SESSION 2:
Fringe, Edge, Strap, Bail,
Surface Embellishment in Jewelry
-- Art or Not?
October 2013
Sun, 10/13/2013 thru Sat, 10/19/2013
ENROLLMENT CLOSED
2015 (TBA)

DETAILED ITINERARY
(Narrative Synopsis)

Brief Synopsis:

If we are to get control over what we make as artists, how do these jewelry elements -- fringe, edge, strap, bail, surface embellishment -- come into play in an appropriate and satisfying way?

Classical art theory would say that these kinds of elements in jewelry should be supplemental to the core piece, such as a pendant or centerpiece.

The pendant is "art", and any fringe, strap, bail, edging or extraneous surface embellishment would merely supplement this. In painting, these kinds of components would equate with the "frame"; in sculpture, these kinds of components would equate with the "pedestal base."

Neither the frame nor the pedestal should be required to be present in order to appreciate the painting or sculpture as art. Nor should these detract. Or compete. Or take center stage. Or overwhelm.

But what about these elements in jewelry -- fringe, edge, straps, bails and surface embellishment? How should these relate to the center piece. If our goal is to elevate beadwork and jewelry to the realm of art, rather than craft, we need somehow to accommodate, confront or revise this central concept in art theory -- that all these elements must remain supplemental to the center piece.

In this workshop, we learn how to make the kinds of choices about fringe, edge, strap, bail, and surface embellishment which elevate our jewelry to the requirements and expectations underlying good art and design. We learn theories, multiple beadweaving techniques and applications for fringes, edges, straps, bails and surface embellishment.

This workshop is an intermediate/advanced level. Some previous experience with making jewelry (whether bead stringing, bead weaving or wire working) is required. A comfort using needle and thread, and a knowledge of how to do flat peyote and tubular peyote bead weaving stitches would be very helpful.

DETAILED ITINERARY:

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Sunday – Arrival in Nashville, Tennessee
- arrival
- welcome
- dinner




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Monday –

THE CENTER PIECE
Morning:
Theory: Jewelry and Beadwork as Art -- Art or Not-Art?
Theory: The Anatomy of the Necklace
Theory: Roles and Designs of The Center Piece

Afternoon Session:
Materials and Techniques - The BezelWorks Center Piece Project Design
Materials and Techniques - The Basic Fringe-Edge-Strap Experimental Necklace Project Design
Refresher Class on flat and tubular peyote stitch

How do we go about designing an aesthetically pleasing, well-functioning, center piece? What functions does the center piece serve? How do we make choices about size, design, proportions, placement? We can turn to several sources for guidance, including craft writings, classic art theory and contemporary design theory. Each, however, suggests a different set of choices to make, in order to reach our goal.

We are introduced to the central project: A BezelWorks Pendant. In the Afternoon session, we learn an open-back, peyote-stitch bezel technique, incorporating some variation in bead type, size and shape.

We will also create a simple necklace to use for experimenting with fringing and edging techniques during the week.

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Tuesday –

FRINGE
Morning Session:
Theory: Roles and Designs of Fringe
Materials and Techniques: Fringe

Afternoon Session:
Materials and Techniques - The BezelWorks Center Piece Project Design
Materials and Techniques - The Basic Fringe-Edge-Strap Experimental Necklace Project Design

In good jewelry design, the fringe would play either a supporting, or a co-equal role, with the center piece. It would not overwhelm or be overdone. It would seem as if the fringe were organic part of the piece. It would not seem like an afterthought.

So what exactly is fringe, and what can fringe be? How does the fringe make the piece more or less satisfying? There are numerous possibilities.

Today we learn several fringing techniques, including:
- simple and straight
- simple and straight with a drop
- branch
- looped
- twisted/spiral
- netted
- leaf

Fringing Design Case Study discussion: The Monet's Garden Bracelet

We also learn to create a frame around our BezelWorks cabochon, off of which we will be fringing tomorrow.

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Wednesday –

EDGING
Morning Session:
Theory: Roles and Designs of the Edge
Materials and Techniques: Edges

Afternoon Session:
Materials and Techniques - The BezelWorks Center Piece Project Design
Materials and Techniques - The Basic Fringe-Edge-Strap Experimental Necklace Project Design

Edging, like Fringing, is used to give a finished look to the piece. It might be used to hide threads. It might be used to hide any irregularities in how beads line up or are juxtaposed. An edging strategy is especially critical, however, for creating, preserving, blurring, or otherwise affecting the boundary line, line curvature, and/or silhouette of the center piece or the piece of jewelry as a whole.

