The Art of Contemporary Engraving
In a move to safeguard the human touch within a digital landscape, Castro Smith, Folium, and Jet McQuiston are reimagining traditional hand-engraving as a bold new frontier of goldsmithing experimentation
Mnemonic Vessel
First the dream. Then the sketch. Lastly, the hand engraving, carried out according to a traditional technique that leaves room for experimentation. Castro Smith's jewelry originates from an almost ritualistic sequence. Perhaps that is why it is so charismatic. A multi award-winning London goldsmith and engraver, the designer’s instantly recognizable style results in creations in which a dreamlike dimension blends with the density of the material. The jewelry is engraved with stories to be discovered and shared, their craftsmanship affirms their value.
Ring made in 18 carat Single Mine Origin gold and vitreous enamel, Jet McQuiston.
A love story engraved in a ring. With the Eternal Worlds collection, British designer Jet McQuiston revives the idea of jewelry as a custodian of memory, an object designed to last and hand down through the generations. She achieves this by drawing on the ancient iconography of cultures such as Byzantine, Celtic and Victorian. Her made-to-order creations tell personal experiences through detailed, hand-engraved designs finished with porcelain enamel. Signs and symbols thus become part of an aesthetic with a captivating sentimental flair.
Platinum Statement ring with ruby and diamonds, Serpentis collection, Folium.
Wisdom, resilience and protection translated into hand-engraved gold and platinum. In Folium's new Serpentis collection, master goldsmith Myles Ryan draws inspiration from the ceremonial motifs of Southwest American rattlesnakes, elaborating the texture of their scales through engravings that create a game of light and shade. The life-like jewelry almost seems to move, demonstrating the importance of a manual intervention able to impart a tactile quality that would otherwise be unattainable.