Point of View: Lisa Konigsberg

«The impulse to adorn the self and to craft objects from precious materials (as defined by a given culture) are among the most innately human with jewelry being found in societies and communities throughout time. Such objects have always conveyed messages affection, social status, faith, or power.

By extension, a jewel is a “document”. By “reading” it, we can discover its intended use, and the significance of the decora- tions and inscriptions, thus seeing reflected the spirit of the time, the cultural Zeitgeist. Jewels are also objects: that result not only from a significant vision, but from respect for and quality of materials (this relates to responsible practice), and the highest level of craftsmanship or artisanry. What must be understood, appreciated, saved, and protected is above all the concept of jewelry linked to craftsmanship, a word from which we often reflexively flee, taking refuge in “art.” Craftsmanship should not be debased because it is associated with use, nor should art be viewed as the absence of function. Were we to have lived in each culture with the tools to decode visual language, we would have more fully understood the purpose of what now might appear to be a “pure” expression of beauty. Craftsmanship is critical to the realization of art.

Practitioners of any medium, Leonardo for example, pursued the highest level of craft. As the notion of “good, better, best” is applied to paintings, so it applies to jewels. Appreciating an object requires taking time; the “eye” must develop. We are then led to consider additional challenges: How do we incorporate the techniques of the past, which are part of who we are, into the creation of something new for our time? How does a precious object result from great vision, respect for materials, and artisanry? These attributes are linked to the ways we define luxu- ry, a term with positive or negative connotations depending on its use.

What is luxury in an age of responsible practice? Can we retain that term in the sphere of jewelry, or must we jettison it and craft a new language to reflect a new vision?».