2020 has been a whirlwind of a year, but I have been thankful to be able to stay connected with my peers through a series of virtual artist talks hosted by the Women's Jewelry Association.
These talks allowed for a more focused platform of sincere conversation that is not diluted by the distractions a typical studio tour (office pets, bench set up, etc). Though I yearn to get back to normalcy, I do appreciate getting to know each member more intimately.
I'm was very excited for our year end event - WJA Philly Round Table
Here, each member had the opportunity to introduce themselves and their work!
My contribution is one of the more interesting pieces that has come through Wilson's Estate Jewelry -
This remarkable piece was commissioned by Frank Walter Lawrence and produced by esteemed Arts & Crafts artist Gustav Manz, circa 1901. During his travels, Lawrence procured a piece of Phoenician glass from Old Jerusalem. The fragment itself is a tremendously profound artifact of an ancient city, but its destiny was to be displayed in a wrought 14 karat gold frame as an imaginative Middle Eastern sunset.
Manz masterfully crafted a surround of whiplashed gold as stylized lotus and vigorously rendered palm trees. This centers a depiction of two pyramids towering over a line of camels led by a lone rider, unintimidated by the grandeur of his environment. The Phoenician glass serves as the vehicle for an expansive sky, smokey and translucent, glowing as a burgundy twilight.
The piece was exhibited at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in 1904 as well as published as a feature in Town & Country the same year.
After this however, the brooch disappeared for over a century, until 2019 when it resurfaced at an auction and was purchased by my employer. There was an inclination towards what we had found since stylistically the piece is reminiscent of Manz's work, but with no signature and a lack of provenance we were forced to continue our research.
I'm always ensnared by the journey that our investigation unfolds for us, but this was an instance where we genuinely felt like Ben Gates in National Treasure, peeling back layers of a mysterious artifact to unravel its story.
The story brought us to Gustav Manz's great-granddaughters who published a blog that was the very piece we were trying to authenticate! We had the pleasure to meet with them and observe the brooch together with a collective sigh of appreciation.
The piece wanders into my mind often, not only because of its craftsmanship, but because of how it silently was able to emit its foothold in jewelry history.
Photos courtesy of Wilson's Estate Jewelry & Gustav Manz & Co.
