Meet Me In Paris

Meet me in Paris at the Jardin des Plantes at the National Museum of Natural History, Place Valhubert, 5th arrondissement.  Together we will admire the wonderment of the Cabinet Bonnier de la Mosson.  "A unique manifestation of the intersection between aesthetics and science".  Dating back to 1735 the flora and fauna are fantastic and encased in the most beautifully carved cabinet.

Celeste Olalquiaga's well written column about the history of the cabinet, it's owner and it's place in society is worth the read.  Be sure to take a look at all the beautiful photographs by Joanna Ebenstein which can be found on her blog Morbid Anatomy and on her Flicker page astropop.

Photos above are from Morbid Anatomy's website.  Photo below is from Cabinet Magazine's article by Celeste Olalquiaga.

Butterfly Wings

B

Butterfly Wing x50

 Butterfly Wing x200

 Butterfly Wing x1000

 Butterfly Wing x5000

Photos by SecretDisc found on Wikimedia Commons

insectes éthérés

It arrived.  Last week.  The most amazing hammer in the world.  Okay that is a bit of an exaggeration but not by much.  What is it you ask?  Insectes éthérés is a custom engraved macro spiculum hammer for jewelery fabrication.

How did this happen?  It is sort of hard to explain how one falls in love but it went something like this.  I took a workshop led by NC Black, they teach micro forming for jewelry fabrication.  I made my first spiculum, then a furry bracelet and other cool shapes and jewelry bits.  The spiculum hammer was my favorite tool of the workshop.  I thought it was the most unique of the tools used for micro forming and when you look at the hammer shape you know it is something special.

Then I took an engraving workshop from NC Black.  While I did a good job for a beginner I am years away from being proficient.  The teacher, Les Byrant, was amazing.  An excellent, patient teacher with a great sense of humor and a huge amount of creativity and talent.  You can see Les' work on his website Le Graveur De Vol or on his etsy page Fluffy's Corner, be sure to check out the Bad Kitty cuff bracelet.

So I fell hard and wanted Les to custom engrave a hammer for me and I requested it to be in the theme of a cabinet of curiosities. 

If micro forming metal sounds appealing to you, I highly recommend NC Black's workshops and you can find dates for a workshop near you on their NC Black website or their updates under NC Black on Facebook.

So here it is, insectes éthérés with a beautiful Wenge wood handle, and the last photo is that of the first spiculum I made.

Butterfly Cuff Bracelet

 

Butterfly Cuff Bracelet, Sterling Silver or Brass

Each wing segment is hand cut with a jeweler's saw.

Available by custom order - email me

19th Century Documents

Hand painted lithographs are so beautiful and I adore them.  The depiction and documentation of nature in an artistic and scientific manner is fascinating.  These originals from 1826 are part of Louis Isidore Duperrey’s 3^rd volume of work “Voyage autour du monde:  Sur la corvette la Coquille”.  

Every detail, hair and dimple was carefully rendered showing each leg, antennae and armature.  Iridescent paints were used to reproduce the metallic shells of beetles and vivid colors for butterfly wings.  The colored depictions are accompanied often with line illustrations showing the segmentation of the insects. 

More information on the voyage and additional lithograph images...