Book Review

The Jewelry Book. Edited by Melanie Grant. Credit: Phaidon

The Jewelry Book Reviewed through an Art Jewelry Lens

Reviews /

Melanie Grant, ed., The Jewelry Book. London: Phaidon, 2025. I’m not immune to the allure of stones and precious metals, but I prefer studio jewelry and unconventional adornment. Nonetheless, I found Melanie Grant’s The Jewelry Book, which focuses heavily on high-end baubles, engrossing and enchanting. The book’s 300 jewelry-focused entries feature glorious examples of craftsmanship […]

The Jewelry Book Reviewed through an Art Jewelry Lens Read More »

Harper’s Bizarre Beauty

Reviews /

Arnoldsche published Bizarre Beauty, a book about William Harper, last year. AJF timed the release of this review of it to coincide with and celebrate an unrelated exhibition, Precious Grotesqueries: The Jewels of William Harper. That show will run October 23–December 12, 2025, at Les Enluminures.[1] Glenn Adamson and Martha J. Fleischman (eds.), Bizarre Beauty:

Harper’s Bizarre Beauty Read More »

Spread from Ice Cold

Ice Cold Is HOT

Reviews /

Vikki Tobak, Ice Cold: A Hip-Hop Jewelry History. Cologne: Taschen, 2022. This book is an excellent example of how jewelry and identity go hand in hand A related show, Ice Cold: An Exhibition Of Hip-Hop Jewelry, guest-curated by the book’s author, opened last week at the American Museum of Natural History, in NYC It’s striking

Ice Cold Is HOT Read More »

Jewels That Resist

Reviews /

Ariella Aïsha Azoulay is an important voice in the postcolonial debate Her latest research work is interwoven with her personal history, much of it having to do with jewelry after she discovered that part of her identity had been hidden from her The book underscores that identity can be forcibly simplified, officially obliterated. The things

Jewels That Resist Read More »

Quirky, Playful, and Humorous

Reviews /

The book North By Northwest is engaging, informative, and very ably researched, with a lively graphic design Its large format is well-suited to presenting Laurie Hall’s work, which often consists of big narrative neckpieces with many components The authors present individual pieces with relevant backstories, personal circumstances, and useful explanations about social and historical references

Quirky, Playful, and Humorous Read More »

Esther Brinkmann, Bell

Esther Brinkmann

Reviews /

Elizabeth Fischer, Ward Schrijver, Philippe Solms, and Fabienne X. Sturm, Esther Brinkmann. Stuttgart: Arnoldsche Art Publishers, 2022. The essays, in English, have French translations at the end of the book Rings are key in Brinkmann’s oeuvre, so they have a separate chapter. They’re printed so large they resemble bowls, pots, or vases. In fact, Brinkmann

Esther Brinkmann Read More »

Cold Sweat Suor Frio: 1st Lisbon Contemporary Jewellery Biennial

Food for the Soul: Thoughts on Jewelry in Pandemic Times

Reviews /

Cristina Filipe, ed. Cold Sweat Suor Frio: 1st Lisbon Contemporary Jewellery Biennial. Lisbon: PIN – Associação Portuguesa de Joalharia Contemporânea/Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa – Museu de São Roque/Câmara Municipal Lisboa, MUDE – Museu do Design e da Moda, Coleção Francisco Capelo/Universidade Católica Portuguesa, School of Arts, CITAR- Research Centre for Science and Technology

Food for the Soul: Thoughts on Jewelry in Pandemic Times Read More »

Scroll to Top