Taxco silver maker revered by Margot, Emma + Sigi ...
After the shop Margot de Taxco closed in 1978, Melecio Rodriguez was one of a handful of silversmiths permitted to continue using some of Margot's molds. He also was among the principal designer/silversmiths who produced for both Emma Melendez and Sigi {Sigfrido Pineda}. Celebrated for his classic, Taxco style and technique, his jewelry remains highly desirable among aficionados of Mexican silver. This striking bracelet, dating to 1979 ...click for details
An uncommon work from a renowned Taxco silver maker ...
Hilario Lopez was one of Margot van Voorhies Carr's most prized silversmith's at Margot de Taxco. His highly desirable jewelry is often fashioned using Margot's molds that were given to him, upon the closing of her shop. This remarkable tie clip, however, marks a rarely seen departure for Lopez, as it offers an inventive and singularly independent work. Handwrought in .925 silver—and boasting an abstract modernist panache—it ...click for details
Sassy, classy kitty ...
This brooch pendant is a wonderful example of the superb workmanship and splendid imagination that make mid-century Ecuadorian silver jewelry so captivating and collectible. Handwrought in .925 silver, it depicts a decidedly fetching feline strutting her stuff. Displaying an intricately chased, textural body in matte silver, as well as meticulous cutwork detailing, the cat's ears, nose, and whiskers are fashioned in polished silver and surmounted to the base. As a ...click for details
Delightful Laffi-era Llamas ...
This fabulous, handwrought, silver brooch boasts a dazzling fusion of traditional Andean imagery and stylized, modernist form. With an iconic motif—two long-haired llamas standing side by side—the deeply convex figures display minimalist chasing, exacting cutwork, and applied silver beading for the llama eyes. And it's all surmounted to the unadorned framework of an open silver circle. Wearable art both elegant and endearing in design, the pin makes a fabul ...click for details
From the house that Jacopo built ...
Established by the Jacopo {Jacobo} brothers in Mexico City—and renowned for its exquisite, mosaico Azteca pieces—Arte en Plata was a prestigious silver house that sold jewelry crafted by independent Taxco silversmiths. This singular pair of earrings is an example of the exceptional caliber of work offered by that shop. Exquisitely handwrought, the earrings are hexagonal in form, outlined with a Pre-Columbian motif in silver, embellished with a vibrant, cru ...click for details
Delicate ~ Dainty ~ Danish ...
Mid-20th-century master silversmith John Lauritzen was registered in Copenhagen from 1955 to 1981. Best known for his Art Nouveau/Arts & Crafts-style botanical jewelry, this bracelet is an outstanding example of his earlier pieces. Hand-forged in sterling silver—and strongly evocative of the 1940's works by Jensen USA designer Laurence Foss—it is composed of seven rectilinear, openwork panels, interlinked by wide paperclip connectors. The panels are slig ...click for details
Primitive ~ Modernist ~ Timeless ...
Boasting both pre-Hispanic and modernist attributes—greatly evocative of works by renowned artists Oswaldo Guayasamin and Joaquin Tinta—this Ecuadorian brooch dates to the 1950's. Masterfully handwrought in .900 silver and boasting sublime texture and dimension, it depicts a stylized rooster. The figure is composed of a heavily chased body to which highly polished silver elements have been surmounted. These elements—including the bird's crown-like ...click for details
Madame Butterfly ...
The Art Nouveau movement regarded the female form as a symbol of sensuality. Artists of the period defined women as ethereal and erotic creatures, frequently portraying them with wings. One of the most popular and sensual motifs seen in Art Nouveau jewelry—perhaps started by the noted Newark jewelers—was the "Butterfly Lady." This remarkable brooch is a sublime example of such a piece. Imposing in both dimension and design, it is composed of a nude female figura ...click for details
From one of Denmark's leading—and most hotly collectible—modernist metalsmiths ...
Jacob Hull established his notable career in the early 1970's, when his jewelry was exhibited internationally and offered for purchase at Illums Bolighus, the prestigious Copenhagen department store for Danish design. His silver-plated pieces—many of which were created for jewelry house Buch + Deichmann—were all handmade at Hull's own workshop. Ever-concerned about retaining his intellectual propert ...click for details
An almost impossible-to-find collectible ...
A maestro silver maker, Gerardo Lopez owned a large taller and plateria, which was recommended in a 1956 guidebook as being among the "best silver shops" in Taxco. Celebrated for his exquisite repoussage work, crafted in the classical style seen during Mexico's silver renaissance, his art-to-wear jewelry remains highly prized today. This brooch marks a major departure for Lopez, not only in its singular motif, but also its use of enam ...click for details
