Art Jewelry

Art Jewelry is created with a variety of materials not just precious metals and gems and forms a counterbalance to the use of precious materials in regular jewelry. Art Jewelry should be compared to expressions of art in other media such as glass, wood, plastics and clay. Art Jewelry however has not yet created such a large following and is a relatively small niche, where jewelry is mostly bought by collectors and museums.
An Example of current trends in art jewelry is the use of modern synthetic materials such as polypropylene, nylon and acrylic. Art jewelers have developed techniques for using these materials to dramatic effect. One example of this is award winning jeweler Gill Forsbrook a designer working in the UK. Further notable makers and artisls include Hermann Junger Swis born Pierre Degen, Caroline Broadhead, Naomi Filmer, Otto Kuenzli and Florian Ladstaetter.
Fashion Labels such as Bless, Martin Margiela, Comme des Garcons, etc. have had a strong reference and input in the field of contemporary jewelry.

History of 20th Century Jewelry:.

In the late 19th century, Rene Lalique revolutionzied jewelry design through his emphasis on imagination and technical virtuosity over precious materials and the imitations of past styles.Additionally, he experimented with industrial techniques, plastic and glass.
Though many consider art jewelry still part of craft as opposed to real "Arts" things are changing considerably, in particular in Germany. In the 1960s and 1970s the German  Government and the commercial jewelry industry decided to foster and heavily support modern jewelry designers, and thus creating a new marketplace.
They focused in particular on combined contemporary design with their goldsmithing tradition and jewelry making. The first gallery for art jewellery only Orfevre opened at Duesseldorf Germany in 1965. At present art jewelry is no longer a niche market and many designers are sold in regular jewelry stores.

Exhibitions:
The acceptance of Jewelry as art was fostered in the United State very quickly after World War II by major museums such as Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, each of which held major shows of art jewelry in the 1940s. The Museum of Arts and Design formerly The Amercian Craft Museum, Started their collection in 1958 with pieces dating from the 1940s. Other Museum whose collections include work by contemporary jewelry designers include, the Cleveland Museum of Art.