Maybe the jewelry shows ought to set themselves up like the
Olympics: “Jewelry by Individual Artists”…and “Team
Jewelry”…from design to finished product. (although in the first
category there might be a little problem with stones not cut by the
metalsmith or settings not done by the lapidary). Any ideas on the
subject?
Dee
casting, as I see it, serves as a 'safe & easy' way to marry various components of a design without having to know how to do it with flux, flair, solder, style and - passion.
So, “those who can’t do, cast?” I think many Orchidians - myself
included - will beg to differ. As we recently discussed in the PMC
thread, casting, like PMC, is simply another technique that is
available to us in the jewelry making process. It’s possible to
produce artistically worthless “dreck” through either medium, but it
is equally possible to create beautiful, intricate, well-thought-out
designs. Consider the work of a jeweler who comes up with a
brilliant design, spends days carving the wax, invests and casts the
piece, and then adds constructed elements and stones to create a
fully integrated design. Is this worthless simply because the major
portion of it was made through casting?
I agree that mass-cast, mass-finished pieces that are wholly
produced by a third party have absolutely no place at decent art
shows, but this wasn’t what I was referring to in my earlier post. I
was strictly concerned about castings that are the jeweler’s own
design, wax-carving, and final construction/finishing.
The parallel between castings like these and painters/photographers
selling prints was, I thought, a good one - and I don’t see why
either should not be allowed at shows as long as they follow similar
rules: the cast material should be restricted to a certain (and
rather small) percentage of the work shown (or a certain area of the
booth space) and it should be clearly indicated that it is a
reproduction of an original work. There’s nothing dishonest or
disreput able about selling prints or castings in this manner. By the
same token, I would not expect to sell such castings at a show that
did not allow prints or any other form of reproduction to be sold.
This is clearly an area with many shades of grey…perfect for a
long, drawn-out thread that will spark much discussion.
Best to all,
Jessee Smith
www.silverspotstudio.com
Dear Jewellers of America,
as an Aussie reading the posts on this particular thread, I can only
thank my lucky stars that I was born in Australia, became an
apprentice jeweller fifty one years ago, and am still going strong
and enthusiastically to this day as a professional working jeweller
and designer. I was trained as a diamond mounter - a high class
category of jeweller which is little-known today. 80% of my income is
still derived from handcrafted jewellery made at my bench. Unlike my
American colleagues who seem to have to sell their wares from booths,
tents and shows, my clients come to me seeking my services as a
designer and maker. My work is literally pre-sold at the
design-drawing stage.
All of my pieces are individually designed, but when it comes to
executing the design, I choose the method of manufacture which will
best serve the design. I recently spent over twenty hours on a wax
design for a two carat plus diamond. I simply could not have
hand-forged this particular design from the 18ct yellow gold stock
gauge plate and wire available in Australia. By the time this wax is
cast as a one-off in 18ct yellow gold, and I have added the platinum
components, there will be more than forty hours labour involved.
And it has always been thus. There are things that a professional
jeweller can do in wax that simply cannot be hand-forged, and of
course the reverse is also true. But it would be less than
professional to be too precious about hand-making. Casting from wax
predates handcrafting as we know it by several millennia.
Contemporary casting technology enables outcomes that simply cannot
be achieved by any other method.
Just as laser welding, three dimensional computer-aided wax
modelling and TIG welding procedures have given jewellers wonderful
new tools to create with, so wax modelling and casting are valid
tools for the completely competent jeweller.
I too get peed off with charlatans who present cast knock-offs as
handmade originals, but that’s not the fault of the technology. Isn’t
it great that we have such a forum as Orchid to air these issues!
Kind regards,
Rex Steele Merten
National President
Gold and Silversmiths Guild of Australia
I’m afraid I’m going to have to step up and defend our business,
expertise, art, etc. WARNING: This may be a long and possibly
offensive (to some of you “real” artists/jewelers) post. The thread
originally questioned the validity of people jurying into shows who
have little/no knowledge of, or hand in the processes (apart from
design) which produce the work.
Unfortunately, some people are using the original question as a
premise to judge the artistic validity of processes such as
printmaking and casting. This attitude not only raises a number of
serious questions, it also smacks of elitism, arrogance and some
would say, insecurity on the part of those who feel compelled to
deprecate the work of others because they feel it doesn’t measure up
to their artistic standards.
