Tag Archives: custom design

The Making of a Masterpiece V

An exceptional 32 carat Siberian amethyst custom cut by John Dyer

by Richard W. Wise, G.G.

In the old days an apprentice goldsmith was required to submit a finished work, sort o final exam and thesis in metal to prove his skills and worthiness to hold the title of master goldsmith. This work was known as a masterpiece.

Per usual at R. W. Wise, a client’s purchase of a particularly beautiful gemstone began the journey. The stone, a fairly large custom cut amethyst measuring 24 x 19mm, a tad large for a ring, practically begged to be made into a brooch. In consultation with our client, it was decided that it would be a combination piece that would be wearable as both a pendant and a brooch.

The client is particularly drawn to designs from The Art Nouveau Period (1890-1910). Le art nouveau, literally the new art, evolved from the Arts & Crafts Movement (1860-1880), really a philosophy as much as a movement that put great emphasis on naturalistic design, hand craftsmanship and the use of honest materials.

A 18k gold, plique a jour pendant by Art Nouveau master Lucien Gautrait. R. W. Wise Collection. Photo: Jeff Scovil

Art Nouveau jewelers retained the design concept but pulled out the stops when it came to use of materials. Drawing inspiration from ancient Celtic and Gothic designs, jewelry of this period are executed with naturalistic, often fantastical females and floral designs featuring asymmetrical whiplash like filigree. Art Nouveau designs are often quite intricate, made extensive use of enameling as well as exotic gemstones of all colors.

From Concept to Completion:

The Concept:

As with all custom design, the first step is the concept. The client supplied us with pictures of period designs. Master goldsmith Michael Corneau then reinterpreted the design ideas into a pendant/brooch that would frame the gemstone.

The finished sketch. The empty center is precisely the size of the gemstone. At the upper left the designer holds a narrow piece of shaped 18k gold wire the first section of the piece. Photo: Amy Judd

Execution:

Once the sketch is approved, we move on to execute the design. In this case the construction involved a large number of individually shaped elements.

The following images illustrate the construction process:

A series of tiny shapes, cut out, filed and fitted, then laser welded. Photo: Amy Judd

Soldering the elements. Photo: Amy Judd

Working with the flexible shaft tool, shaping and smoothing. Photo: Amy Judd

The finished Piece:

18k Art Nouveau style brooch with 32 carat Deep Siberian amethyst. Photo: Robert Weldon

The Making of A Masterpiece IV; Dendritic Agate Pendant/brooch

Hand & Eye:

The creation of a work of art is a process. Sketches are made, revised and a final design decided upon. However, during the course of the process, things change.

One of the larger questions in deciding on the final design for this pendant/brooch, was the complexity and placing of the appliques of white gold on the yellow gold surface of the pendant frame. These tiny branch like elements are meant to echo the natural pattern of dendritic inclusions in the agate itself (image left). The formation and cutting of this rare type of agate is the subject of the article below by Tarun Adlakah.

Both the designer, Michael Corneau and I agreed that too much applique would be too fussy. The question was, how do you minimize this design element without the result looking half-done. Michael came up with a couple of ideas, once the piece was in process figured out a better design which neither of us had discussed.

The finished piece was completely handmade from sheet gold using a saw, hammer, torch and laser welder. This method, known as hand fabrication is the true “handmade” method. The term is tossed about pretty liberally and often used to describe one of a kind pieces made in wax then cast by the lost wax method (cire perdu), but in my view unless you work in the metal itself, the piece cannot be said to be truly handmade.

A majority of the tools used in this process are hundreds if not thousands of years old. Some of the tools, such as the bow-drill featured below can be seen on tomb paintings from ancient Egypt. The laser welder is a new and very expensive tool. It was invented about twenty years ago and allows for precise cold-joining. It is particularly useful for adding the tiny filigree like elements pictured above

Poetry In Stone

by Tarun Adlakha

There are many legends surrounding the discovery of these stones and are mostly fables but it was around 400 years ago that the first documented records of their occurrence can be traced back to. A chance discovery gave birth to this lapidary art that flourished in the reign of the Chandela King Chhatrasal.

