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[ Article appeared in
Robb Report, November 2004 issue] |
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Artful Hands Zoltan David frequently offers a piece of advice to his clients: "If you want the best from an artist, set him free." For the 53-year-old metalsmith, freedom means spending as many as 70 hours hand-forging one ring rather than casting his designs in multiples. David's specialty is the laborious "cold-forged" technique that involves using hand tools to compress and shape cold metal, which is then softened with heat and allowed to harden. the heating and cooling process is repeated numerous times, which, he says, results in metal that is 40 percent harder and denser than cast metal. "Hand-forged metal is weighty, tactile, and features a subtle grain that can't be achieved with casting," explains David, whose worn hands bear testimony to the grueling nature of the work. David's signature design is a finely detailed |
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inlaid pattern typically set with tiny diamonds, rubies, or emeralds. He spent more than two years refining this technique, for which he was awarded a U.S. patent last year. After launching his career in Vancouver, where for eight years he served as an apprentice goldsmith, David spent several years designing for retailers and private clients before opening his Zoltan David Jewelry Gallery in Austin, Texas, in 1994. "I tend to have a sophisticated collector who is not concerned with fashion or trends, but likes my designs for their engineering, unique style, and feel," he explains. One Southern California client, for example, called David two years ago and said, "I'm in the mood for something green; make me something cool." A few months later, David presented her with a ring set with 12-carat green tourmaline suspended above an inner circle, a design that has since become a favorite in his collection. Says David of the client's request and the ring that resulted from it: "She set me free." "Forging a Niche" from page 368 The jewelry designers featured in this issue's "Artful Hands" story (page 118) - Michael Zobel, Scott Gauthier, and Zoltan David - are masters of their craft, possessing superior metalworking skills and enough patience to spend years gathering rare and beautiful gemstones. Two longtime leaders in the field, Henry Dunay and Michael Bonanza, who were profiled in "Designers Extraordinaire" in our November 1996 issue, built and have sustained their reputations, in part, on these same fundamental traits. Like the trio of artisan jewelers in this issue, both continue to create limited numbers of high-quality artistic pieces, shunning mass-market production and fleeting fashion trends.
Moonstones have captured
Dunay's attention of late, but before that, he had fallen under the
spell of coral. His interest in gemstones and precious natural
materials derives from a desire to add color to his pieces and to give
his clients what they want before they realize that they want it.
"Finding something new is key," Dunay says, "Always give them
something else to look at, want, and eventually buy."
More than just the
centerpieces of his jewelry, the stones have a rejuvenating quality
for Dunay; they rekindle his creative spark. "After Christmas, I go
to Europe to see the stone and diamond dealers and visit Paris," he
says. "When I'm in Europe, I'm so blasé and burned out because of
Christmas. By the time I'm on the plane home, I'm on fire again,
because I've found intriguing stones. When I see them, I know what to
do."
Bondanza remains
motivated by the challenges of constructing the designs he envisions.
He expressed interest in math and art when he was younger, and,
ultimately, he discovered that jewelry-making satisfied his craving
for projects that provide strenuous mental workouts. That others are
eager to pay handsomely for the products of his intellectual exercise
is a bonus. "I don't really have a particular customer in mind," says
Bondanza. "I pretty much draw what I like, and if I like it, others
will like it."
His problem-solving
inclinations predisposed Bondanza to working with platinum, a tricky
and unforgiving metal. "When I looked at the history of jewelry, the
most incredible pieces were made from platinum," he says. "But when I
started 30 years ago, few people were making big pieces in platinum.
I had to learn to do it myself."
Bondanza's trial and
error proved costly - he estimates that he ruined tens of thousands of
dollars' worth of metal - but his persistence eventually yielded
dividends. His pieces were distinctive and instantly recognizable,
qualities that helped establish him in his field. However, he has no
interest in trading on that fame by producing on a large scale.
Nor does Dunay, who
demonstrated his aversion to the mass market last year when he opened
Gallerie Dunay, a salon in Midtown Manhattan where he displays his
latest jewelry items and object d'art and meets privately with
clients. The space is convenient to his workshop, which is located in
the same building, on the same floor. "Gallerie Dunay gives me an
opportunity to sit and talk to the customer at a level that I enjoy."
he says. "Standing in a store behind a showcase puts a barrier
between the customer and me. The salon allows me to take lunch and
drinks with them. Some of them say visiting me in Gallerie Dunay is
like coming to Henry Dunay's candy store."
Bondanza does not seek
the intimacy with clients that a private salon provides, but like
Dunay, he has given thought to the less pleasant realities of the
marketplace. In his case, the solution has been acceptance. Bondanza
recognizes that the sales of conventional items, such as wedding
rings, allow him to create the limited edition platinum pieces that
provide him with the greatest satisfaction but not the greatest profit
margins. "I have to do what I want to do," Bondanza says. "When I
see a design on the drawing board, I want to see it finished. That's
the fun of it. Hopefully, people will like it, and I can be proud of
it. And occasionally, I can make one or two things that are
extraordinary."
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