So where do you get your raw materials? Without smelting and casting
you wouldn’t have any metal to fabricate. Are you using manufactured
jump rings, clasps or other findings? Are you casting your own
ingots, rolling your own sheet, drawing your own wire? Some people
do. Should they be the only ones who can truly claim their work is
original, unique and completely handmade? Lapidary, gem cutting?
Let’s get to the bottom of it. How far and to what end should we
pursue this?
Are you really competing for sales with cast items at a show? If you
truly feel you are, then something is likely wrong with the pricing.
Either the cast pieces are way overpriced or you aren’t charging
enough for your labor when you price your fabricated pieces. Jewelry
is almost always the most saturated and competitive category at art
shows. At a juried show in Durango, CO last weekend, I saw at least 4
artists with fabricated work that in its most basic elements (silver
and bezel mounted cabs or stones, some inlay) was essentially the
same. Don’t get me wrong. It was all very high quality work and
stylistically different enough that they all juried into what has
always been a highly competitive venue. Should a sculptor who does
fabricated work resent the presence of or deprecate the work of
another sculptor who does limited edition bronzes?? Don’t be
ridiculous! They are completely different styles and processes from
completely different artists. Some things will appeal to some people,
different things will appeal to others. Jewelry is no different. I
can assure you that your fabricated pieces are not competing with
cast work.
As far as the “honesty, how-to and heart” that we supposedly lack.
Do you have any idea how much time and talent goes into developing a
final master or wax carving? Making masters, molds and waxes is a big
investment of time, talent and technical skill and there is so much
more to quality casting than simply pouring metal. I consider casting
to be an art unto itself. All of our designs are original and every
single piece is hand-finished. I would guess by the comments made (and
quite possibly be wrong) that neither of the people making the above
statements have ever spent significant time learning the necessary
skills and techniques required to take an image, idea or object
through the design, casting and finishing process. In every step of
this process, Carmon and I spend whatever time is necessary to produce
a product that we are proud to sell to our customers.
I also have pretty damn good fabrication skills (always learning
though!) but I have to limit it to custom or commission work because
the demand for our cast pieces keeps us very busy. I’m proud of my
skills but I would never condemn someone because their work wasn’t
done with “flux, flair, solder, style and - passion”. I mean come on!
Could you be any more pretentious!? That ought to be good for a laugh
with the plumbing and welding crowd. How long have you been doing
this anyway?
The question could also be turned around something like this: How
much skill does it really take to draw some lines on some sheet and
cut it out? Stone setting? Once you know how to do it, it’s not
really all that difficult. Designs? Come on, how much of what you see
or make for that matter is really completely new?
One of the wonderful things about Orchid has always been the open,
free exchange of ideas and When we start making
judgements about the merits of one process or end product versus
another, the end result will be that people will be afraid to ask
questions or share experiences. I mean, my god, what will they think
of me if they find out I’m interested in learning how to carve waxes
or do anticlastic/synclastic forms with dies instead of hammers and
stakes!?
Anyone who thinks they are some sort of extra special human being or
“artiste” because they choose to express themselves with a
particular medium or process is long overdue for a good long look in
the mirror. There is probably a pimple or two overlooked while you
were deciding whether or not the rest of us were worthy of your
validation. Just back up slowly…slowly now…and put down the
beret. Now…hand over the glass of wine.
I’m done.
Mike Dibble
Black Horse Design
www.black-horse-design.com
I remember a time, not all that long ago, when if you were visiting
an area of this country not your own, you could go to a local
gallery and see work not only of that region, but more than likely,
of that immediate neighborhood. Jewelry, glass, pottery, bronzes,
whatever. But times have changed, and everything about the crafts
market (ing) has changed as well.
Now, with the ACE ( American Craft Enterprises) and the Rosen
shows, gallery owners everywhere can go to a ‘regional’ show and
order inventory in the same manner a department store would order
their inventory. “Six in red, six in purple, a dozen blue…”, so
now, “cottage industry” is the name of the game. The artist becomes a
business person, or goes out of business. Wholesale is king, one of
a kind, rare. Employees need to be hired, inventory needs to be
created, marketing to be considered, records need to be kept, all on
different levels, depending on the ambition and financial need of
the ‘artist’.