There are two primary occurrences of these stones spread over an area of about 50 kms radius in West Central India. The primary occurrence is of secondary river bed deposits in one of the tributaries of the Narmada river that has been weathered down by water and is a regenerating source after the annual post monsoon floods and is often associated with the transparent and more finely imprinted stones while the second inland source is associated with the translucent stones which are again sub characterized according to the regional peculiarities and are mined from the grey green volcanic ash beds at the depths of 40-85 feet.

Chemically these agates are quartz nodules with atypical banding and occasional druzy hearts with a hardness of around 7 on the Moh’s scale. Some nodules have yellow skins though that is again not a typical feature. The impressions though are still a scientific debate though most opinions point to the purely inorganic depositions of iron, magnesium and tin ions while a smaller school of thought believes that these were organic material replaced by ion exchange process over millions of years by inorganic metal salts and agatized.

The cutting process despite the advent of the gem saws has still remained the same for the last 400 years. The finally sorted stones are then sent to the master cutters who use a length of bow string coated with silicon carbide mounted on a wooden stand to slowly grind layer by layer until the dendrite bearing layer is reached. It is a painstaking process because the layers are very fine and the dendritic impressions even finer and not more than a few microns thick. One wrong stroke and a beautiful gem is ruined.

Custom Design, Why Bother?

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Recently I had a spirited discussion with a client about custom design. She was interested in buying a fine stone, but really could not see any value in a handmade setting. I grew up in a generation that valued the work of the hand. When we first opened our business in 1978, we basically worked as custom goldsmiths. We made an awful lot of wedding rings for clients interested in having a unique symbol of their unique relationship.

Today, use the words “handmade original” and the client’s eyes glaze over. Nobody cares, its really all about name brands and low prices. “If it isn’t Cartier how can I get it cheaper?” There is also some confusion about the words, custom design, some people think that it is synonymous with handmade, which it is not.

Why Is Handmade Better Made?

Good question. Why would I rather have a badly handmade ring in preference to a well made production piece? The answer is, I wouldn’t. However, assuming a fine craftsman and a well crafted mass-produced piece, whats the diff?

The art is in the process. You buy a fine sapphire and you want a three stone ring. When a craftsman makes a piece of jewelry the process itself is part of the creative effort. As any craftsperson will tell you, during the making process the piece begins to speak to you in many subtle ways.

Consider the center stone. Enhancement is part of the jeweler’s art and the crafting of the actual setting is very important. I have seen gems made more brilliant or deadened by the setting. A goldsmith can build a setting that will make the color deeper or lighter or increase or decrease its brilliance and scintillation. If you have a $10,000 stone, spending an extra $500 to make it look like a $15,000 stone makes a certain amount of sense. Recently we reset a 7 3/4 carat Burma sapphire. The stone was valued in the six figures. The setting actually made the already rich blue hue, even richer.

Computer Aided Custom Design:

The Lotus. One of our signature settings. Much more graceful than the standard four prong head, the Lotus can be shaped to correct any light leakage from the pavilion of the gemstone and improve the hue/saturation and tone and actually increase the brilliance and scintillation of some gems.

Can a computer do custom design? Certainly, but it rarely does. A Computer Aided Design CAD program is only as good as the person manipulating it and that person is rarely a designer or master craftsman. Just as an image drawn with a pencil and one painted with a brush looks different, a CAD design even when created by a talented designer, always bears the signature of the machine

Most “custom design” offered by commercial jewelers differs little from the process of selecting parts from a catalog, a center setting from column A, a shank from column B. The difference is the parts are stored in a CAD library—a few mouse clicks and you have it—out pops a wax. Commercial jewelers have embraced this technology, it saves having it in inventory.

Enhancement is part of the jeweler’s art. The Lotus Setting pictured above is a good case in point. This is one of our signature settings. It can be shaped and proportioned to correct light leakage from the pavilion (bottom) of the gemstone. Properly engineered (shaped and angled) the lotus can enhance the color (hue, saturation and tone) of a gem and/or pump up the brillance and scintillation of the gem. In the sapphire ring at the top of this post you can see a square lotus that looks quite different from the drawing. Can a lotus be made by machine? Yes, but without the subtle engineering that requires the hand and eye of a master, it’s just another pretty face.

Custom handmade pieces are the creme de la creme of fine jewelry. Art is a process that speaks to the maker. Computer Aided Design (CAD) may technically fit the definition of custom but it rarely more than construction by catalog and it will never replace the eye and the hand of a fine artist/craftsman.