cactus leaf pendant
Immediately grabbed by my dear husband :)

Nature's art -
I'm just there to make it wearable.

Did I mention I am falling in love with black and white????
How about you?

Until next post,
Have a wonderful time

Amy

Gentle Strength - A jewelry collection by AKVjewelry

Gentle Strength

....the kind of strength that comes from within and manifests itself as radiance and joy
......that comes from living your life from the inside out
.........when thoughts, words and acts are aligned

Gentle Strength - expressed as pieces of wearable art.
The birth of a jewelry collection

Sterling silver and Yellow diamonds necklace

....where the sinuous lines create the flowing appearance as well as the structural strength
........where we are reminded of the greatest strength of all -
the regenerative power of nature,
symbolically represented as leaves, buds and spirals

Buds, leaves and sinuous lines - The pure silver necklace

Understated strength,
the kind that does not need to shout to assert itself,
represented by a monochrome palette of colors:
silvery grey, the quiet shine of colored yellow and brown diamonds

A peek of emeralds, a silver spiral

And a touch of color - Emerald green.

Emeralds with the most beautiful, intense and radiant green.

The color of life and springtime,
the color of Venus, the Roman goddess of beauty and love.

Gentle Strength.








Slowly but surely, like a budding tree - out of sketches new pieces are born.

A ring sketch

A few already in full bloom - shining with precious stones.

Many more in bud, sketched ideas
needing more time to gather strength before opening up to the world

The beginnings of a jewelry collection.

Gentle Strength





Available pieces:
Pure silver necklace
Silver and Yellow diamonds necklace
Silver and Emeralds necklace
Silver post earrings

Wishing you a wonderful day,
bye
Amy

The story of a jewelry collection, "Gentle Strenght" - The concept

Nandina buds in my garden 

For most of us, the first encounter with a jewelry collection is when we see it in a store, boutique or gallery.

For the maker of the pieces - this is the last mile in a fascinating journey.

Starting to work on a new collection, and decided to document the process.

Every collection has a starting point. An idea, an inspiration.

This collection is a bit different, as it is a personal statement rather than a design exercise around a theme.

"Gentle strength"

Lalique at its best - hair adornment
so delicate, yet functional and strong 

Its starting point?

The deepest source lies in my memories of father's gentle strength and calm. 

It is influenced by my love of nature. Looking at the tiny buds on the trees – you can only wonder how can something so delicate and fragile, face the spring winds – and still blossom.

It definitely has something to do with the deep admiration I have of Art Nouveau jewelry, and the genius of Lalique – but this is not new to those who read my previous post.

here it is if you missed it

I believe that jewelry, as a piece of wearable art - can be more than aesthetically pleasing.

It can reflect our beliefs as well as our style.

Jewelry can talk.

It can tell the world, in graceful lines and precious metal that true strength does not have to be aggressive,

Or pushy, or loud

That shouting – is not the only way, maybe not even the best way to make yourself heard

That if there is a lesson to learn from nature, it is that strength comes in many shapes and forms

To quote Henry David Thoreau:

“The finest workers in stone are not copper or steel tools, but the gentle touches of air and water working at their leisure with a liberal allowance of time.”

So there it is,

The root concept, the design compass for the emerging jewelry collection

“Gentle strength”

The graceful shape of ' snow bells'. When I was a child in Romania -
a close relative of this flower was the first to emerge from the snow. 

Who do I envision wearing it?

A woman who intuitively understands that delicacy and gentleness can be signs of strength.

Who does not feel the need to show off, but wants to express herself - 

in what she does, what she says, and yes….also in the choice of jewelry she wears.

A woman who will not spend 20,000$ on a necklace, but will also stay away from a cheap pair of Chanel imitation earrings. 

A woman who is gentle and strong at the same time.

Do you know such woman?

It is with her in mind, that I start designing the pieces in my new collection.

“Gentle strength”

Drawing in the studio

Returning to my workbench, to sketch (I have pages of sketches already…),

make models and start molding this concept in precious metal.

Will share the ideas in the next part ....

As always, comments, thoughts, stories ideas – welcome to share with me either here or on my facebook page www.facebook.com/akvjewelry

Bye for now,

Amy

When art talks - the language of texture

A Sterling Silver necklace by AKVjewelry 

A soft bathrobe, a rough stone, a vintage filigree brooch, a Van Gogh painting - 

what do they have in common?

Texture. 