What is the legitimate minimum hands-on requirement to still be
considered the ‘craftsman’? Who is going to judge? I feel
particularly fortunate that I don’t have to run a production shop,
but I have a friend who has put two sons through private school, has
several employees, works very hard at her craft, and markets through
the big wholesale shows. I admire her ability to keep any balance at
all in her life. Am I judging her work’s value by my own “no one
touches my work but me” standard (in blown glass), or can I
appreciate the fact that she has worked hard to design pieces that
sell well and runs a successful business? And feel fortunate that my
custom and corporate work is enough to sustain me? I will spend many
hours working on a custom jewelry wax, do my own casting, (unless
it’s platinum), clean up the casting, then send it to my stone setter
for that specialty art. Yes, I could set the stone, but it would
take me longer and the risk of breaking a stone makes it a sound
decision to farm that part out. That is not my expertise. My dentist
recently sent me to another dentist for a root canal, for similar
reasons. I don’t feel that takes anything at all away from the design
or the finished piece.
My bench guy is a sweetheart, but not a ‘designer’, and is more than
happy to work on my pieces for money. My builder is an amazing
craftsman, but I designed our house from the cocktail napkin on up,
ran the miter saw, laid hardwood floor as part of the team, ordered
materials, hired subs, made all the design decisions, and usually
made lunch for everybody. Just because I had really important help,
does it make it any less mine? I think not. If I had hired out
everything but lunch, would it be any less my creation? I don’t
think so. The designer is the cornerstone of the craft, no matter
what the media. My two cents.
Baker O’Brien
www.bakerobrienglass.com
In reply to RJKARATMAN’s story, at the AGTA show in Tucson I was
excited to see a particular line of work that was award winning and
was anticipating meeting the jewelry god who made these pieces only
to find that the person was a designer who has others do the work
such as RJKARATMAN. So maybe you’re the one I really wanted to talk
to! I understand that without a design, the piece would never be
made, but as a jeweler I am more interested in meeting the person
who worked on it. I too feel that it would be great if the person or
people who do the work were recognized as well as the
designer. Marta
Hi All;
OK, I’ve gotten over my desire to really rant on this subject, so I
think I can add 2 cents now without being insulting.
The shows are no longer the friendly hippie cottage industry
they were 40 years ago, they are now pretty much semi-professional to
professional endeavors. Time was, it wouldn’t have bothered anyone
if the guy next to your booth where you sold sandals made of old
tires was selling silk screen tee-shirts. Now it’s a problem, mostly
because the shirts come from China. The jewelry in those days wasn’t
very high caliber, it was just different and more fun than the
Keepsake and Orange Blossom lines our folks bought. Now when a thing
becomes a big industry, the competition gets more like the regular
retail marketplace, and people with corporate style strategies make
their way in. Why bother to learn to make jewelry when you can job
it all out, including the designing? As long as you’ve got the
capital. And that’s who’s going to win out in a “compete down"
strategy, the one who can concentrate capital. But remember the old
Yin-Yang symbol. When anything is nearly completely one extreme, it
already contains the element of it’s opposite. I saw that during the
Rosen show in Philly there was set up nearby an “alternative” show,
with some good people in it. I wanted to see it, but I’m not a
buyer, I’m a maker, so they wouldn’t let me in. I walked Rosen, and
saw what I am sure was a lot of manufactured stuff from overseas,
being sold as otherwise. Plus, although they had “limited” space
for jewelers, there were a whole lot of jewelers in other sections
because their work contained glass, ceramics, etc. There was also a
"metals” area with a lot of jewelers. And that brings me to the
second point.
This craft business is now very big, and it’s quite profitable
for anyone to run a few ads in craft magazines, collect a lot of
application fees, and parlay that money into putting on a show,
whereby they can collect a lot of booth fees. Rosen was expecting
it’s entrants to sign up for their new August show as well as the
February show. That show has dismal sales; it’s just not a good time
to court wholesale buyers. But it effectively doubles the revenues
that the show promoters collect. People were saying, “well, I didn’t
quite break even, but I made some contacts”. Does this sound like
good business sense? It sounds like very expensive advetising to me.
I know, personally, of shows where the promoters are completely
cynical. They don’t care if you sell anything, and they don’t care
if you come back, as long as they get the booth fee. There are
plenty of wannabe’s twisting wire, bending bezels, and stringing
beads to take your place. Too many shows, too many artists, and too
large a percentage of crappy art and crappy promotion. What would be
great would be if all the lousy artists ended up in all the lousy
shows and the good shows had only room for good artists. But for
that to happen, there are four conditions that have to come about.
