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The American Jewelry Design Council (AJDC) is a nonprofit organization that recognizes and promotes original jewelry design as art. Each year since 1995, the members of the AJDC have created one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry based on a specific theme.

Pyramid, Sphere and Fold: Contemporary Jewlery as Art offers a selection of 62 original pieces from three recent Annual Design Projects. Inspired by an annual theme—Pyramid (2005), Sphere (2004), and Fold (2003)—AJDC artists incorporate exquisite gems and precious metals in their submissions. The Annual Design Projects are intended to prompt both artists and audiences to think about “jewelry” beyond established definitions of technique and material. While gold, platinum, and precious gems are dominant in the objects and jewelry, members stretch traditional boundaries through the use of such unexpected materials as rubber, ball bearings, mirrors, and even fur.

The group’s 36 highly distinguished members are successful jewelry artists and designers who frequently dominate industry design competitions. Some excel in traditional craftsmanship, while other artists look to the future and find groundbreaking techniques and styles. For example, Kent Raible utilizes the ancient method of gold granulation, while Michael Good employs anticlastic raising, a technique he pioneered 30 years ago. Sarah Graham juxtaposes 18K gold and Tahitian pearls with blackened steel; George Sawyer uses a Japanese technique called Mokume-Gane. Perhaps Cornelis Hollander’s description of his own work best captures the spirit of the AJDC: this is “jewelry without boundaries.

Pyramid, Sphere and Fold: Contemporary Jewelry as Art is curated by Jo Lauria, an independent curator and art/design historian. Currently she serves as chief curator for the national touring exhibition Craft in America: Expanding Traditions, which complements the PBS documentary series "Craft in America: Memory, Landscape and Community." A companion book to the exhibition will be available in fall 2007. Ms. Lauria previously was decorative arts curator at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).