It sets the mood, invokes memories and feelings - in a subtle, almost unconscious way.

Texture, as a language, a way of communicating – picked my interest when I started to experiment with molten metal and the wonderful texture it creates.

Since then, I started noticing the crucial role texture plays in communicating messages in the world of art.

Irises, by Van Gogh

Take for example my beloved Van Gogh.

A few weeks ago, at the Los Angeles Getty Center, I was able to stand as close as it gets without actually touching - to some of his wonderful paintings.

Look at texture of this painting and the energy it projects – it speaks volumes of the stormy feelings inside the painter.

It almost feels like Van Gogh was compelled to paint it - it was his way to manage internal storms.

Is it a wonder he painted so much - sometimes a painting a day?

Another corner of this wonderful painting. Just look at the earth.
It lives and breathes

Can you imagine how different his paintings would be in watercolors?

Keep the colors, even use the same brushstrokes – just take away the texture.

In Van Gogh's case, I think, texture acts in a similar way to body language. It reveals so much about his inner world.

The other time I was amazed by how expressive texture can be, was when I visited the Accademia museum in Florence Italy.

The corridor in the Accademia museum 

Tenths of people, standing in line to get into the museum and see one of the most famous sculptures in the world -  David by Michelangelo. 

David stands at the end of a small gallery – demanding your attention from the minute you walk in.

But despite its beauty, what caught my attention were 4 unfinished sculptures – the slaves.

'The awakening'

Commissioned by Pope Julius as part of a majestic tomb he was planning for himself - plans which ironically - were changed by his ...death.

'Atlas'

Michelangelo never finished the slave sculptures.

You can see the powerful body, the taught muscles, the huge calf or shoulder - but the body is trapped in the stone.

Rough, heavy, immovable stone. 

You can FEEL the slaves are trying to break away, but are imprisoned in stone, held by everlasting marble chains.

While I am sure these sculptures would have been magnificent if finished – I think the sense of being trapped into a situation you cannot escape from – could never be as powerfully conveyed as it is today by these unfinished masterpieces.

To me, the use of texture in art and jewelry making in particular - unveiled a new and fascinating language.

The first time I consciously used texture in my jewelry making, was in my branches collection, where I leveraged the reticulation technique to create abstract winter pictures of tree branches and snow.

A necklace from my 'Winter Branches' collection
https://www.etsy.com/il-en/listing/150817225/square-silver-pendant-necklace?ref=listing-shop-header-3

Lately, started to play with different ways of using texture as means to convey a natural, worn, stand the test of time kind of feeling.

Learning the alphabet of textures, and starting to spell my own words.

Form kept simple, colors provided by purple plant and rain.
Texture takes center stage

As always, glad to hear your comments and thoughts –

.....wishing you a great end to 2013, and a wonderful 2014 :)

Amy

From sketch to the finished jewelry piece - join me in my studio!

Handmade fine jewelry, artisan jewelry, one of a kind....
What does it really mean?
What does it take to create a unique piece of jewelry?

Want to take a look behind the scenes, see how I create my jewelry pieces?
Here is a short video for you



Like it?
I hope so.

I would also like to let you know, that for one week only, starting THIS Wednesday, until December 3rd
ALL items in my store are at 25% off AND free shipping worldwide.

Yes, including these flower baskets!

No better time than now, to take a look at my ETSY store and get your favorite piece of jewelry at a reduced price.

Click here to find your new favorite piece of handmade fine jewelry!

Bye,
Amy

Lalique - the art, the artist and ....the moon

Brooch by Rene Lalique

 It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words.
And in the case of Rene Lalique's work - no words can really describe the exquisite beauty of his art pieces.
However,
this is also one of the cases where it is worth going beyond admiring the art and realize the greatness of the artist.

Rene Lalique was a rare individual: he possessed the ability to pursue and excel in two distinct careers, initially as an exclusive jewelry designer and later as the creator of stunning commercial glassware. - this is how Eric Knowles starts his review of Lalique.

Cicadas

Even more remarkable, is the fact that Lalique's career spanned two artistic periods - the Art Nouveau and the Art Deco - and while he remained loyal to his famous 3 'F' inspiration sources (fauna, flora and female) - his designs evolved and were at the leading edge of both artistic styles.

A gold enamel and opal wooded landscape plaque
inset with diamonds

Above and beyond these facts, there are two things which make Lalique a very unique artist.

The first one is his ability to innovate and reinvent the fundamental assumptions of both jewelry and glass arts.

