What they are Jeweler: Someone who sells jewelry. Even at Kmart. Goldsmith: Someone who has declared themselves such. Skill is not required. Artist:: Someone who thinks that what they make is Art Craftsperson: Someone who is not sure if what they make is Art or not.
Mr. Don Rogers, Your definitions were the funniest thing I have read
in a long time and I couldn’t agree with you more. Thanks so much
for that much needed belly laugh.
Now I have another thing that I would like to have defined by some
of you Orchidians that are in the production side of the jewelry
world or just have an opinion.
The term (Modelmaker). In my opinion, like other things that we all
have, is a very mis-used term in the world of production jewelry. It
has been my experience that most people that carve a wax or
fabricates in some metal with the intent of making duplicates for
resale calls themselves a “modelmaker”.
My definition of a “modelmaker” is first, one that can carve a wax
or fabricate in some metal a part that matches the look of the
original artwork and matches the weight parameters of the sales part
of the organization. They can also do a constructive critique of the
artwork in technical sense in order to enhance the function, not the
look, of a piece and to match the issues of look and weight. They
know, understand and apply the laws of physics with regard to
directional solidification and proper metal flow, if casting. They
apply proper geometry with regard to production stone setting and
polishing. In some cases they are also prepared to consider
chemistry where the alloy or some other production processes demands
chemical consideration. Most of what I would call a true
“modelmaker” came up through the ranks and have actually experienced
the production of jewelry firsthand. While it is possible, I would
consider it rare and not likely cost effective to be able to train
someone to be a modelmaker unless they came from a previous
production manufacturing environment. According to my definition, I
have only experienced a handful of true modelmakers. Most of the
folks that I have come into contact with have been very creative,
highly skilled, fabricators with varying degrees of production
consideration.
The reason that I ask is because I have spent the past several years
teaching “technical model-making”. Very little time is actually
spent teaching metal fabrication techniques. Normally I am called to
companies because they are experiencing recurring defects that they
just can’t seem to run down. Normally there are the typical issues
that are related to their process engineering, routings, maintenance,
and equipment that are “relatively” easy to fix with a little time.
The real work tends to migrate towards working with the “experienced
modelmakers”. The concepts and considerations of applied physics,
geometry, and chemistry are not particularly difficult to explain or
understand. It is the term “experienced” that so often seems to get
in the way. Many experienced people seem to forget the paradigm
that, “if you always do what you have always done, you will always
get what you have always had.” If production facilities have
dedicated repair departments for their own production, then they may
want to rethink some of their “comfortable” things. So, I am asking
for your opinions and thought concerning the term “modelmaker”.
Best Intentions, J. Tyler Teague JETT Research
(Jewelry Engineering, Training, & Technology)