Wearable Contemporary Art - Jewelry
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Time to read 5 min
Jewelry as self-expression
In the vibrant world of contemporary art and fashion, jewelry has emerged as a powerful medium of personal expression and style. Wearable Contemporary Art—through pendants, earrings, cuffs, stackable bracelets, rings, and more—transforms personal adornment into a sophisticated canvas of individual identity.
Contemporary jewelry artists create intricate pieces that transcend traditional accessories, creating wearable art that speaks to personal aesthetics, we could even call it an emotional landscape. Each carefully designed piece becomes a statement, reflecting the wearer's unique sensibilities and artistic vision.
From minimalist geometric pendants that capture architectural precision to organic, fluid earrings that evoke natural forms, these accessories are more than mere decorations. They are sculptural extensions of personal style, allowing individuals to curate their visual narrative through mindfully chosen pieces.
A delicate cuff might echo the clean lines of modern sculpture, while a ring could incorporate unexpected materials that challenge traditional jewelry design. These pieces invite wearers to express their individuality, transforming personal adornment into an elegant, deeply personal art form.
By carefully selecting and combining contemporary jewelry, individuals construct a visual language that communicates their artistic sensibilities, cultural connections, and personal aesthetics—turning everyday wear into a nuanced form of self-expression.
MARIA SAMORA
“My designs appeal to the senses and come to life on the body. The purpose of my art is to accentuate the body and capture the movement of the human form, enhancing one’s personal beauty and grace with sophistication and elegance.” — Maria Samora
Maria Samora is a prodigy. Since 2005, Samora has become a premier Native American jeweler. In only her second year showing at the Santa Fe Indian Market, she won first place. She won again in 2007 and two years later, her work was featured on the official Indian Market poster - the first jeweler ever. Since then, her jewelry has become highly coveted across the country. Her designs are inspired by Pueblo Indian tradition but resound with contemporary influences and design.
Originally from Taos Pueblo, Maria is the daughter of a medicine man. Just before her first Indian Market, Maria asked her father to bless her jewelry. It must have worked! Working with ethically produced 18k gold and sterling silver, she personally wears every earring and every necklace to ensure they look as beautiful when being worn, as they do in the display case.
NIGHTHORSE
The Legacy Continues
For over eight decades, the name Nighthorse has been synonymous with exquisite craftsmanship and timeless beauty in the world of jewelry. Now, we invite you to experience the next chapter in this remarkable family legacy.
As you explore this Nighthorse collection, you'll discover jewelry that is at once familiar and fresh, comfortable yet luxurious. Each tells a story of generational craft, of traditions reborn, and of a family united in creating beauty that endures.
"This new collection, from the next generation, for the next generation, is a dream come true ... a celebration of my father's incredible body of work."
— Shanan Campbell, owner of Sorrel Sky Galleries which exclusively represents her father, Ben Nighthorse's classic jewelry line, and the new Nighthorse legacy jewelry line.
VICTORIA ADAMS
"When designing and building my jewelry, I incorporate the natural forms I observe." —Victoria Adams
Victoria Adams is widely lauded for her stunning jewelry creations. Featuring unique combinations of color, texture, and materials, she juxtaposes precious metals and gemstones, fossils with plant, animal, and human forms. In this way, Adams expresses her own heritage, experiences, and values in her wearable art designs.
The Oakland, California native is a member of the Southern Cheyenne/Arapaho tribe of Oklahoma where her traditional name is “He On E Va,” meaning “Woman Who Lights the Pipe.”
“Sightings of deer, antelope, birds, bugs, berries, and my own horses can set one day very much apart from another. Cheyenne religious ceremonies are not complete without the inclusion of plants and animals. We honor them. They are still an integral part of our traditional and contemporary cultures.” For Adams, there is no dividing line between a fine, large diamond set in gold and a beautifully crafted pair of graceful silver Southern Plains-style earrings. “When I dress for a fine evening in New York or for a night of dancing at one of my favorite pow-wows, the glint of my silver earrings, like the sparkle of a diamond, makes me feel elegant and proud.”
TIM & LINDA CHERRY
“My ... approach involves the use of simplified shapes and lines to produce curvilinear forms. Capturing the grace and elegance of my subjects is a primary goal.” — Tim Cherry
The works of the husband and wife team, Tim and Linda Cherry, are a joyful expression of art, animals, and nature. Combining their talents to create jewelry that shares three decades of Tim’s wildlife sculptures with a wider audience, their contemporary, wearable art speaks to your inner animal.
Tim’s style is influenced by the art nouveau culture with uniquely orchestrated compositions and avant-garde patinas. These identifying elements have become his signature in the fine art world. Linda's love of jewelry started when her grandmother gave her a small blue bug pin encrusted with gemstones when she was a little girl.
Linda and Tim are sharing their experiences in nature and art by adding complementary shapes, lines, and colors to Tim’s original sculpture designs to create jewelry for everyone to wear every day.
BERND WOLF
“An accomplished piece of jewelry is imbued with a charm that fascinates and inspires the beholder. For us, the entire creative process, starting from the moment of opting for a new material via designing the gemstone cuts to the first finished piece, is always exciting and enthralling." — Bernd Wolf
From Germany’s Black Forest, Bernd Wolf and his wife, Yvonne, design jewelry collections that reflect the spirit of our times. Using minimalist language and a synergistic philosophy, the Wolf collections marry high-quality cut gemstones and uniquely textured precious metals with the symbolism of form and material. Diamond, carnelian, kyanite, onyx, pearls, smoky quartz, black spinel, turquoise, and sponge coral in combination with sterling silver and 24k gold plating offer pleasing and sophisticated yet simple and distinctive jewelry designs.
With a background in engineering, Wolf attends to every technical detail of his work and finds particular satisfaction in utilizing symbolism in his vocabulary of forms. Each gem plays an important role for Wolf while designing his pieces as each gem has a specific purpose and effect on the individual wearer. This synergy of material and form makes each piece unique and tells its own little story.