First, there have to be people jurying the show who know the
difference between good and bad craft. Second, there have to be
stringent enforcements of what actually ends up in the cases or on
the showroom floors or under the tents. Third, there has to be a
whole lot more integrity all the way around, on everybody’s part.
Fourth, the promoters are going to have to discipline themselves to
not be greedy and have 200 jewelers in a show of 500 entrants. They
are filling the booth space with jewelers. Why so many jewelers?
Maybe because the other crafts can’t even make enough money to
continue to do shows. More likely, there is a hell of a lot of stuff
these days that calls itself jewelry that isn’t all that hard to
make or learn to make. I think the only way things might change is
for artists to bite the bullet and stop putting up with this stuff.
Start your own shows and don’t let in any hacks. Blacklist the show
that burn you or burn you up. Turn in the cheats your see at the
shows. Scream at the promoters if they don’t want to listen to your
complaints. You get to a really bad show, see if you can organize a
walk-out on the part of participants. Bring on the lawyers and start
class action suits against promoters who can be proven to have spent
zero money on promotion and pocketed it all. Get your booth fees
refunded. Or just put up with it until you go broke. Remember, Wal
Mart makes a profit selling TV’s for $3 over cost by selling
millions of units. That’s where this is going, while we split hairs
about allowing stones that the artist didn’t cut, casting multiples,
using manufactured findings. It’s war, and Sun Tsu would tell you,
don’t let the enemy pick the battlefield.
David L. Huffman
casting, as i see it, serves as a 'safe & easy' way to marry various components of a design without having to know how to do it with flux, flair, solder, style and - passion.
Hi Ive and others:
I’m sorry, I couldn’t disagree more stridently. I can do things in
wax, cast, chase, engrave, and otherwise refine the designs, and come
up with work that I can’t possibly duplicate with fabrication, even
if I were to carve directly into a metal blank. And I’ve got plenty
of experience in both casting and fabrication. I’ve been doing both,
pretty much equally, for 30 plus years and couldn’t do without both
methods. There is a place and time for either. There are also
plenty of historical examples of cast masterpieces that nobody with
any taste or aesthetic judgment could argue weren’t beautiful.
Cellini used casting, so did Lalique. Problem is, many experienced
fabricators just don’t have the skill working in wax or other
materials suitable for casting, just as many model maker/casters
don’t have fabrication skills. It’s a remnant of the old industry
habit of specialization. My point is, superlative work can be
accomplished using any medium or technique. It requires the artist
have a consummate understanding of the capabilities and limitations
of those choices and the requisite artistic development to have
somewhere to take them. And another point. Suppose I decide that the
form is the primary goal? If fabricating it doesn’t add to or
support the final character of the work, what is the point in
fabricating it? Isn’t it then just a masochistic exercise for
purists? Just because casting is the best way to achieve the end
result, does that mean that the design is invalid? Should Donatello
have carved his David out of a solid block of bronze, or just said,
“well, it’s a lousy idea, since it’s the vision of a foundryman and
not an artist, so to hell with it”? And when it comes to fabrication,
what are we talking about anyway? A broad style of techniques, from
forging to carving, inlay, assembly, fusing, repouse, etc. Isn’t
casting just another pencil in that box? I often used to fabricate
“ballerina” mountings, those intricate cocktail rings with the center
stone surrounded by an undulating perimeter of baguettes, like a
ballerina’s tu-tu. Some of these had over 150 solder joints in
them. I would then make a rubber mold, shoot a wax and cast the
final product. That way I had a piece with no solder joints in it to
fail, discolor or move around should someone have to repair it later.
The strategies required for making a mold of such an article and
successfully sprueing and casting it are daunting. I’ll never agree
that casting isn’t just as aesthetically valid as any other means of
achieving a fine piece of metalsmithing.
David L. Huffman
What of those who supplied the stones, metals, or whoever may have had a hand in it
Hi RJ;
This is an interesting case in point. I saw exactly the opposite
happen. The designer got no credit for the work and the Spectrum
award went to the guy who made the piece. She was quite ticked off
by it, and the maker was kind of confused that it happened. Fact is
though, her designs are lame, and wouldn’t even be possible if the
manufacturer weren’t such a terminal hard-core who refuses to turn
down any idiotic project, no matter how impractical, ugly, or
impossible to make it is.
