Patina Necklace

c. 1955

Patina Necklace, c. 1955. Arthur George (Art) Smith, (American, 1917–1982). Silver; 28.3 x 15.6 x 0.6 cm (11 1/8 x 6 1/8 x 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Museum purchase from various donors by exchange 2019.36 © The Estate of Art Smith Patina is an iconic necklace design from one of the most innovative American artisan jewelers of the 20th century, Art Smith. Living and working in New York City’s Greenwich Village, Smith created bold, expressive jewelry that reflected similar trends in architecture, interior design, and fashion. Smith’s work is sculptural, referencing the biomorphic, asymmetrical work of Alexander Calder and Harry Bertoia, among others. His work is also technically challenging, incorporating precise volumes and weights so that the components will hang properly; contours that cling to the body as if an extension of it; and intricate finishing to achieve just the right amount of surface texture—an aspect so important to this design that he named it Patina. Art Smith was an African American artisan jeweler who created bold, expressive jewelry while living in New York City’s Greenwich Village in the 1950s and 1960s.