Edward de Large Edward de Large moved into silversmithing and jewellery at the RCA (Royal College of Art - London) from 1972 after studying ceramics at Camberwell. His first use of titanium was as a coloured turned base for a gold bowl. He continued to use it while at the RCA but it was after graduation in 1975 that his real experimenting with the material began. His designs were inspired by the cloudscapes observed during a flight to Japan. He enjoyed the challenge of achieving his planned results with such a difficult material, so unlike the traditional metals used for jewellery. His work progressed by continuous experimentation. Pattern was carefully planned and designed using various masking techniques and both brush and dip anodising.
As gold prices rose in the 1970s, jewellers began to look for alternatives to precious metals. Traditionally, they would have turned to base metals, such as bronze, iron and steel. Now, with the continuous search for the 'new', they sought out a wider repertoire of metals and also innovative techniques to create colour through patina. Silver was oxidised, aluminium anodised and painted. In the space industry experiments with new materials led to the development of metals such as titanium and niobium. Their iridescent colours, achieved through heat or electrical currents, soon attracted the attention of jewellery designers. De Large studied ceramics at the Camberwell School of Art and later silversmithing at the Royal College of Art, London, where he became interested in titanium. In 1975 he was awarded the Sandersons Art in Industry Award to travel in Japan, where he concentrated on the skills of metal inlay and patination. He went on to develop his own sophisticated and exacting method of anodizing titanium allowing him to achieve a remarkably complex and painterly effect. Variations of colour are created by varying the voltage and timing of the electrical current through the metal, while the sense of perspective is enhanced by polishing and sand-blasting. The fine detail he achieves is the reward of applying the current in a controlled way through the tip of a modified paintbrush. The brooch shows de Large's fascination with flight and perspective, and also the inspiration of the artist René Escher. De Large has cited the monolith in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film '2001: A Space Odyssey' as the inspiration for the shadowy rectangular form visible on the surface of the brooch.
Two Edward de Large anodized titanium in sterling silver brooches from the 1970s - they remind me of Yes album covers from that period! NFS
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