#crystalworks

 the highlights of the Tucson gem and mineral show is visiting my dear friend @lawrence_stoller_crystalworks- Thank you for your beautiful crystal art; you are a true Master of your craft and I appreciate your dear friendship! •

Ra Atum

This wonderful citrine and bronze sculpture was carved in 1997 by renowned Oregon artist Lawrence Stoller, a pioneer of large gem sculpture. His work is sought out by private collectors (including the owner of this piece) and has been exhibited at many galleries and museums around the world.

The late 20th century saw a rising trend for bold departures from the conventional faceted gemstone, with a huge and ever expanding diversity of new fantasy cuts, influenced by abstract sculpture, but using a transparent refractive medium. Modern cuts play with light within the gem with a style and artistry that the round brilliant, for all its technical excellence, cannot match. Each piece is visually unique. The gem carving art also broke free of the convention for animals and boxes established in the Belle Epoque by artists such as Faberge, jeweller to the Russian tsars.

Rather than following conventional forms and angles out of a faceting book, the craftsperson develops an interaction between light and the individual chunk of rough gem, letting the form emerge to create a unique glowing beauty. Sometimes the rough is studied for months before the tools come out to slowly reveal the gleaming shape hidden within. Conventional sculptors say the same of each block of marble that passes under their chisel.

The new wave started in the US in the early 1940's with Francis Sperisen, who also first combined optical freeform gems with the metalwork of De Patta. Its popularity really took off however in the 90's with German artist Berndt Munsteiner, scion of a gem carving family from Idar Oberstein. This town has been a centre of stone carving for many centuries, and the new style built on old skills. Since then many new gem artists have appeared all over the world, each seeking new ways to play with rock and light. Innovative jewellery designers have run with this, and now design pieces around the gem, rather than the opposite. I have enjoyed following this fascinating journey, as I find normal faceted gems just don't appeal.

Loz

♡🅲🆁🆈🆂🆃🅰🅻🅱🆁🅰🅽🅳🅸🆂♡

𝑪𝒓𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒍/𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔 , 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚/𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 , 𝑱𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒔, 𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒉𝒐𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒙, 𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒑𝒉 𝒎𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒐, 𝒂𝒙𝒍 𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒆 ,𝑩𝒆𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒌 ❤️, 𝒈𝒖𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒔 , 𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒙 𝒈 , 𝒕𝒗 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍 , 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒆𝒍 𝑱𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒔𝒐𝒏 >>>>>