The high art of design and the production of jewelry

Fascinating how often inconspicuously small objects made of gold, silver, platinum, pearls and gemstones can captivate us so strongly and give us such sophisticated shine. It is not only since Marilyn Monroe's popular song that jewelry is the best friend of woman.

The creation of jewelry has always been a respected craft with a strong artistic expression. Jewelry designers are not uncommon in design as well as in the (gold) forging and combine these two skills to serve and manufacture original and unique jewelry creations.

The art of jewelry production dates back practically millennia when old civilizations began to produce jewelry for personal ornament. Some pieces of jewelry were created to enter valuable gemstones and to bring them into their own, others should express the faith of the wearer. The social status was also visibly displayed on the outside.

Depending on the age, geographical region and cultural conditions, jewelry had very different forms. Partly made of simple materials such as mussels and hemp cords, diademes and crowns, as carried by kings, were created on all shelf from noble, expensive and rare materials such as gold, silver and gemstones.

The constant discovery of new gemstones, precious metals and decorative materials in connection with the further development of tools and metallurgy has produced an incredible variety and abundance of jewelry over the centuries.

Nowadays, fashion jewelry affordable for everyone and leaves nothing to be desired with his expansive offer-whether from the bar, handmade or special vintage pieces from certain eras.

But let's take a little look back at the history of jewelry design:

A small story of jewelry design from antiquity to today

Over the centuries and from culture to culture, the materials of mussels, bones, pebbles, tusks, claws and wood, which are valuable and desirable ranged to so -called so -called precious metals, precious stones, semi -precious stones, pearls, corals, enamel and glass paste and ceramic.

In some epochs, artists and craftsmen have sometimes placed less value on the actual, monetary value of materials than on their aesthetic function as components, and how they contributed to the effect of the jewelry as a whole.

Accordingly, the choice of artist fell for the creation of a brooch, for example, on steel or plastic instead of gold or platinum.

Jewelry as decoration and signs of social status

Apart from its decorative function, jewelry was also worn during a large part of its history as a sign of social rank and status within a society. In order to secure the exclusivity, the privileged and prevailing classes prohibit wearing such jewelry through people outside of their rank by law and, if disregarded, partially prospect of draconian punishments.

Also as a Talisman to protect against evil, or to help your own happiness, jewelry was used over all times.

During the Middle Ages, for example, a ruby ​​ring should bring its owners to its owners, lend virtue, protect against seduction and prevent them in the water - but only if it is worn on the left hand.

Use in the Stone Age

Early historical evidence of the use of decorative objects mainly provide the dead cult and burial customs of old cultures. Even in the oldest known civilizations, significant people and their most expensive clothes, elaborate ornaments, decorations and fine grave inserts were adorned to give them a sublime entry into the hereafter.

Likewise, plastic and visual iconography in painting, sculpture and in plenty of testimony for the corresponding jewelry, which was worn in different eras.

It is now considered likely that people in the Stone Age already thought of decorating the body in the Stone Age before they came to mind to use something that could be viewed as clothing.

Before precious metals were discovered, the people who lived by the sea adorned themselves with a variety of mussels, fishbones, fish teeth and colored pebbles. People who lived in the interior used the animals that they killed for the food: reindeer antlers, mammoth tray teeth and all types of animal bones.

First civilizations and high cultures

In the era of the transition from the nomadic life to a resident social order and the subsequent birth of the oldest known civilizations and high cultures, there were also noticeable developments in the use of jewelry and the common materials. This indirectly led to the discovery of minerals and rock deposits, which initially included gold and gemstones.

Due to this development in the history of mankind, the types of use and forms of jewelry also multiply. Soon there were ornaments and decorations for all parts of the body.

For the main, there were crowns, diademes, hairpins, combs, earrings, nose rings, lip rings and earplugs. For the neck and fuselage you designed necklaces, fibula (the old safety pin), brooches, breastplate, stomach tapes, belts and pocket watches.

The arms and hands were decorated using bracelets, bracelets and rings. For thighs, legs and feet, skillful craftsmen and smiths designed a variety of thigh straps, ankle ligaments, toe rings and shoe buckles.

Antiquity

One of the oldest discovered jewelry is the grave goods for the grave of Queen Pu-Abi in Ur in Sumer (today Tall al-Muqayyar) by about 3,000 years before Christ's birth.

Sumerical forms of jewelry represent almost all types and forms that have ever been developed in the course of history. Almost all technical processes for manufacturing were also known at the time: welding, alloying, filigree work, stone cutting and even enameling.

In addition to geometry (panes, circles, cylinders, balls), inspiration sources Expression forms were based on essential realism that was enriched by moderate use of colors.

Other high cultures with a significant cultural heritage are also in terms of manufacture, use and processing of jewelry:

