posted 10-03-2007 08:46 AM            

We have attended some great craft shows where we have had to opportunity to meet many working artisan jewelry smiths. We have seen some great pieces but have left the shows without the item. Because the item is unmarked. We have asked why the maker doesn’t mark their works? The usual answer is “everyone knows my work so no there is no need”. Some offer to scratch their initials but a scratch mark can be done by anyone, to anything, at anytime, so it doesn’t do it for us.

When we suggest that we (and our clients) want to purchase items with a unique maker’s mark, it seems to fall on deaf years. Some ask why a unique maker’s mark is important but the myriad of answers we have tried often doesn’t ring any bells for the maker.

There are contemporary artisan jewelry makers who do use an unique maker’s mark. I would like to see the SSF gather their marks in this forum and to do what we can to identify the maker with their marks.

A gathering of marks and associating those marks with the maker will be a great help to collectors of contemporary artisan jewelry. And if we gather and identify enough marks then hopefully others will begin to understand and start to mark their works.

posted 10-03-2007 09:05 PM            

We constantly see beautiful jewelry that is unsigned -- a few are shown at

http://chicagosilver.com/unk.htm

and our site includes many unmarked but documented items by such masters as Oakes and Hale.

It's often possible to identify makers from paperwork and studio sketches, catalogs, old magazine stories, work logs, etc. But such ephemera is frequently lost. It's important for all of us to seek out and preserve such vital sources of information before they're gone.

posted 10-05-2007 01:37 PM            

Continuing the along the same thought, I had occasion to help a friend in identifying miscellaneous art works that had long ago been purchased on trips by or given to him. He had forgotten most of who had done them. What a job trying to read some illegible script or just initials. My friend who too was a known artist was just as guilty, just using just his initials. There are so many with the same initials & unless you are familiar with art, & the artists style you're lost.

After seeing how difficult it was to ID works, though he still continued his using his initials, he then began at my request to print his name, title of the work, and date and even price on the back of the canvas, or on the wood frame on works that he had still kept. The other difficulty in identifying his work from his initials was his style & genre changed over the years, anything from seascapes to charactures.

As an aside, at a charity auction one on his works had been donated after his demise, along with another artists work with the same initials, both being seascapes. The local Charity whose people were not familiar with his work did not like the frames & so gave it to a local framer to do over. The framer in reframing then switched, and I can only assume in error the actual wood frame with the title belonging to my friend, to the other artist. Had I not been at the event preview to see the error & explain to the committee what had happened the work would have gone for pennies.

So too I'm sure that may happen with some signed silver pieces.

At least one suggestion of proper attribution did not fall on deaf ears.

posted 10-05-2007 10:03 PM            

They all did not feel part of the long tradition of silver smithing. In fact, most thought of themselves as jewelers first and smiths not very much. And the small shops that produce fine jewelry to be sold in retail stores do not put marks on their jewelry either. Makers are recognized by their style and design.

My own suspicion is that the artisans regard marking as being industrial. As contrary to hand crafting. 'Ye workemen good and truee' as Ruskin put it.

posted 10-05-2007 11:54 PM            

Another consideration is with original designs, there is some sense in which the client owns the design. But given the time and effort that goes into making the first wax for casting, there is another consideration. A jeweler will wait a few years and then make copies of that wax. Which he will send to corresponding jewelers throughout the world. They will then produce one or two copies. So the person who paid for an original one of a kind, may not know there are several on different continents. A mark would be a problem here.

The great fear that haunts the jewelry world is accidentily buying stolen jewelry. What protects jewelers from this is the anonymity of the piece of jewelry. A mark detracts from anonymity. Wholesale jewelers, hypothetically of course, switch stones and settings on every piece they get to protect themselves. Just protecting themselves.

Finally, some loony customers regard a mark as a monogram and want it removed.