num_pages: 256
description: A new perspective on woman’s role in the world of art jewelry at the turn of the twentieth century―from Art Nouveau in France and the Arts and Crafts movement in Britain, to Jugendstil in Germany and Austria, Louis Comfort Tiffany in New York, and American Arts and Crafts in Chicago―and the most extensive survey to date of the sheer diversity and beauty of art jewelry during this period.   Accompanying a groundbreaking exhibition at The Richard H. Driehaus Museum in Chicago, this lavishly illustrated catalog showcases nearly two hundred stunning pieces from the Driehaus Collection and prominent national collections, many of which have never been seen by the public.   Women were not only the intended wearers of art jewelry during the early twentieth century, but also an essential part of its creation. Their work―boldly artistic, exquisitely detailed, hand wrought, and inspired by nature―is now widely sought after by collectors and museums alike. From the world’s first independent female jewelry makers, to the woman as artistic motif, this jewelry reflected rapid changes in definitions of femininity and social norms.   Essays by noted scholars explore five different areas of jewelry design and fabrication, and discuss the important female figures and historic social milieu associated with these movements―from the suffragists and the Rational Dress Society in England; to the Wiener Werkstätte and Gustav Klimt; and the Art Nouveau masters René Lalique and Alphonse Mucha, who depicted otherworldly women in jewelry for equally fascinating patrons like Sarah Bernhardt.   The essays are illustrated by historic photographs and decorative arts of the period as well as the extraordinary pieces hair combs, bracelets, brooches, and tiaras executed in moonstones, translucent horn, enamel, opals, aquamarines, and much more. As Driehaus writes in his introduction to Maker &amp; Muse, “Essential as these elements are, the metal and gemstones of a necklace―or a brooch or a bracelet―are like a canvas. It is the designer who evokes true greatness, beauty, and value from them. Neither monumental nor mass-produced, the object contains a memory of a particular artist’s skilled hand.”Chapters include: - "With a Hammer in Her Hand: Women and the British Arts and Crafts Movement"- "Metamorphosis: The Female Figure in Art Nouveau"- "American Art Jewelry: Louis Comfort Tiffany"- "Jewelry as Art: Germany and Austria in the Early Twentieth Century"- "Beautiful, Useful, and Enduring: Chicago Arts and Crafts Jewelry"
language: English
title: Maker and Muse: Women and Early Twentieth Century Art Jewelry
publisher: The Monacelli Press