Editing Jewellery (section)

==== Art Nouveau ====
[[File:René lalique, pettorale con pavoni, oro, smalti, opali e diamanti, 1898-1900 ca.jpg|thumb|250px|Breastplate with a peacocks; [[René Lalique]]; {{circa|1898}}–1900; gold, [[Vitreous enamel|enamels]], [[opal]]s and diamonds; [[Calouste Gulbenkian Museum]] ([[Lisbon]], Portugal)]]
In the 1890s, jewellers began to explore the potential of the growing [[Art Nouveau]] style and the closely related German [[Jugendstil]], British (and to some extent American) [[Arts and Crafts Movement]], Catalan [[Modernisme]], Austro-Hungarian [[Sezession]], Italian "Liberty", etc.

Art Nouveau jewellery encompassed many distinct features including a focus on the female form and an emphasis on colour, most commonly rendered through the use of enamelling techniques including basse-taille, champleve, cloisonné, and [[plique-à-jour]].  Motifs included orchids, irises, pansies, vines, swans, peacocks, snakes, dragonflies, mythological creatures, and the female silhouette.

[[René Lalique]], working for the Paris shop of [[Samuel Bing]], was recognised by contemporaries as a leading figure in this trend. The [[Darmstadt Artists' Colony]] and [[Wiener Werkstätte]] provided perhaps the most significant input to the trend, while in Denmark [[Georg Jensen]], though best known for his [[Silver (household)|Silverware]], also contributed significant pieces. In England, [[Liberty & Co.]], (notably through the [[Cymric (metalware)|Cymric]] designs of [[Archibald Knox (designer)|Archibald Knox]]) and the British arts and crafts movement of [[Charles Robert Ashbee]] contributed slightly more linear but still characteristic designs. The new style moved the focus of the jeweller's art from the setting of stones to the artistic design of the piece itself. Lalique's [[dragonfly]] design is one of the best examples of this. [[Vitreous enamel|Enamels]] played a large role in technique, while sinuous organic lines are the most recognisable design feature.

The end of [[World War I]] once again changed public attitudes, and a more sober style developed.<ref>Constantino, Maria. ''Art Nouveau''. Knickerbocker Press; 1999 {{ISBN|1577150740}} as well as Ilse-Neuman 2006.</ref>

<gallery widths="170" heights="170">
René lalique, pettorale libellula, in oro, smalti, crisoprazio, calcedonio, pietre lunari e diamanti, 1897-98 ca. 01.jpg|The ''Dragonfly brooch''; by [[René Lalique]]; {{circa|1897}}–1898; gold, [[vitreous enamel]], [[chrysoprase]], [[chalcedony]], [[moonstone (gemstone)|moonstone]] and diamond; height: {{convert|23|cm}}, width: {{convert|26.5|cm}}; [[Calouste Gulbenkian Museum]] ([[Lisbon]], Portugal)
Necklace MET DT1423.jpg|Necklace; by René Lalique; 1897–1899; gold, [[Vitreous enamel|enamel]], [[opal]]s and [[amethyst]]s; overall diameter: {{convert|24.1|cm}}; [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] (New York City)
René lalique, pettorale serpenti, oro e smalti, 1898-99 ca.jpg|The ''Snakes brooch''; by René Lalique; gold and enamel; Calouste Gulbenkian Museum
René lalique, pettine in corno, oro, smalti e brillanti, 1902 ca-V2.jpg|Hair ornament, an [[Art Nouveau]] masterpiece; by René Lalique; {{circa|1902}}; gold, emeralds and diamonds; [[Musée d'Orsay]] (Paris)
</gallery>