Scottish Rose Necklace (SOLD)
Ruby Zoisite carved rose pendant
Ruby Quartz and Czech faceted glass
I've mentioned before that the Art Nouveau art movement is my favorite. Artists like Henri Teterger and Rene Lalique being a couple from France that you've likely heard of before. Their work has a refined fine jewerly aspect to it.
My favorite Art Nouveau style artist though is Charles Rennie Macintosh. He was probably Britian's finest. To me his work has some arts and crafts style to it which was occurring in the same timeframe. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland and spent his life there helping to run The Glasgow School of Art and working as an artist during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was an architect as well as a designer. Like Frank Lloyd Wright, he was known for his interiors where he designed everything from tiles to stained glass windows to fabric and wonderful woodwork. His wife Margaret was also an artist and worked side by side with him on many.
During the temperance movement, early in Macintosh's career, he made his name in delightful tea rooms. Catherine Cranston was the daughter of a tea merchant who hired him to create murals for each of the rooms in her first tea rooms and then was so pleased hired him to design the furniture and interiors in the famous Willow Tea Rooms.
A few years ago I bought stencils from Scotland of the Macintosh rose and proceeded to stencil a border around our family room. I loved it for about 5 minutes. That's how long it took my husband to say "they look like cell phones." After that critique it was all I could see! argh!
Anyway, when I found this beautiful Ruby Zoisite (AAA rated) I immediately thought of Charles Rennie Macintosh roses and had to have it. The ruby crystals were artfully used by the lapidarist for the rose centers.
Being I'm a Scot by ancestry, I'm tempted to keep this one, but every jewelry maker knows how that goes. It's best to send it out into the world!