The confluence of events that trigger my thoughts are often marked by odd coincidences. Kathy wanted to do a presentation (at one of our staff meetings) about the development of a course in Jewelry/Decorative Arts History being offered in Boston. The “inspiration” for the course came out of an observation, by many involved in the design of jewelry, that contemporary students of jewelry design tend to be just that, contemporary. As their work inevitably draws on techniques with a history of use going back more than 3,000 years, this seemed short sighted; hence the course. I got involved when she asked me to define the difference between the decorative arts and jewelry. My mouth open and closed a few times, but nothing intelligible came out; so I repaired to my trusty (more or less) computer. Wikipedia offered this definition, “ornamental and functional works in ceramic, wood, glass, metal or textile” – to which I would add stone. The crux of the difference, as jewelry is and has been made out of all of these materials, lies entirely in the substance of “function”. A work of decorative art must do something, anything, from serving as a structural column, a match holder (more than a century ago Faberge made a few animal caricature sandstone sculptures that served to hold matches and also offered a striking surface) to covering walls (Salvador Dali is reputed to have done at least one of these). A piece of jewelry doesn’t have to do anything “practical”, nor indeed must it be artful; its function is emotional.Think of rings for a moment. A simple solitaire setting has little art to it; it just allows the owner to wear a gem. Some rings, however, burst with their designer’s energies, expressed in their shapes and embellishments; and these designs almost invariably owe their origin to the larger world around them. One of our designers, Bergio, attributes some of his design inspiration to his interest in painting, sculpture and the decorative arts (you can ask him more about it when he’s here for an appearance in September); and it is this last that leads me to the next coincidence – a late Victorian brooch. It became part of my world when it was brought to us for repair; and as fate would have it, it was in the store when Kathy asked her question. It was a family piece, but the current owners knew little about it. Innocently, they asked my opinion of it. Looking to its markings, its mode of manufacture, the abundance of diamonds with which it was set and their cutting style I identified it as American in origin and probably made between the middle 1870s and the middle 1890s. That was all based on experience, but I didn’t consider the details of its shape. It had a clearly, if somewhat stylized, floral character that was “different” from the formal pieces of jewelry made earlier in the century; but what must have been its inspiration? A little thought and a little research led me to back to decorative arts, the Arts and Crafts movement. It overlapped the time in which I’d thought the piece had been made and in the U.S., at any rate, the movement espoused “simple but refined aesthetics” (Wikipedia again). That fit the description of the brooch; but now I needed to test my hypothesis, so I called Singer for confirmation. The firm specializes in estate jewelry (they’ll be here for a show in November); and though, when I discussed the details of manufacture with them, they agreed with me in large measure, their expert made an interesting observation. The brooch is currently set with 20 diamonds (totaling about 1.30 carats) surrounding a large cabochon opal; and when I mentioned to Singer that the head for the opal had been neatly soft soldered in (with lead, not gold solder), Singer’s expert remarked that the opal was probably a later substitution. In her experience, most such brooches made for America’s newly well to do middle class of the late 19th century would have had a large diamond in the center. As I re-examined the piece, nothing more need be said. The center would have accommodated nothing less than a 2 carat diamond. It seemed clear to me that some prior owner had been less interested in the “artfulness” of an “old fashioned” piece of jewelry than he or she had been interested in displaying a large diamond. Decorative arts had lost the inning to conspicuous display.

I guess it’s all about your perspective on jewelry. For many it is conspicuous display, for others it is fashion; and for the few it is excellence in craftsmanship, defined today by Hearts On Fire. It is meticulously cut by hand, by master diamond cutters, to the very highest standards of polish, proportions and symmetry. It is the world’s most perfectly cut diamond; and all that artful diamond cutting adds up to just one thing, incredible beauty. The Hearts On Fire blazes with light and flashes with passion; so as a statement of your love, no other diamond will say it so well. It’s just the best, most beautiful there is. Check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the Hearts On Fire that says it all for you. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers and our job is realizing your dreams.