Lot 2012
Gem Silica Chryscolla, Platinum, Diamond and Black Jade Brooch by Carl Lewis Druckman--"Thunderbird"
7 December 2021, 10:00 PST
Los AngelesUS$8,000 - US$10,000
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Gem Silica Chryscolla, Platinum, Diamond and Black Jade Brooch by Carl Lewis Druckman--"Thunderbird"
Designed in the form of a Zuni Bird, mounted with a gem-grade custom-cut gem-silica chrysocolla plaque, beneath triangular diamonds, accented with square-cut diamonds, the head, formed of Wyoming black nephrite jade with a lapis lazuli and carnelian crown, mounted in platinum, stamped Platinum and 18K, with CLD monogram signature for Carl Lewis Druckman. Measuring 2 3/4 x 2 x 1/4 in
Footnotes
The "Thunderbird" brooch was a winner of a coveted DeBeers "Diamonds Today" Award in 1995.
Carl Lewis Druckman (1958-1996)
"Intense, structured, with a guarded sense of whimsy", is how the late jeweler Carl Druckman described his jewelry designs and perhaps how he defined himself as well. (From the book Native American Jewelry, by Robert Bauver, Four Winds Publishing).
A native of Arizona and a self-taught designer, Carl Lewis Druckman entered the world of jewelry design through another medium. Originally producing a collection of handwoven garments, Druckman found he needed closures for the outfits. He designed a series of clasps and pins since regular buttons did not suit the style of his clothing. Designing jewelry was a natural extension of his textile work.
His range of materials incorporated a wide variety of opaque colored gemstones including lapis lazuli, coral, black jade and lesser known minerals such as petrified dinosaur bone, covellite, rutilated quartz and dendritic agate. His observation was "gemstones of this type have great personality and many unique qualities." His work was inspired by American studio jewelers of the 1940s and 1950s who were very modern and experimental. Most of his designs mixed different types of stones and his pieces were highly geometric, with oval elliptical and rectangular stones set in silver or gold with open backs and geometric metalwork. He stated, "I consider my work to be international in design, I am classic, yet I design for the 21st Century. I don't see myself doing things that have already been done before." He established his own firm, Studio CLD, in 1985 and offered special design and commission services.
One of his brooches was a winner of the coveted DeBeers "Diamonds Today" Award and he received another distinction from the Jewelers of America as a "New Designer."
His work was the subject of numerous articles including one entitled, "Designers Discover" in National Jeweler Magazine, Volume 34, Number 10, 1990; Lapidary Journal, December 1990; Eclat Paris International, Vol. 20, Spring 1990, "Profile"; and Town and Country and Connoisseur magazines, November 1991, amongst others.