Just think about it for a moment:

Would it occur to you to value a painting based on the price of the paint and canvass used to create it? Sounds silly, right?

But in the jewelry domain, what is more obvious than to price the piece based on the material it's made of?

Lillies of the valley,
horn, gold, opaque enamel on gold hair comb. 

Lalique challenged this concept.
While he used gold and diamonds in his creations, he loved semiprecious stones, in particular Opals.

He used enamel, glass and bronze in his jewelry pieces - and created a new standard for judging a piece's worth -
the artistic merit rather than the materials used.

Jewelry becomes Art, not just decorative art.

His innovations in the jewelry field included the use of non-traditional materials, for example horn, as well as technical innovations such as its transparent enamel technique - 'plique-a-jour'.

Which brings me to the second reason I admire Lalique's genius.

The kiss. Brooch in silver and pressed glass.

Swans vase. Blown glass in silver mount.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Lalique mastered two distinct mediums. To most of us, there is very little in common between metal and glass, but let's take a closer look.
Enamel is a vitreous material, basically glass powder.
Lalique's work with glass, started when he perfected his Enamel technique. At some point he started incorporating sculpted glass pieces in his jewelry.
But his innovative mind did not stop there.
He mastered the lost wax technique used in jewelry from antiquity, and applied it to glass - producing vases with unbelievable detail - not really achievable in any other way.
Remember the Opals he loved? - He experimented until he achieved the same type of opalescent effect in glass making use of the interplay between light and the glass transparency

Peacock bodice front. Gold, enamel, opal and brilliants

While there are quite a few artists that mastered more than one medium - take geniuses like Michelangelo as an example - few were able to blend them in such an innovative and creative way.  

Bacchantes. Lalique's famous sculpted glass vase

Two peacocks table lamp. Glass.

Hunt centerpiece, glass

One of Lalique's famous perfume bottles. Another innovation
as until his time, you would buy perfume in plain bottles and
pour it into your decorative bottle.

Are you familiar with the saying:

"Shoot for the moon and if you miss, you will still be among the stars" ?

Well, if there was even an artist I would set as "my" moon - this would be Lalique.

And the stars in this case, are still very far away - but definitely a worthy target.

This post was inspired by a long weekend my husband and I spent in France recently.
While the official reason for this trip was a family wedding, some of its highlights were seeing Lalique's work.

If you are in France, go see the 'Museum des Art Decoratifs' in Paris as well as Lalique's Museum in Wingen-sur-Moder.

Here are the relevant links:
This is the museum in Paris: http://www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr/english-439/
This is Lalique museum in Alsace region: http://www.musee-lalique.com/en

Suzanne. An opalescent statuette, fitted for illumination

Hope you enjoyed the read,

bye for now

Amy

Through the bead hole - A peek at the fascinating world of beads

A necklace of hand-blown seed beads made beginning
of 20th century I purchased in Venice. Saved for special events :-) 

Venice is the place where I fell in love with beads.
I was taking a beading class at the time, still working full time as a senior manager of an international company. I was so busy learning beading techniques, that I did not really paid much attention to the beads.
A short vacation in Venice and continuous immersion in its colors, history and Murano glass art - and I was hooked, addicted to these little glass beauties named beads.





And when I am hooked - I start reading and collecting (yes, I did come back with a small collection of Murano beads - the necklace below is a result of this trip :-))

Murano beads with dark blue Swarovsky - some of the beads I collected in Venice
turned into a beautiful necklace I named 'Midnight Blue'
you can see it in my Etsy store now

When it comes to beads, the more I read and learn, the more amazed I am at the universe of beauty and symbolism called 'beads'.

A string of rare beads on eBay, priced at over 600$!

This post is just a peek, into a tremendously rich and fascinating world of beads.
I have asked Sheila McLaughin and her daughter Shannon - owners of BeadyEyedBird on Etsy and bead collectors for many years to share with us some of the magic this world holds for them.







Question: Sheila, what attracted you to beads in the first place?
Sheila: Years ago, Shannon my daughter gave me a necklace she made, using a carved bead of a sweet-faced squirrel monkey (an animal I had as a beloved pet for many years). This has been a treasured necklace for all years since then.
Watching Shannon collect beads and natural stones, I have come to love the universe of beauty reflected in objects of adornment.

