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This year's Amberif trade fair will feature Barbara Westwood, one of the most renowned American jewellery designers, as its special guest. I met Barbara and her husband, Sky Hall, a professional jewellery photographer, in Arizona. During a dinner at an incredibly atmospheric Mexican restaurant in old Tucson, Barbara and Sky shared some details about their work and life with the portal's readers.
Your jewellery is renowned for its superior craftsmanship, precious materials, and unique cuts and unusual combinations of stones. To introduce you to Polish audiences, I'd like us to begin with a few words about your work. What does jewellery mean to you, and what are your inspirations?
Barbara Westwood: Jewellery is a mystery. I always wonder what beauty is and how it can be defined. Beauty cannot be described, it is an emotional phenomenon, it is like love, which cannot be seen or touched, though it can sometimes be felt. Love is precisely the most important driving force in both my life and my work. This doesn't just mean love between two people; I'm also talking about love for art, music, for the world. No one buys jewellery for someone they hate. Designing jewellery is therefore about building a relationship between myself and the person who wears it. Jewellery is a form of non-verbal communication, building a bond between people.
To express this, you use precious and unique stones…
BW In my work, I use, among other things, quartz, coloured stones such as aquamarines, opals, rocks and... amber. I particularly like diamonds and the red of garnets. I really like that the particles within minerals, although they form a solid mass, tremble and shimmer inside the stone – that’s so exciting! This is particularly visible in my „Glacier” and „Phantom Crystals” collections. When I choose a stone, I don't expect clients to say: „Oh, what a pink diamond, 3 or 4 carats.” Jewellery is not about that. I am interested in that brief moment of an emotional glance at the jewellery before you start thinking and analysing what you see. For me, the wonder and the feelings evoked by the jewellery are particularly important, when you involuntarily exclaim: „How beautiful!”.
Although, on the other hand, your jewellery seems to have been constructed with almost mathematical precision. It possesses perfect proportions and is flawlessly crafted.
BW I love the details! The craftsmanship is precise, specific. The idea is transcendent.
Sky Hall: Barbara designs everything for herself. There's no commercialism in it, no thought of selling. A connection is made if a complete stranger comes along, sees a particular item, and says, „Oh, this is for me!” It's a truly metaphysical connection between the artist and the recipient.
How can you define the women who wear your jewellery?
BW Not necessarily very wealthy, but certainly with a strong personality. Confident and self-aware.
So, like yours... Although from what I know, the beginnings of a female designer's career weren't easy at all, because the jewellery world 30 years ago was reserved for men?
BW That's true. Some of the associations didn't admit women into their ranks. I am a founding member of the Women's Jewellery Association, which is one of the most influential organisations in the industry. I was its vice-president for eight years. After that, I was also on the board of the California Jewelers Association.
You've also received many prestigious awards. Which are the most important to you?
BW One of the major achievements was the 1988 „Best Continuity of Line” award, presented by the New Designer Showcase of America. This is important to me because it highlights the consistency of my designs. Another award that is significant to me was „Woman of the Year in Design” in 1993, and New York's „Excellence in Design” in 1995.
You didn't learn design on your own. You are a graduate of the prestigious Long Beach University in California (jewellery design and metalwork, editor's note). How important is artistic education in a career?
BW Oh, art education was incredibly important! It opened my mind, taught me to look in such a way that I could translate thoughts into the language of form… I think art is a manifestation of thoughts that take concrete form, and that’s what school taught me. And I met my husband at university! Then, after I finished school, achieving artistic independence was a very important step. Success only came when I stopped looking for acceptance for my projects. It’s just like with dating – when you don’t need it, lots of opportunities appear. When you force yourself to look for love, you don’t find it.
How does a jewellery designer collaborate with a professional jewellery photographer?
BW Although we have similar interests, we live on two different planets…
SH: And guess which one is at the centre of the universe?laughter)
BW This is very developing for both of us, particularly in moments when we disagree, it opens a space for creative discussion. Sky, as a photographer, is able to look at certain phenomena from a completely different point of view.
SH: Photography helps me understand jewellery. Through my work, I promote this field of design.
How is your studio organised?
BW We have a beautiful studio in our home in Colorado, where I design and prepare waxes for casting. The jewellery is made in Beverly Hills – I work with a very good company there that produces for Van Cleef, Cartier and Bulgari, among others. They have wonderful employees there, mostly from Argentina and Europe, which is typical for that region, because, unlike local employees, these people are very well technically prepared. I also work with a few wonderful lapidaries who prepare stones especially for me, such as Steve Walters from Utah, Tom and Bernd Munsteiner from Idar-Oberstein, and Paul Christensen, who specialises in Australian opals.
What collection will you be showing at this year's Amberif?
BW I received some beautiful amber pieces from the International Amber Association. My lapidarist friends are helping me work on them as it’s quite delicate material. The rest is a surprise. Sky will be presenting an exhibition of their photographs at the fair.
What are your expectations regarding Poland?
BW We'd like to meet friendly, interesting people, discover new places – we're planning a little trip around Poland, of course. It will be a new inspiration for further work.
Is there any advice you would like to share with young designers?
BW „You can have anything if you just know what you want.”