Crane Jewelers: Preserving the Lost Art of Elegance
Visiting the Crane Jewelry Gallery is often reminisced upon as the experience of a private museum showing of objects d'art from the farthest reaches of the world.
Online, April 3, 2013 (Newswire.com) - As a collector, restoration offers you the chance to preserve the integrity, beauty and value of cherished pieces in your collection. Fine restoration enables invaluable family heirlooms and collector's pieces to be preserved and treasured by future generations.
THE ELEGANCE OF ANTIQUE JEWELRY
One of the wondrous things about antique jewelry is the great diversity of materials and artistic techniques which were employed to create it. This diversity and subtlety makes the selection of a restoration craftsman even more critical. Restored incorrectly, a valuable historic piece can lose not only its value, but a subtlety of artistic beauty that may be difficult to recapture.
It takes years to develop a level of expertise and sophistication required for historic jewelry restoration. Most goldsmiths do not have the specialty training required for many restoration projects. The field of antique jewelry restoration is so wide that it's impossible to acquire proficiency in all areas. While one craftsperson may be excellent at fine platinum wire work or engraving, he or she may know nothing of repousse and chasing.
FINDING A GOOD RESTORATION CRAFTSMAN
•Seek the recommendations of those who are respected in the field of antique jewelry.
•Strive to find a restoration craftsman who is deeply versed in period designs.
•Choose a craftsperson with good communication skills. If a restoration requires working with an expert craftsman in another part of the country, good communication across distances will be an even more critical ingredient.
•Once you choose a craftsperson, work to establish good communication and a good working relationship.
HISTORIC HEIRLOOM PIECES ARE INVALUABLE
A restorer must be trusted not to damage or erase the characteristics that distinguish the period in which the jewelry was designed or the individual trademarks of the designers themselves.
All jewelry is a product of the era into which it was born. It's connected to fashion, economics, politics and social consciousness. For this reason, it's important for a jewelry restorer to understand the zeitgeist - or general intellectual, moral and cultural climate - of the era in which it was created.
This understanding can bring the restorer into harmony with the period, but it's more difficult to match the form and expression of a specific period artist. Many of today's restorers make the mistake of applying a 21st century aesthetic to the redesign of elements missing from antique jewelry. Examples include huge replacement prongs on Georgian period jewelry, fat shanks replacing narrow ones on Victorian rings and high polish on all surfaces - regardless of whether that was the original design.
Identifying a restoration craftsman who is deeply versed in period designs is critical in preserving the design integrity and value of family heirlooms.
An expert in period design, with over thirty years of experience in goldsmithing, platinumsmithing and stone setting, Kevin Crane, Design Director and owner of Crane Jewelers, specializes in custom design and period restoration. Trained in Italy, with a loyal international following of clients, Crane's work has been exhibited in North America, Germany, Italy and Japan, and is represented in collections internationally. His work has been published in Marthe Le Van's 500 Brooches (Lark Books).
The Crane Jewelry Gallery at 519 Pine Street in downtown Seattle, was designed by award winning architects Jim Olson and Tom Kundig in 1987. Visiting the gallery is often reminisced upon as the experience of a private museum showing of objects d'art from the farthest reaches of the world.
To visit the Crane Jewelry Gallery of custom design and antique fine jewelry pieces.
Location: 519 Pine Street just across from Nordstrom in downtown Seattle.
Hours: Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm
E-mail: kc@cranejewelers.com
Telephone 206.624.1531 PST
CRANE JEWELERS-THE ART OF ELEGANCE
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For more information contact Kevin Glenn Crane, Telephone 206.624.1531 Pacific Standard Time