Old Russian beads from www.beadsky.com

Question: Can you share with us some little known facts about beads?
Sheila: I don't think people realize how highly prized beads have been historically, and even in the present day. Used for trade for many centuries, even today there are beads valued at hundred of thousands of dollars. One story goes that Manhattan was bought by the Dutch for ...24$ worth of beads. Whether true or not, this is an interesting anecdote showing the importance of beads, and well worth reading at 'Manhattan-sold-for-24$' 

Trade beads 1800 till mid 1900 from www.timestreams.com

Being used for trade, the location where beads were found, provides valuable information about ancient trade and trade routes.
But the story that beads tell us, goes way beyond trade routs.






Quoting Lois Sherr Doubin, author of 'The history of beads' -

"Beads so often mirror the culture of which they are part that they tell us a great deal about the social, political, economic and religious life of the people who have made and worn them."

Ritual specialist in Madagascar, photo by Kus Susan

To me, one of the most fascinating aspects of the bead world is their use in rituals, as well as the magic and curative power associated with them.
All across the world, thousands of miles apart, beads were (and are) used in rituals - whether wedding ceremonies in the Philippines or insuring the future of newly built houses in Colombia.
Believe it or not, beads were sometimes used as fees for passage to afterlife!






When I asked Sheila to share a 'bead story' that touched her heart, the one she mentioned was about Kate Diprose, a 3 year old girl who diagnosed with cancer - fought her way to health - encouraged by people all over the world who sent her beads to congratulate her for her struggle and survival through this terrible disease. Read more about it at ' beads of courage'.

Ancient beads, Indus Valley civilization, 2600 - 1900 BC

I do not know about you, but from now on, whenever I will see a beaded necklace, I will always look for the story behind it.
What is the story it tells about the person who made the beads?
The one who made the necklace?
About its wearer?
Was it meant to help someone heal? A memoir from an unforgettable vacation?
I think that if we will look deep enough, we may find unexpected stories in deceptively simple 'string of beads'

I would like to close this post, by thanking Sheila and her daughter Shannon for the information they shared with me, and if you became a bit more interested in beads now - here is where you can 'meet' them:
Web page
Etsy store
Facebook page

Until next post,
bye
Amy

Good reasons to fall in love with silver jewelry ....and I am NOT talking about price

I have to confess that until two years ago, I never wore silver jewelry.
Delicate gold chains, the standard thin gold ring, occasionally a small pair of gold earrings.
Then, I started to create jewelry, and fell in love with silver.
Not just as a designer - but as a woman who appreciates beautiful things.

Why, you ask?

Well, if you look for a piece of jewelry that stands out from the crowd
.....chances are it will be in silver
(not many will play creative with gold - better to go safe and create pieces that will sell...)

Bird bath ring by Marie Cianciolo. Sterling silver, 18k gold pearls and diamonds 

Silver, is a jewelry artist dream come true.

It can take a thousand shapes, forms and colors.

It can be formed into wearable sculptures.

Silver ring by Laura Mains

It can be blackened ( oxidized ) and combined with gold for a rustic look

Oxidized silver and gold ring, by Robert Curnow 

It complements natural stones beautifully.

How many gold pieces of jewelry have you seen that showcase amazing stones such as this Ocean Jasper?

Most gold jewelry pieces will be combined with expensive stones only, after all, when someone looks for a gold ring - they look for the Diamond or Sapphire.

My very own silver butterfly pendant, showcasing a forest green Ocean Jasper wing

The fact that silver is a less costly material to work with, drives artists to combine it with different metals.

Here is a beautiful ring where silver is combined with copper and brass using a special technique called Mokume Gane.

 

Mokume Gane ring by Dafna Dagan

And surprise, surprise - lately more and more artists start combining silver with diamonds.

Silver and colored diamonds, in particular, create a wonderful naturalistic combination.

Alligator cuffs in sterling silver with brown diamonds by Pedro Boregard 

Yes, I can hear you say, but silver tarnishes with age. 

You are right, it does. 

But is this necessarily a problem?

Soft, muted finished silver jewelry, only gains in beauty as time passes.

To quote designer Christine Huber

"...when silver oxidizes with time, it subtly suggests the aging and survival of a relationship....seeing a woman wearing a blackened ring with diamonds, suggests the longevity and endurance of a loving relationship"

How can you not fall in love with this?

I can't.

Would love to hear from you, so leave your comments below and let me know:

Do you own silver jewelry?

Are you tempted to look for your special piece now?

Anything you would like to ask, or know more about?

Can't wait to hear from you,

Amy