Eco Chic, no longer the Emperor's New Clothes

I have long seen jewelry which is of little merit other than that it is proposed to be of a higher moral and ethical grade because it is made from recycled materials, 'green' gold, or conflict free diamonds, and which often lets down the consumer in terms of design, originality and craftsmenship. I have seen newspapers such as the Financial Times in London or the Guardian sing the praises of this type of 'jeweler' and yet seem oblivious to the short comings in the design.

So I am happy to say that I am seeing a very positive trend towards jewelry which has it all. It is created from materials which are ecologically friendly, recycled or mined in ways which are working towards being less impactful on the environments and people surrounding the mines and which is also worthy of the term 'artistic' as well. Jewelers are becoming more comfortable with creating works which celebrate not only the material but also the art form.

Most notable at the moment is the exhibition currently showing at the Facèré Jewelry Art Gallery in Seattle:

Recycle: Recreate, Redefine, Re-imagine
January 28 - February 15, 2009

This show includes the work of ten jewelry artists who have shaped and transformed the materials with which they create. Recycled materials have pushed each artist to create sculptural adornment with a fresh eye and a fresh spirit. Jewelry art for the brave and bold.

This exhibition includes works such as Burcu Büyükünal's brooches and Jana Brevick's ring, both from recycled materials and pictured below.

But there is much more going on out there as well. Kirsten Meunster works with 100% recycled silver, pearls, nuts (pictured below), and some recycled gems as well as using Fordite (a 'stone' created from layers of paint used to spray cars) and pieces of bowling balls. Her work is crisp, clean and though less avant-garde than the work above, brings eco minded jewelry to the every day jewelry wearer.

Earlier I posted about Emiko-o who uses Legos and recycled materials among other things to create fun and exciting works such as the tiara below.

(tiara: recycled glass, acrylic, sterling silver, resin, transparency film, rubies & sapphires, synthetic ruby corundum set in 14k gold)

Another playful artist is 2ReVert who makes fun easy to wear pieces out of recycled skateboards.

Artist Carola Siefert juxtaposes recycled paper, 18k gold an pearls in her earrings and pendants.

Lastly, if it is more formal jewelry that you are looking for, one site that I have found which seems to have a good ethical model is Brilliant Earth, based out of San Francisco, who have made a commitment to "Clarity, Sustainability, Quality and Community." Great things to see in a jewelry company.

I think this is just a beginning. In a uncertain economic time we might see even more of a sift toward reuse and repurposing of materials, such as happened with the popularity of Berlin Iron and Cut Steel Jewelry during times of war, in place of diamonds and precious metals. Or even as happened as artists moved away from traditional 'artistic' materials during the Assemblage movement, when such materials were believed to be too elitist.

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