Golden Fleece ring- update

Today I was really impressed. I saw so much art, of so many disciplines, represented by just about every period in art history! I was not walking around in a museum, these pieces were for sale. Of course my interest was mainly in jewelry, but everywhere I looked there was something worthwhile. To give you an idea of what I found particularly impressive, from last (and this) century art, there were pieces of vintage furniture (Le Corbusier chair with leopard print). And pop-art (felt work by Roy Lichtenstein, wonderful world time watch by Andy Warhol). And plenty of other artworks by Yves Klein, Sol Lewitt, On Kawara, Wim Delvoye, Niki de Saint Phalle.…
Jewelry had lots of faces. Of course diamonds were largely represented, but I also stumbled upon the most amazing collection of historical jewelry, from jewelry of the Roman Empire to the Vikings. For example, did you know the Vikings braided their golden rings?. This went on to vintage Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry, that Hollywood stars are now wearing, to great jewels designed by Paloma Picasso for Tiffany & Co, and even work by Giampaolo Babetto!
Most of the time, I did not know where to look. The constant, irresistible distraction meant that I kept getting lost! And when I finally controlled my urge to drool, I could see the groups of galleries that were formed by the people organising TEFAF. That is short for ‘the European fine art fair’, and this was the 2010 edition, in Maastricht, The Netherlands. Until the 21 of March you can let yourself get impressed, distracted, lost, drooling and more of the above.

There was another reason why I was impressed today. About a year ago I wrote about Giovanni Corvaja’s Golden Fleece Collection, and this beautiful morning I saw it live! From behind their glass door, I first looked at the bracelet paired with the pendant. They seemed so soft! The color of the golden fur surprised me a bit, it had a dark note to it. As a jeweler, it reminded me of golden sawdust, which made the pieces more real to me. The next cabinet contained the brooch, which attracted my attention because of the circular way the golden fur was arranged, ending in a cute little bump. And the ring, with its’ meaning of everything enduring love; was displayed hanging, so none of the tiny golden hairs would get crushed. Like with all the other pieces, they had a direction, copying real fur. I could see the solid ring on the inside, perforated with tiny holes to hold the golden fur threads. It looked flawless to me, perfect on the inside, with a ‘wild’ soft furry coat on the outside. And then, having the aesthetic part covered, I was allowed to touch it! And YES it was soft! Very, very soft! Stroking in the direction of the furry hairs, there was no way to tell where one started or ended. I loved how you could feel that it was still gold, a metal, so a little cold. And also with a slight ‘toughness' that is hard to describe, because it was so extremely soft! With the tactile mystery resolved, there is only one more thing for me to do: wear it!

At Tefaf the work of Giovanni Corvaja is represented by Adrian Sassoon Gallery at exhibitors number 264.