David L. Huffman
be, "there i was sweating at the mailbox waiting for the wax carvings to show up. i spent hours deciding how many copies to cast. then i held my breath while the metal temperature got higher & higher until ..." instead of "wow, when i saw this piece of opal rough deep in the bucket at the miner's table it was already promising to be a super design. i couldn't wait to get it to a wheel & start coaxing the best fire ..."
“Wow, when I saw this unusually-cut stone in the stone dealer’s
case, the color and fire inspired me to design this elaborate setting
for it…I couldn’t wait to sit down and bring the rest of the
setting to life, in (wax, fabrication, repousse, PMC, assorted choice
of metals, blah).”
It goes both ways, folks. 
While I do understand the irritation of
mass-produced cheap jewelry in what’s supposed to be a quality
artisan show, and the added…I guess irritation of having to deal
with poseurs or profiteers, there’s no reason to denounce an entire
method of jewelry-making as a whole. Doesn’t this just go back to the
snobbery/bias against PMC?
Me personally, I love carving a wax over anything else. 
I love
the 3D-ness and the sculpting and the fine details and flexibility
and melting wax and fine-tuning capabilities and… breathes @_@
Okay, I’m better now.
And on the subject of casting houses, I think if the one who’s doing
the wax carving is doing all the work except for sucking the metal
into a flask of investment, I don’t personally see anything wrong
with that. The casting isn’t as much of the artisanship as the rest
of the work is (designing, carving, polishing, perhaps molding,
stone-setting)…it’s just nerve-wracking as hell! 
Heck, I’m not
even to that point yet, all I get to do is carve. And cut molds. But
I don’t go to art shows, so perhaps I’m totally off-base here.
–M. Osedo
http://www.studiocute.com
I refrained from getting into the casting arguments because well I
have an express desire to learn wax carving and casting. I agree
they made it sound like a group of illegal aliens with rudimentary
skills in some back room casting pewter souvenir spoons lol
MY idea is that carving wax and forming a mold is a unique talent. I
wish I had been older and my grandfather lived longer to teach me
lost wax carving. He was a genius!
I have no problem with someone at a show with cast pieces as long as
they did the work themselves. There is a huge difference between
someone with 1000 manufactured cast pieces from Mexico and someone
with their own molds and castings.
As far as prints well I agree it is mostly artist jealousy that
causes the attitude that prints are below the professional.
In my book it puts bread and butter on my table I don’t care if you
wrap fish in it as long as I get my cash. Hunger and starting over
in life at 44 after a traumatic brain injury gets you to look at
life differently.
Luckily, I seem to be quite different than my artist friends. Some
have been pros for over 50 years and yet they still seek self esteem
and ego pumping from some group of random strangers at a juried
show. Not me, I do all I do for myself.
Some of my first cameos are horrible, but I display on my page
proudly. I had double vision and no tools, but I tried anyway. So in
perspective I think I am doing just fine thank you!
Room for everyone’s talent in this world. Seeing another’s work can
inspire you to new great things.
I have this idea for pmc clay that hopefully will just rock! and it
involves molds. Still each piece will be different because I will be
doing engraving work after casting so…lighten up life is too short
read the show rules and if you don’t have the correct work go to a
craft show and sell. What’s the difference? A show is a show and
selling is good.
The more people of a profession gathered in one spot the better the
chances of learning something!
Teri
America’s Only Cameo Artist
www.cameoartist.com
Are we perhaps really trying to make a distinction between artistry
and commericalized work?? Where does one draw the line? What is the
difference between an individual or small business and a commerical
enterprise? Another thing is that a successful artist often gradually
makes the transition from producing one’s own products to moving to a
design position while others create the goods. These production
services, whether done in house or by external contracted agents are
paid for by the ‘artist’ and are part of the sales price. In some
ways, they are stuck with a much stricter expense/profit setup, as
they have larger ‘real’ monetary expenses. They have to pay the
craftspeople, where all here know that if it comes down to it, we can
survive as long as we at least make our materials back on a bad
show…we can absorb the loss via our own work time… Where the
people who use external sources have to pay them no matter what.
To drag this out to an extreme example. Should we say that beaders
shouldn’t be included in shows because they buy all their beads and
assemble them? They are designers, and assemblers…but they aren’t
fabricating like metal work or casters or carvers or lapidary
artists? No offence intended to beaders…I am just making a point.