What role does the “border” of a piece play? Does it mark a beginning/ending? How does it help the viewer appreciate the emotional content of the piece?

Borders/edges frame.
They may repeat the pattern of lines and arcs from the central piece.
They may repeat or play off of the color of the central piece
They may establish a rhythm.

Today we will learn some edging technqiues, including
- picot
- beaded outline
- square-stitched edge (flat)
- ndebele-stitched edge (3 dimensional)
- book binding edge

We learn about the use of line, borders, boundaries and framing.

We will be designing and creating fringing off our our BezelWorks Pendant frame.

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Thursday –

STRAPS, BAILS and THE CANVAS
Morning Session:
Theory: Roles and Designs of Straps and Bails
Materials and Techniques: Straps and Bails
Theory: Roles and Designs of "Canvas" and Surface Embellishment
Materials and Techniques: "Canvas" and Surface Embellishment

Afternoon Session:
Materials and Techniques - The BezelWorks Center Piece Project Design
Materials and Techniques - The Basic Fringe-Edge-Strap Experimental Necklace Project Design

What are the visual and functional purposes of the strap? What should the strap look like? How should the strap be connected to the piece? Where should the strap be connected to the piece? To what extent is or should the strap be as an integral part of the piece of jewelry as art? How does the strap define a silhouette? How does the strap make the piece more or less satisfying?

A bail changes the visual and artistic relationship between the strap and the center piece. How might this be helpful, and how not? The bail poses similar design challenges as the strap -- size, proportion, placement and attachment. However, it has to succeed at one additional task -- it has to control the visual, aethestic and functional transitioning between the center piece and the strap.

The "canvas" in a piece of jewelry may be the stringing material, and how it is worked off of. It might be another piece of beadwork, such as a beaded base, off of which some center piece is developed. It might be a core line of beads. It might be a piece of fabric or other material. How does the canvas influence the interpretation of jewelry as art? How should the canvas interact with the main piece and its components? To what extent should it become part of the artwork itself; and to what extent, not? Classic Art theory suggests that the canvas should NOT be a part of the artwork at all.

In the afternoon, we will be learning to make different types of bails, and strategies/techniques for attaching the bail to the center piece.
- simple square-stitched ring or tube bail
- flat and square right angle weave bail
- triangle bail using peyote in the round
- butterfly bail
- combine flat peyote and twisted ndebele stitched bail

This afternoon, we will be desiging a strap, with or without a bail, for our BezelWorks Pendant.

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Friday –

SURFACE EMBELLISHMENT
Morning Session:
Theory: Roles and Designs of Surface Embellishment
Materials and Techniques: Surface Embellishment

Afternoon Session:
Materials and Techniques - The BezelWorks Center Piece Project Design
Materials and Techniques - The Basic Fringe-Edge-Strap Experimental Necklace Project Design

Surface Embellishment should look and functional as an integral and organic part of the whole piece. It needs to be parimonious -- not too much, and not too little. If it's primary purpose is to hide flaws, no one should notice.

Today we discuss Surface Embellishment possibilities, do's and don'ts. We learn some simple bead embroidery surface embellishment techniques:
- back stitch
- hatch pattern
- scalloping
- fringing
- layering

We will return to the Monet's Garden Bracelet case study, and again discuss the bracelet in terms of fringe, edge, canvas, and surface embellishment.

The afternoon provides additional time for completion of the BezelWorks Pendant, or any additional experiementation using our experimental necklace.

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Saturday –
Finale and Departure

JEWELRY DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
Morning Session:
Technique vs. Skill
Advocating for Your Work as "Art"

Classic Art Theory holds that if, when talking about a piece, you talk or focus too much on ‘technique’, your piece is not Art. It’s Craft. If we believe that jewelry is "ART", then classic art theory begs the question: can we speak about jewelry or beadwork without speaking about technique?

If our goal is to elevate beadwork and jewelry to the realm of art, rather than craft, we need somehow to accommodate, confront or revise concepts about fringes, edges, straps, bails and surface embellishment -- in fact, about jewelry, itself -- which are central in art theory, if we don’t agree that edges, fringes, straps, bails and extra surface embellishment are as important to the jewelry as it’s core.

Should fringe, edge, strap, bail or surface embelllishment be supplemental, or complimental, or incidental, or critical to jewelry?

Is adornment and embellishment “art”?

What makes a piece of jewelry an “art” piece?

Is there a design element to creating fringes, edges, straps and surface embellishment? That is, are there a set of principles that we can follow and share, so that we don’t over-do, or don’t compete with the central part of any piece of jewelry? Are there a set of rules of construction that we can learn and adapt?

What is the value of decoration? What principles regulate this?