Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Lalique and Kanzashi

I love Lalique's Art Nouveau jewelry and the traditional Japanese kanzashi/kushi. I didn't realize it, but many of his combs were inspired by Japanese art. I just ordered a companion book to the Rokusho kanzashi book I got last year. This book is a retrospective of Lalique's combs and includes comparison photos of Lalique's combs to some kanzashi. Really gorgeous carved horn sculpting by both Lalique and the kanzashi artists. If you ever wanted to marvel at a flower, look for Lalique's orchids...incredible(and of course, the Blauschkas glass flowers--amazing!)
I love that he themes his work--he tells a story with his jewelry. His work is beautiful yet sometimes has a slightly haunting feel to it that I love. I hope to be able, in some small way, to capture some of the essence and beauty of nature.....
Anyhoo, to the technical aspects......
I have been thinking of how to make combs out of silver and keep it light....now I wonder if I can do part if it in glass and part in silver.....
The question is...how heavy can a comb be before it becomes too heavy to wear? If it is beautiful, would it matter? Or is part of the beauty in its functionality?
Many questions....
I am still working on some sketches...baby steps....haven't tried anything yet......

I am not sure if these will be marketable at all, but I will be having loads of fun with them.....

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