As Teresa M said to me, give several beaders an identical bag of
beads and findings and they’ll come up with different designs.
We kind of already had this discussion, only that time it was about
beaders who buy their beads and findings. Thought we agreed (most
of us) that beading can run the gamut from brainless mass-production
to truly artistic work. Isn’t it kind of the same here? Anybody
that can conceive a design, execute it in wax, make a mold, and cast
it, has earned the right to make what in the graphics arts is fully
accepted as art (e.g., a limited edition of prints), although the
copies are not priced on a par with the original. And what about
truly inspired people who can conceive a marvelous design but not
execute it? The conception is important too, though if one hires
someone to execute it, the craftsperson should get equal credit,
unless the execution itself is mindless (such as making multiple
identical cast copies of someone else’s original): that’s a skill,
not an art.
There’s room for all of us, except the people who don’t really add
anything inspirational to pre-made stuff. And sorry, I don’t
consider making the the choice of gluing in a mass-produced cab of
turquoise instead of one of garnet as Art. Nor is choosing one
commercial charm over another to attach to a pre-made bracelet. (OK
For the most part, we all really know the ones we’re talking about:
the ones that bring to the craft shows nothing but a desire for
quick easy money without any inspiration or training.
Tas <–NOT opinionated … 
www.earthlywealth.com
A prominent woman studio jeweler once gave a presentation in SF
about her jewelery saying that the clasp for a neckpiece should be
like the rest of the work handmade. I was impressed. I checked out
her work at Susan Cummings gallery In Mill Valley and the findings
were manufactured. She is a frequent exhibitor at ACC.
I will spend many hours working on a custom jewelry wax, do my own casting, clean up the casting, then send it to my stone setter for that specialty art. Yes, I could set the stone, but it would take me longer and the risk of breaking a stone makes it a sound decision to farm that part out. That is not my expertise.<snip> I don't feel that takes anything at all away from the design or the finished piece.
I strongly agree with Brian. I have been a jeweler (exclusively…no
‘outside’ job) for 32 years. I am a Graduate Gemologist, fourth
generation diamantaire. I have owned my own business since 1983. I
ALMOST NEVER put ‘hands on’ the jewelry, but rather, I hire the BEST
sub-contractors I can find in the large jewelry district in Los
Angeles. I use outside wax carvers, casters, bench jewelers, setters
and polishers. I coordinate all their efforts.
In that respect, I am like the licensed contractor who hires
carpenters, masons, etc. to build a fine home. In my case, I am the
architect as well as the ‘contractor.’
I have a tremendous respect for those of you who ‘do it all,’ and
then take the risks to display your souls at shows.
But, please don’t put me down, and call me any less a “jeweler” than
you.
David Barzilay
Lord of the Rings
607 S Hill St Ste 850
Los Angeles, CA 90014-1718
213-488-9157
I agree with Jeanne–there seems to be too many variations within
the concept of 'original" and “cast.” For example, I use insects as
my models, but never to cast directly. I carve and design my waxes,
but not having the space, equipment or expertise I have them cast
outside, usually in limited editions of 5 or so. Of course I
consider my work original, and to be completely up front, describe
them as cast, and as designed and created by me. On the other hand,
I know of someone who takes real, dead, preserved insects, puts
decorative rhinestones, beads, etc., on them and I guess, pin backs,
and sells them as Insect Jewelry (which I guess they are) much
cheaper than I ever could sell my silver pieces. Then there are
those who do cast insects directly–to me that takes away the
individual, artistic interpretation of the object. More like
painters who (if they could) might paste the model on the canvas
instead of painting what they see.
Now I have seen some very pretty things made of bought component
parts, and certainly there is creativity in putting the parts
together in a well designed manner, but they should be in a
different class from those of us who make each part of a
piece.
Sandra
Yeah, I see more and more individuals who are using outside
manufactures (or too many employees) trying to make a living in the
handcraft marketplace. Sometimes their is a big stink, or even
fisticuffs.
These craft/art fairs are not that old, I think they started to get
popular back in the 40’s or 50’s, by people (potters) who wanted to
get back to the handmade.
Me personally, I think that these people are a negative to the shows,
mostly because they drive down prices and violate the premise of the
show, that it is handmade by the artist who is standing there. I have
noticed venders, ratting these people out, and asking the show to
change their language in the application to be more specific.