• Egyptians - the Egyptian handicrafts created a myriad of different compositions, which mainly based on strict symmetry or - as can be seen in jewelry from pearls - on the rhythmic repetition of shapes and colors.
• Aegean - this Bronze Age civilization, which bloomed on the Mediterranean island of Crete, is also known as mineal. Their blooming prosperity stimulated intensive gold work of high aesthetic value.
• Phoenicia was an important center for both the production and for the export of jewelry. Thanks to the trade of these people in the entire Mediterranean, we have knowledge of civilizations products from remote countries - including North Africa, Sardinia, Spain and Italy.
• Etrusker - Etruscan craftsmanship contributed a completely new concept that helped the jewelry to a new level of splendor, impressive size and great wealth of decorations. This resulted in some of the most outstanding achievements in the history of jewelry design and its production.
• Greeks - Since gold was not so easily available, it was made of jewelry up to approx. 323 BC. BC relatively rare in Greece. Greek jewelry was found from the age of Greek classic as miniature sculptures, which were individual figures, people or religious, mythological and heroic scenes. Under the rule of Alexander the Great, a great era of jewelry began in the course of the expansion of the Greek Empire. Hellenistic jewelry developed in the large art centers of the different regions under Greek rule and went far beyond the scope of painting and sculpture. This was followed by the heyday of Hellenistic goldsmithing, which was unmatched in technology and virtuosity until then.
• Römer - In its beginnings, the Roman jewelry design may have been significantly shaped by Hellenistic and Etruscan influences. In ancient Rome, jewelry has been used to an unprecedented extent and was found again in the Renaissance much later after its downfall. The imperial Rome became the center of the goldsmith's workshops of the then known world. Together with the gemstones and metals that were brought to the imperial city from all conquered regions, gemstone cutters and goldsmiths came from Greece and the Asian provinces. The golden ring, which had been a sign of the distinction between ambassadors, nobles and senators under the republic, gradually appeared on the fingers of people with a lower social rank until he himself became common among soldiers. Was this the birth of the wedding ring as we know it today?

From then on, the history of jewelry design and goldsmithing continued its course and was significantly influenced, changed and developed epochs

In the Middle Ages , the Byzantine, Islamic and Teutonic culture played a major role.

With the Renaissance, the use of jewelry, decorations and decorations celebrated their pompous highlight and reached a new, never before.

But even away from the western cultural area, the time for decorative and beautifying accessories was not quiet and, especially in East Asia, India, Southeast Asia, Skythe, Africa and Indian America, jewelry celebrates a tradition for centuries or even millennia.

The art of jewelry production in the 21st century

If you compare the range of a human life with the millennia that has covered the world of jewelry in its history, then you are rightly fascinated. Civilizations were founded and have decomposed again - but the preference of man for beautiful things for their own personal decoration has remained.

While in the beginning only one elitist circle often came into this enjoyment, it has been almost effortless to possess its possession over the centuries.

Although there are still jewelry designers and artists from the old school today, which are still rooted in the spirit of the craftsmen of the Old World, the devices, techniques, and technologies with which jewelry is made these days have changed significantly since then.

The procedures for the production of jewelry - due to the increased pace of general progress in the 20th and 21st centuries - have seen more technological changes in the past three decades than ever in history. One trend in recent years has been in particular the personalization of jewelry, which takes into account the changed needs and wishes of an increasingly individualized society.

can be found , for example, in the online offer of KT jewelry design

The providers even celebrate personalizable designs through jewelry parties and support potential hosts in becoming creative.

Traditional jewelry production

The sand casting process and wax melting, both of which work as aids with so -called hollow shapes, are the traditional manufacturing process. Through the latter technology, the craftsman initially produces wax carving to prepare for wax melting.

Models are modeled and embedded in plaster. Then the models are burned from the plaster and leave a shape.

In the next step, the precious metal is then melted with a torch and thrown into the cavity with a centrifuge. With files, abrasives and basic grinding tools, the cast parts are finally sanded and completed, or to prepare them for the following solder and welding.

At earlier times and still people used today in jewelry production, it is actually so extensive and diverse that the list of this article alone would probably be far blasted.

So let's only try a small, shortened list of the most important techniques:

• "Anodizing" or "Anodic Oxidation" - an oxide is applied to titanium or aluminum.
• Jewelry frames - the three basic components of a ring are the ring head (ring plate), the tire (ring rail) and the gem. After that, the respective version usually depends.
• Doublement or diffuse - top made of silver and the lower part made of yellow gold
• Granulate- the jewelry is given structure by shapes and welding from the surface of gold and silver ornaments.
• Glyptic / stone cutting art - artistic processing of mountain crystals, gemstones and gems of all kinds
• Faience- lead and tin glazes
• Filigree work - application of fine, corded wires or metal threads with metal beads
• Mokume-Gane -Various thin metal layers are connected. The aim is to create an extremely high -contrast pattern.
• Satine - the surface is edited with a thread die either machine or by hand either
• Enamel - mass made of oxids and silicates made by sintering, fries or melting in a frozen form
• Zirconia production -an artificial diamond is created
• Murano glass production - this jewelry process uses the luminosity of the colors through the special color methods.
• Plaqué - applying a chemical precious metal pad on metal using electrolysis
• Ciseling - structural surface technology

Modern high-tech process

In this pure form, you will only rarely experience jewelry production today. Rather, we live in a world of computer -aided design. Sculptors who used to work with wax or sand casting now use keyboard attacks and a mouse to transform ideas into works. Through CAD jewelry design, jewelry designers now create the original models in a virtual world.

After completion, the workpieces are milled from wax or with high-tech devices that are controlled by complex, highly developed software.

Laser melting also currently revolutionizing the world of jewelry design. This process scores primarily by making filigree parts, complex structures and small quantities feasible.

In a laser center, different materials such as titanium, stainless steel, gold or silver alloys layer are constructed by layer of finished jewelry. For the designers, this manufacturing process means absolute geometric freedom and new, creative potential.

Another megatrend in the jewelry industry is the 3D design , which also describes a completely new chapter in its recent history. With the use of 3D jewelry design software and 3D printers of the latest generation, a quality is now being achieved, which gives the design and realization of enchanting jewelry a completely new level of finesse and personalization options.

This is where designers now have a degree of detail, flexibility and complexity that would not have been conceivable before the emergence of 3D technology.

It can be assumed that this is far from the end of the flagpole and we can be excited to see which future developments will bring the time in this area.