Glasswear. Glass in Contemporary Jewelry

For thousands of years glass has played a major role in jewellery: not just as simulated gemstones but also as a material in its own right from the simple monochrome glass beads of early Mesopotamian civilisation through the Art Nouveau jewellery creations of René Lalique and Louis Comfort Tiffany to the Bauhaus jewellery designed by Naum Slutzky. GlassWear is the first survey of glass in contemporary international auteur jewellery.

The publication centres on a lavishly illustrated catalogue: photographs in large formats showcase jewellery made with and of glass, which is notable for the great delight in experimentation and extraordinary nonconformity practised by its makers. Here minimalist pieces rub shoulders with opulent works, ‘narrative’ jewellery with abstract. Some pieces are remarkable for the type of glass used. Borosilicate glass, for instance, makes possible exceptionally thin yet strong elements in jewellery compositions whereas dichroic glass changes colour according to the direction and kind of the incident light to produce intense chromatic effects. Other pieces are novel in that traditional glass-making processes have been used in innovative ways. No matter whether the works are of blown, moulded or flamed glass, Pyrex, medical ampoules, ancient glass, mirror glass, glass beads, optical glass, old bottles or the glass from burnt-out traffic lights and old traffic signs, they all reveal the brilliance of the artists who created them. They also underscore the creed that has informed auteur jewellery for decades: it is not the material value of a piece of jewellery that counts but the aesthetic intention behind it.

In the generously illustrated catalogue section, it is the artists who have the last word about their special relationship to glass as a material. In the text section, scholarly yet highly readable essays by leading experts on jewellery shed light on glass jewellery from many different angles. The history of the use of glass in jewellery is traced from its pre-Christian beginnings to the present. The influence of the studio craft and new jewellery movement on contemporary glass jewellery is discussed and the use of glass in architecture and sculpture is also touched on. In addition, all jewellery creations shown in GlassWear are thoroughly analysed. 



Artists:

Giampaolo Babetto (Italy) / Monica Backström (Sweden) / Boris Bally (USA) / Célio Braga (Brazil) / Helen Britton (Australia) / Pierre Cavalan (Australia) / Simsa Cho (Japan) / Václav Cigler (Czech Republic) / Patty Cokus (USA) / Giselle Courtney (Australia) / Ramon Puig Cuyàs (Spain) / Rian de Jong (the Netherlands) / Georg Dobler (Germany) / Robert Ebendorf (USA) / Andreas Eberharter (Austria) / Sandra Enterline (USA) / Donald Friedlich (USA) / Karl Fritsch (Germany) / Thomas Gentille (USA) / Karen Gilbert (USA) / Mieke Groot (the Netherlands) / Therese Hilbert (Switzerland) / Timothy Horn (Australia) / Svatopluk Kasalý (Czech Republic) / Jaroslav Kodejš (Czech Republic) / Helfried Kodré (Austria) / Daniel Kruger (Südafrika) / Otto Künzli (Switzerland) / Stanley Lechtzin (USA) / Tarja Lehtinen (Finland) / Jacqueline I. Lillie (France) / Linda MacNeil (USA) / Stefano Marchetti (Italy) / Nanna Melland (Norway) / Martina Mináriková (Slowakei) / Kazuko Mitsushima (Japan) / Evert Nijland (the Netherlands) / Ted Noten (the Netherlands) / Emiko Oye (USA) / Martin Papcùn (Slowakei) / Joan Parcher (USA) / Francesco Pavan (Italy) / Ruudt Peters (the Netherlands) / Michael Petry (USA) / Katja Prins (the Netherlands) / Wendy Ramshaw (England) / Piergiuliano Reveane (Italy) / Marianne Schliwinski (Germany) / Bernhard Schobinger (Switzerland) / Joyce Scott (USA) / Sondra Sherman (USA) / Jiří Šibor (Czech Republic) / Markéta Šílená (Czech Republic) / Peter Skubic (Austria) / Kiff Slemmons (USA) / Terhi Tolvanen (Finland) / Giorgio Vigna (Italy) / Nancy Worden (USA) / Annamaria Zanella (Italy) / Petra Zimmermann (Austria)
 -2016-2016