MJSA, the association for jewelry makers and designers, announces the winners of its annual Vision Awards, which honor excellence in jewelry making and design, as well as technical skill.
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- Professional Design Excellence 1st Place winner Adam Neeley of Adam Neeley Fine Art Jewelry in Laguna Beach, California, created hand-fabricated Spectra earrings that transition seamlessly through seven gold colors, from rich yellow to white, and feature the adularescence of rainbow moonstones. (Adularescence, a milky bluish luster or glow, is found most notably when looking at gemstones such as moonstone. It is an optical phenomenon that exists only in the presence of light.)
The winning pieces will be displayed at MJSA Expo New York at the Hilton New York from March 10-12. Expo New York is the annual trade show for jewelry makers and designers.
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- Gold Distinction 2nd Place winner Ezra Satok-Wolman of Atelier Hg & Co. Inc. in Ontario, Canada, used anticlastic raising techniques to create an 18k white gold torus brooch called Pythagoras’ Cosmos to honor the ancient Greek mathematician, Pythagoras of Samos. The artist divided the torus mathematically to produce a hole pattern that mimics the phyllotaxis patterns observed in nature (phyllotaxis is the arrangement of leaves on a plant stem).
The Vision Awards include Professional Design Excellence, as well as Gold, Palladium, Platinum, Laser, and Custom Design Distinction categories. In addition, a “Future of the Industry” award recognizes students enrolled in jewelry making and design programs.
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- Platinum Distinction 2nd Place winner, Susan Drake of Spectrum Art & Jewelry inWilmington, North Carolina, crafted a Spanish Dancer ring that was inspired by the vivid hues and dramatic ruffled wings of the large and colorful tropical sea mollusk called Spanish Dancer nudibranch. The ring features an intense, natural-colored, fuchsia sapphire, captured between curving walls of platinum that are accented with lines of micro-pavéd one-point diamonds. The designer, a long-time scuba diver, drew from her undersea experiences to create the ring.
“This year’s MJSA Vision Awards illustrate an impressive commitment to jewelry making and design in the 21st century,” says MJSA President & CEO David W. Cochran. “The winners’ authoritative command of metals, gems, and contemporary materials is matched by the imagination they demonstrated in creating their pieces.”
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- Future of the Industry 1st Place winner, Jiarui Lu of the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Georgia, created her Auspicious Cloud brooch in honor of the traditional ivory carving and kingfisher feather inlay that were popular in China’s Ming and Qing dynasties, especially in the royal family of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The iridescent blue feathers of kingfisher birds were used to create the art form, which is relatively unknown outside of China, and is rapidly disappearing. Due to ivory prohibitions, Jiarui Lu carved on tagua nut, which resembles elephant ivory, and incorporated sterling silver, copper, and freshwater pearls in her design.
The judges of this year’s Vision Awards competition were Chris Ploof, Chris Ploof Designs; Michael Coan, Fashion Institute of Technology; Cindy Edelstein, Jeweler’s Resource Bureau; Sarah Graham, Sarah Graham Metalsmithing; Marlene Richey, MJSA Consultant; and Tina Snyder, MJSA Journal editor in chief.
