Photos

Comments

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  Joost Daalder June 12, 2011 at 10:41pm

  I don't find these as good as your best pieces - a bit too plain and crude for me. Not unattractive, but I think you  have far better ones, and if you allow me this comment as a very old collector, I'd say you are far better off aiming only for the best pieces, like your pair of Uzbeki amulets, than less "meaningful" ones like these. Most of the enthusiastic younger buyers buy far too MANY pieces, and as they grow older they realise that fewer but better (though more expensive) pieces would have satisfied them for far longer. There is nothing particularly "wrong" here, for what it is, but with your inherently good taste you will "outgrow" a purchase of this kind. The cutting out is rather crudely done, and there is not really much character or depth here - which is what we chiefly look for as collectors of ethnic/tribal art.
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  Ethnic Embellishments June 12, 2011 at 10:46pm

  I agree with Joost.  However, may people, such as myself, find that purchasing smaller pieces like these are perfect for resale back home.  The extra income can help support the one's buying habit.  Small pieces are favorites for people who design both professionally and for fun.
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  Joost Daalder June 13, 2011 at 3:36am

  Yes, Hillary, that is my point too - for selling to wearers quite different criteria apply, as those buyers apply quite different criteria themselves. Most of them know almost nothing about what they are buying, and consider whether the object sits on the body well enough and looks good: which also means that they don't *need* to know more. Several of Savanna's pieces are in essence suitable for collectors rather than wearers, however, and I just wanted to make sure that she does not see these pieces as good ones to buy for a collection: they are not, as there are very many of them, they are not very well made but rather crude, and they are comparatively modern. Savanna herself asks for comments, so I offer those as best I can! As, indeed, do you, and we are not in disagreement about objects like these: we are distinguishing between two quite different categories! Thanks for your comment, though, and I hope they are of use to Savanna.
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  Ethnic Embellishments June 13, 2011 at 4:40am

  Joost, my sentiments exactly.  My husband and I sell and we love to educate people about the cultures and traditions behind even the most simple pieces.  We hope that people who purchase from us pass along the information when someone inquires about the piece that they are wearing.
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  Patricia Deany June 13, 2011 at 12:22pm

  These will look fabulous as part of your wearable art necklaces. There are many more jewelry wearers out there than jewelry collectors. It is always wise to collect items for commercial use. It provides you with the income to buy special things for yourself.
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  Joost Daalder June 13, 2011 at 1:51pm

  Patricia, - I don't think they will ever look "fabulous", but, as I have already twice said, I think there WILL be people who can and will want to wear them as pendants. And for sure, there are more wearers than collectors. I must say, though, that I can think of other simple objects, including western ones, that I'd find better made, and offering better designs, than these pieces. So I think that actually both from a wearer's perspective and certainly from a collector's point of view Savanna, who intrinsically has a good eye, can find better things to buy - and not expensive ones either - than these. To be frank, the workmanship is crude in each instance, and the design at best mediocre. That does not mean, of course, that there won't be people who'll be happy to own such a pendant.
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  Savanna Caravan June 13, 2011 at 4:05pm

  Thank you all for your comments - very valid, informative and helpful.  I bought many of these inexpensive pendants as components for my "wearable art" as Patti realised!  I'll post some pictures when I've used them so you can see the result.  Then I'll wait for comments on traditional ethnic versus "contemporary wearable"! I have many original ethnic pieces that I just wouldn't wear because they are uncomfortable, or heavy, or fragile, (I have many Naga pieces) and others in which I combine older components with newer pieces so they can be worn.  As a designer, business woman and a collector, I am with all of you on all counts.
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  Patricia Deany June 13, 2011 at 4:19pm

  I read you were going to stay in Venice for awhile designing with venetian beads-- wonderful fun for you and please, please, post some of your designs! I have never been to Venice but it is definitely high on my list of places to see. I am so glad your trip is turning into the enriching and life changing experience that you envisioned it.
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  SARAH CORBETT June 13, 2011 at 4:46pm

  Joost you are always a purist! :-)  the collectors soul often sees nothing of beauty in many newer or 'lesser' pieces....beauty is in the eye of the beholder!  It is a great thing that the jewel world provides for everyones tastes...everyone has a valid opinion when it comes to these choices...as it is, and can only ever be personal to each of us.

  As Patti says, ( Knowing Sue personally as she does) Sue will work her magic on these and they will be the delight of someones jewel wardrobe.

  If we look with positivity we can find beauty everywhere.
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  Joost Daalder June 13, 2011 at 5:19pm

  No, Sarah, I am NOT "always a purist". I have a very receptive and wide-ranging attitude to all various kinds of jewellery, and am in no sense snobbish towards "impure" pieces, hybrids, cheap ones, etc, as you are trying to typecast me into being. What you say is just not true. What I DO firmly believe is that some pieces of jewellery are good and others are excellent or not good. And there is, among the best - most experienced and most highly regarded - judges, a remarkable consensus on these matters. The cheaper pieces that Savanna had bought were crude, and in no sense particularly good jewellery (not even in design): that has nothing to do with purism but it is simply the case that some pieces of jewellery are better than others. Those that are not well- made will never be good. That is not a matter of subjective taste, but observable fact: there is a distinction, which professionals and experienced collectors make, between a well-made piece and a poorly-made piece. The designs were also lumpish, crass, and simplistic. And totally lacking in any real creativity. Again, there is widespread agreement on such issues among most good collectors with knowledge and experience, and it is NOT a matter of purism or money, but ultimately a matter of aesthetic understanding and a grasp of what is well-made and not well-made. There IS such a thing as jewellery which is "not good" jewellery, and one can explain WHY. The ironic thing is that Savanna herself agrees with me - is with me "on all counts", as she says. So I was merely confirming what in her own mind she already knew to be the case. I am myself happy to buy VERY cheap pieces, whether a mixture of styles or not, etc - but I do look for QUALITY in all things, and that is what I think any sensible buyer should do and does do. A piece with quality, no matter how humble, will please people, whereas one that is poorly made will not win many friends, and certainly disappoint over time. And as for NEW pieces: I am absolutely "cutting edge" in buying contemporary western jewellery - some of the most advanced and daring designs, in fact. Even our contemporary pieces alone form a fine collection and are generally so regarded by a crowd of contemporary jewellers themselves, world-wide. In ALL areas we in fact are among the most adventurous buyers, very willing not to "play it safe", but to buy good pieces which challenge. No question of such a narrow judgement as you are trying to impute to me. In another area: we have been the first to see merit in Australian Aboriginal jewellery - virtually unknown before Truus wrote a lengthy chapter on it. In fact most buyers buy in a far less openminded way than we do, and this includes most buyers of ethnic jewellery. The idea that I would not see anything of beauty in many newer or "lesser" pieces is sheer nonsense, and very clearly refuted by the facts. But I DO retain the right to find some pieces better than others whether old or new or dear or inexpensive. And I find that over the years I educate many people to see better what they actually look at and why some things are superior to others, no matter whether old or new, cheap or dear, where from, whether a mixture of cultures or concepts, etc. I am not even in any strict sense a "collector". We buy pieces we admire, and in ANY culture, almost, there are almost always pieces which we do NOT like. A true collector would want to buy ALL the pieces from a culture and document them. We buy according to our own, well-developed sense of what is artistically worth having, and our repute as collectors - along these lines - shows that a vast number of people rates our judgement very highly, whether the best world connoisseurs, or simpler people with very little experience or knowledge.