Glyptography in USA today - Helen Serras-Herman

Helen’s award winning, bold contemporary work
 on hard gemstones has been featured in
 many trade magazines and books. 
Over 20 years of experience in Sculptured Gems,
a Masters degree in Sculpture (MFA), a degree in Gemology (FGA),
and studies in drawing and painting, are reflected in her unique work.

 Her distinctive work on gemstones includes 
Carved Gems, Jewelry Art and freestanding Gem Sculptures.
Some of her recent artwork, the “Wearable Sculptures”,
explores the connection and transition between
the worlds of Fine Art and Wearable Art.

Her favorite subjects are Mythological Creatures and Portraits.

 

All of her creations are one-of-a-kind, signed and
sold with a Certificate of Authenticity.
A number of her works have been direct commissions
from private clients.
All of Helen'sHelen’s award winning, bold contemporary work

 on hard gemstones has been featured in
 many trade magazines and books. 
Over 20 years of experience in Sculptured Gems,
a Masters degree in Sculpture (MFA), a degree in Gemology (FGA),
and studies in drawing and painting, are reflected in her unique work.

 Her distinctive work on gemstones includes 
Carved Gems, Jewelry Art and freestanding Gem Sculptures.
Some of her recent artwork, the “Wearable Sculptures”,
explores the connection and transition between
the worlds of Fine Art and Wearable Art.

Her favorite subjects are Mythological Creatures and Portraits.
All of her creations are one-of-a-kind, signed and
sold with a Certificate of Authenticity.
A number of her works have been direct commissions
from private clients.
All of Helen's Jewelry Art is set in 18K or 14K gold,
or Sterling Silver, with a palette of gemstones,
such as fancy color sapphires & garnets,

tanzanite, diamonds, red spinels, opals and tourmalines Jewelry Art is set in 18K or 14K gold,
or Sterling Silver, with a palette of gemstones,
such as fancy color sapphires & garnets,
tanzanite, diamonds, red spinels, opals and tourmalines. 

Gem carving tecniques

Gem Carving: Materials and Techniques

Semi precious hard stones such as carnelian, chalcedony, amethyst, and agate have long been carved with decorative and figural designs. Intaglios As early as 5000 B.C., craftsmen in Mesopotamia used hand-powered tools to engrave images into stone blanks, creating intaglios (so called from the Italian intagliare, "to cut into"). Similar methods were employed by ancient artisans in Egypt, Greece, Rome, and Etruria. Intaglios were used to make relief impressions when pressed into wax, clay, or another sealing material. Cameos Around 250 B.C. a new carving technique developed: by cutting away the area surrounding a figure, artisans formed relief images known as cameos. The different hues of banded stones were exploited to enhance the appearance of depth with multicolored compositions.		. .

Cameos are created by carving into a top (often white)layer of stone to reveal the colored band underneath An intaglio (top) is cut below the surface of a gemstone, while a cameo (bottom) is carved in relief Carving Tools Although intaglios are concave and cameos are convex, both are produced in a similar fashion. A cutting tool dipped in a slurry of abrasive powder and oil is turned while a gemstone is manipulated against it. Cutters of different shapes and materials can be used—drills, wheels, cones, and balls made of copper, bronze, iron, or something softer such as wood or even reed. It is the powder (emery or corundum in antiquity, diamond dust today) carried by the tool, not the tool itself, that actually carves the stone. This engraving depicts an 18th-century carver along with a variety of cutting tools. The instruments used by ancient carvers were similar, being turned by a bow rather than a foot pedal. Image top right: Hermaphroditus Seated on an Altar (detail), possibly by Protarchos, 150–100 B.C. Sardonyx cameo set in a modern gold ring. The J. Paul Getty Museum, 2001.28.9

Some ancient Greek carvers

Youth Adjusting His Sandal, attributed to Epimenes, about 500 B.C.  Zoom in Epimenes Epimenes was a Greek carver active around 500 B.C. The exhibition includes one gem signed by Epimenes, along with four unsigned gems attributed to him. Similarities in material, technique, and style provide strong evidence for these attributions. This gem with a standing youth is unsigned, but details such as the arm and leg muscles and the crosshatched hair with pellets representing ringlets are close enough in style to the only surviving gem signed by Epimenes to indicate that he carved it. Compare the gem signed by Epimines with two gems attributed to him and hear commentary about their attribution.

Apollo, attributed to Solon, 30–20 B.C.  Zoom in Audio: How did Solon achieve such intricate detail in this portrait? Solon The ancient Greek gem carver Solon (active 70–20 B.C.) worked in Roman imperial circles, fashioning idealized portraits of the emperor Augustus and his sister, along with images of mythological figures. Solon's signature is preserved on five ancient gems, including the so-called Strozzi Medusa (also on view in the exhibition). His carvings gained great popularity in the 18th century due to the outstanding quality of that intaglio, which was copied by modern artists in diverse media. More recently, several unsigned stones, including the one shown here, have been attributed to his hand. Compare this gem to an engraving of another gem by Solon.

Diomedes and the Palladion by Dioskourides (detail), Bernard Picart, 1724   Dioskourides and Sons Dioskourides (active 65–30 B.C.), a Greek master from Aigeai in Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), is one of the few gem carvers recorded in ancient literature. He is mentioned by several Roman authors as the carver of the personal seal of the emperor Augustus (ruled 27 B.C.–A.D. 14). Dioskourides' fame led later carvers to copy his works and forge his signature. This intaglio showing the Greek hero Diomedes stealing the Palladion (a talismanic statuette of the warrior goddess Athena) is among the finest of all gems that survive from antiquity. In a field of just a few centimeters, Dioskourides convincingly rendered details of a dynamic, living body, clearly distinguishing skin, muscle, bones, and even fingernails. In 1856 the gem was mounted into a bandeau with a pseudo-Renaissance enamel setting.

Satyr, Hyllos, 10 B.C.–A.D. 10   Dioskourides' sons, Eutyches, Hyllos, and Herophilos, followed him in the gem-carving trade. This cameo by Hyllos depicting a satyr—a part-human, part-horse or -goat companion of the wine god Dionysos—shows the finely detailed carving that is characteristic of his and Dioskourides' work.

Mark Antony, Gnaios, 40–20 B.C.   Zoom in Gnaios Although he signed his gems in Greek, the ancient carver Gnaios (active 40–20 B.C.) actually had a Latin name, Gnaeus. This does not mean that he was Roman, for Latin names were sometimes adopted by Greek artisans. The exhibition includes all four gems bearing Gnaios's signature that survive from antiquity—stunning intaglios of rulers and mythological figures. This intaglio of the Roman general Mark Antony (83–30 B.C.) softens the harsh features seen on coins with his image. It may be a posthumous portrait commissioned by his daughter, Cleopatra Selene (40 B.C.–A.D. 6), whose husband, the North African king Juba II, was an avid gem collector. The gem was set into a ring in the 19th century.

Collectors