With our highlight on the Francisca Rendic collection last week, it got us thinking about the distinctions between jewellery and art. Are these two worlds mutually exclusive? What are the connections between them?

Jewellery making and art have many things in common; composition, knowledge of materials, originality and an understanding of form and function. So it is interesting that jewellery making is often referred to as a craft and not an “art”. Many makers are now blurring these lines with the term “wearable art”, highlighting pieces that are as home on your body as they would be behind glass in a gallery.

We are pleased to see jewellery moving out of the confines of fashion and accessories and being appreciated as art. We are also pleased to see makers using new techniques and materials to express their ideas and create amazing, imaginative pieces of this wearable art. Let’s hope that this trend continues, with curiosity and creativity driving bold new design, a move away from generic, cookie-cutter pieces and jewellers being recognised as the artists they are. (Necklace by Yong Joo Kim).