Margaret De Patta

Brooch designed by Margaret De Patta, circa 1950

Margaret De Patta (née Strong; 1903–1964) was an American jewelry designer active in the mid-century jewelry movement.[1] Her innovative jewelry was influenced by the "Bauhaus school, constructivism, and democratic ideals".[2] Her work is collected in many major museums including the Smithsonian American Art Museum[3] and the Oakland Museum of California.[4] The first major retrospective of her work, Space-Light-Structure: The Jewelry of Margaret De Patta, opened at the Museum of Arts and Design in 2012.[1]

Career

De Patta first began experimenting with jewelry in 1929 when she made her own wedding ring.[5][6] She was known for her innovative use of visual effects in her jewelry, such as light refraction, image reflection, and magnification, which she achieved through the design of her stones[7]. She called her stones "opticuts".[7]

She struggled with her fourth husband, industrial designer Eugene Bielawski, to start a reasonably priced jewelry line for the public.[8][9]

Education

In 1926, De Patta received a scholarship to attend the Art Students League in New York, where she encountered the work of the European avant-garde[1]. She later returned to San Francisco and taught herself the art of jewelry-making[1].

In 1941 she studied under László Moholy-Nagy at the School of Design in Chicago, Illinois[1].

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "The First Major Retrospective on Margaret de Patta, a Seminal Figure in the Studio Jewelry Movement, Opens at MAD in June". madmuseum.org. Retrieved 2017-03-16.
  2. ↑ "Groundbreaking Jeweler: Margaret De Patta | American Craft Council". American Craft Council. Retrieved 2017-03-16.
  3. ↑ "Ring by Margaret De Patta / American Art". www.americanart.si.edu. Retrieved 2017-03-16.
  4. ↑ "Margaret De Patta Jewelry | Oakland Museum of California". museumca.org. Retrieved 2017-03-16.
  5. ↑ "Women who paved the way: Margaret De Patta | | the jewelry loupe". thejewelryloupe.com. Retrieved 2018-03-22.
  6. ↑ Keith, Kelsey. "Imagine if Moholy-Nagy Made Jewelry". Dwell. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
  7. 1 2 GREENBAUM, TONI (1998). "Constructivism and American Studio Jewelry, 1940 to the Present". Studies in the Decorative Arts. 6 (1): 68–94.
  8. ↑ Lauria, Jo. "Margaret De Patta: Pioneer of Modern Studio Jewelry". ProQuest. 35.
  9. ↑ "Compulsion for Detail". New York Times. 3 February 2012 – via ProQuest Historical Newspapers.
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