I do think that effort has to be made to preserve this precious,
wonderful, marketplace, true to its roots…otherwise it becomes
just another mall.
Bye now,
Holly
I have a feeling that this all relates to what your goals are. If
you are a person who wants to make a living at jewelry you will have
to have many weapons in your arsenal. Now admitedly, when times are
tough I will do assembly work, and freely admit I am a “ho” but
better to be a ho and live to fight another day in my opinion.Prints
are produced because everyone who wants to admire an artists work
cannot afford to buy the original. Artist know, at least those who
have made a living at it for any length of time, that this market,
the ones who cannot afford the original, represent the largest
market anywhere on earth , at anytime in history. Should these
people just go with out? Not while I’m around and my kids need food
and a movie and frivolous things like pencils for school. My sales
directly impact my ability to raise my family. I have no other
source of income. In this regard I am no different than most people
no matter where they live or their placement on the scale of
financial success or life enjoyment.
I was recently called a snob and retreating into my ivory tower
because I went to appointment only and wholesale. I was no longer
recognizing the “little people” who made me a succes. Well, you are
all invited to my ivory tower, Dave Arens can attest to it’s
luxurious appointments.
I never called myself an artist until I realized everyone else did,
not other artists but, those who would buy my work, and a few
curators. I do not have an art degree, I have a passion for
metalwork and jewelry like you cannot believe. Does a degree make
you an artist?
Those who would be snobs must be able to afford to be snobs no
matter what the discipline. For snobs I will be glad to make
everything by hand, pin stems, bezels, bucklebacks, pin catches and
joints, what ever. Really I am a snob as well, I think Dave Yurman’s
work I see in the adds in Vogue and W are a complete bore and remind
me of the bins of designs I see at the Tucson gem show each year
from Indonesia. Now, I wouldn’t even think about it if I was in
Yurman’s apparent income bracket…
Sam Patania, Tucson
@Sam_Patania
Dee and others - all casts are NOT copies, and all prints are NOT
copies! I am a printmaker first, and my prints are NOT copies - they
ARE the originals. Unfortunately so many painters have prints made
of their paintings that many people think all prints are copies of a
painting. This is not true! If an image was conceived as a print,
and never existed in another form, it is an original - not a copy.
Lithographs, etchings, serigraphs, collagraphs - can all be
originals. When I etch a metal plate, ink it, and print it - it is
an original, not a copy of something else. Likewise monoprints are
one-of-a kind originals. Please don’t lump all prints or all
castings into one pile - they don’t fit!
Personally, I don’t have a problem with an artist selling castings
where they made the original, as long as they inform the buyer as to
what is being bought. It is all about education. A person who
starts with less expensive jewelry may well, with education and
encouragement, move up to higher-priced items with more hand work in
them.
Beth in SC
Definition: Making Jewelry: A creative use of obsessive compulsive
disorder.
This thread about designers vs. metalsmiths digressed into opinions
about validity of using cast pieces vs. fabricated. Is using cast
pieces ethical and legal at the show you are doing? If the answer is
yes, some elitist opinion on the merits of which is a purer form of
artistic expession is irrelevant. Casting as a means of producing
multiples is what its for. Design is just as much a part of casting
as it is fabrication. Ugly is ugly and beautiful is beautiful
regardless if which process.
With bronze statues, molds were made and these pieces were produces
in multiples and are considered art.
Fabrication and casting are different processes that usually result
is quite different types of products. The end result is what I am
after, and what achieves the goal is the one I will use. It is not
meant to fool or mislead, it can be saving time or something that
cannot be achieved as easily as by one process than the other.
What if I proposed that these fabricators mine and cut all their own
stones or their piece does not meet my criteria for handmade.
If you are following the rules of the show you are doing, and
someone else is not, concern yourself with making and marketing what
you are about. Being critical, judgemental ,and having an opinion is
easy. Using what you observe about what is unique about you can be
motivation. If it is about artisic expression, find your way. If it
is about money, find the product that will meet that need. Artist as
merchant or merchant as artist?
I once heard the question about whether you put meditation into your
life, your life into meditation. I have been a metalsmith for 30
years. (Making jewelry is much easier for me than meditating, finding
time to make jewelry is easier that finding time for meditation).
When I am making jewelry, I do not fantasize about being on vacation,
but when I am on vacation I do fantasize about making jewelry?
May your tools not rust and your burrs and gravers remain sharp.
Richard Hart
Physically in Denver