[Tidbits] The Artist

The Artist. <So folks. Did you all miss me? Hmmm?>

The true artist is unquestionably the leader and innovator of
design for it is he that follows his vision and pursues
relentlessly and against all odds the creations of the images
offered to him by his private oracles. Such is the man I present
to you today.

He was born in 1860 in Ay de Marne, France. He was a jeweler and
a glass maker and his Art Nouveau works were exhibited in 1900
at the Paris International Exhibition. He became famous…not for
the piece of jewelry I am going to show all of you today, but
rather for his style of molded glass which was used predominately
for perfume bottles. His was the luxury article of his day. His
glass was the height of fashion…his production continued in
quantity till World War II.

I digress. “Insect”…according to Random House–my dictionary
of choice–is in portion an arthropod having the body divided
into three parts: Head, Thorax, and Abdomen. “Lady”…according
to Random House–my dictionary of choice–is in portion a woman
of good breeding and refinement. So…put 'em together and
whaddya got… bibbety-bobbety-boo. No no folks. What you got is
a Lady/Insect. Now now…I know there are some cynics out there
who are saying so what else in new? Pish posh I say to you
cynics…for the image I am presenting to you today is nothing
short of stunning.

Ren� Lalique–our artist for the day–created his Lady/Insect
out of diamonds and chrysoprase and moonstones and gold. The
wings of our Lady-Bug is Pliqu�-�-jour enamel. It is eleven
inches long. For those of you who might think there is no such
thing as a beautiful insect…to you I say…think again. For
the proof is in the puddin’…so to speak.

So…for you newcomers who want to see Lalique’s creation…and
don’t know the way…go to my home page…scroll down the table
menu till you get to Tidbit Graphics…and click on Lady/Insect.

And there ya have it.
That’s it for this week folks.
Catch you all next week.
Benjamin Mark

I have a book of Lalique’s work. Absolutely beautiful stuff!!
Not only the jewelry, but also the Objets d’ Art. His work is
definitely at the top of my favorite artists’ list. At present
am working on a belt buckle along the lines of his Lady’s head with Wisteria.