The Stories Page describes the inspiration for certain pieces

Venetian Windows Jewelry

The Venetian Windows bracelet was a tipping point for me. I had designed things for myself before and had them made. But the Venetian Windows bracelet highlighted my collaboration with my goldsmith and brought it to another level. I spent a month or more yearly in Venice for several years, living and studying history there. One can’t help but be struck by the charm of the architecture. I kept looking for a piece of jewelry that, for me, really captured all that I love about Venice. I couldn’t find anything, so I thought I would design something. 

Venice was a world-class economic and political empire a thousand years ago. Venetian Windows are a powerful symbol of Venice and its history. They grab the eye. One can identify many a Venetian building by its windows. Through windows, we can catch glimpses of the lives of the families that lived inside, and at the same time, windows look out on the world.  Venetian Windows symbolize Serenissima at its height. They are bordered with Istrian marble imported from the eastern Adriatic (now Croatia), once a part of the Venetian empire. Of course, what else are windows made of? Glass was the commodity that Venetians held the secret to and exported to the far corners of the world. Venice grew wealthy through trade. The shapes of Venetian Windows recall the architectural styles that adventurous and wealthy Venetians would have seen in their travel to eastern markets. Indeed, Venetian Gothic architecture is a mash of local building requirements and influence from Venetian trading partners in both the Byzantine and Islamic worlds.



INSPIRATION

I love to visit and study ancient jewelry collections. For many ancient cultures, 24K gold, which comes straight from the earth, was considered divine precisely because man didn’t have to manipulate it to make it beautiful. I am fascinated by what ancient pieces tell us about how people lived, their values, aesthetics, social structures, customs, and belief systems. First and foremost, I am struck by how many of the items in these collections are still thought to be so beautiful and wearable by today’s aesthetic.

In reading about the ancient jewelry found at Oplantis, an archeological site near Pompeii, I was fascinated to learn all that the discovery of jewelry among the victims of the 79AD Vesuvius eruption had to tell us. Similar jewelry sets were found on two young mothers, suggesting that that was the style for young mothers of a certain class to wear. There were silver and gold versions of like pieces, suggesting that one might wear one for dress and the other for more casual occasions or that the metal varied depending on the owner's resources. Some pieces looked very similar to the eye but were made for different markets or by craftsmen of different skill levels. One pair of earrings made of simple gold foil and another made of a much more substantial piece of gold would have had very different price points even then and probably reflected the tastes and disposable income of the owner.  Just like today, jewelry varies in material, quality, and value. 

One of my favorite facets of looking at jewelry through the lens of history is that not much has changed. In “Leisure and Luxury in the Age of Nero”, Courtney Ward points out evidence for some of the mores around the wearing of jewelry that we might recognize today.

An ancient text shows that- 

“Pliney the Elder, for example, disparaged the emperor Caligula’s wife, Lollia Paulina, for attending an ordinary betrothal party inappropriately adorned with emeralds and pearls worth  40 million sestertii. Interestingly, Pliny did not criticize the cost of Lollia’s jewelry, only that she  wore it at an occasion that did not warrant such finery.” (Page 174). Pliney (23/24AD -79AD).

This reminds me of the quote attributed to Coco Chanel, in which she is supposed to have said that a woman should get dressed, add her layers of accessories and jewelry, and take off one piece before leaving the house.

Or, an old Upstairs, Downstairs episode in which Lady Marjorie breaks in a new lady’s maid at a weekend house party on a country estate. The maid hands her an extraordinary diamond necklace and Lady Marjorie responds, “ Never diamonds in the country, dear”.  

While the longitude and latitude of wearing jewelry may have changed, it hasn’t changed much! We are still attracted to quality, artistry, design, and precious materials. My pieces' original design and handmade character are exceptional and worthy of being found a couple of thousand years from now—Somewhere, Somehow.