The Gallery Collection: Art History Jewelry
The Gallery Collection is jewelry inspired by art history, long walks in monumental museums, and the little-told stories of the images and symbols that shape our view of the past and present. It by no means even begins to encompass the vast history of art, which spans every inhabited place great or small across the globe and includes every culture on our diverse planet. Consider it more like a room—a small gallery—wherein I’ve hung a handful of meaningful works to contemplate and paid homage to them with my own method of interpretive reproduction.
Given the time, assets and freedom, I could have never stopped making this collection; that is to say that if your favorite artist isn’t featured, well, neither is mine. I also explicitly chose works by artists who were active in the early 20th Century and before, as I felt uncomfortable re-interpreting works by living or recently living artists for sale.
This collection is dedicated to my brother Steven, who was an avid reader and lover of all things history and art. He especially loved Gauguin, and as you’ll learn from my Van Gogh-inspired necklace, had an affinity for a certain painting by the artist.
Caravaggio-Inspired Medusa Head Necklace
Caravaggio-Inspired Medusa Head Necklace
Caravaggio’s (Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio) often dark and violent subject matter, paired with his signature chiaroscuro (or use of heavy contrast using light and dark) echoed the dramatic, tumultuous life he lived, peppered with murder, assassination attempts, arrests and exile. His famous Medusa, painted in 1596-97, depicts the moment when the legendary snake-haired gorgon of ancient Greek myth was beheaded by Perseus, and the artist experiments with casting his own face as Medusa’s.
My Caravaggio-inspired Medusa head necklace features a cast bronze or sterling silver pendant of Medusa’s head with wild, curling snakes for hair. The pendant hangs from an 18-inch 14k gold-filled or sterling silver chain. The necklace pairs perfectly with my Medusa Serpent Earrings from my Siren Collection inspired by Greek Mythology, and you can learn more about Medusa and those earrings here.