Hermitage Peacock Clock

Hermitage Peacock Clock

Creating a mechanical bird is a very ancient art – in ancient times the figures of “singing” birds decorated clepsydra – water clocks. In the XVIII century creators of automata tried to construct a system to make the birds look and act as realistically as possible – the life-size birds could sing and move like living creatures. The Hermitage Peacock Clock automation features three life-sized mechanical birds made by English masters James Cox and Friedrich Urey in the 1770s. The Peacock Clock is constantly exhibited in the Pavilion Hall of the Small Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia. The Clock was made of bronze, silver, crystals, gilding. The uniqueness of this clock is that they it is still in working condition (hours work, and the Peacock Starts every Wednesday at 19:00), and is the only worldwide largest machine of the XVIII century, has come down to our time without changes.
More »

Riding Snail, c. 1630, German, Nuremberg. Exquisite Nautilus jewelry art masterpieces

Exquisite Nautilus jewelry art masterpieces
The Golden Ratio is widely used in art, architecture and religious symbols. Great artists have used the golden ratio in their paintings. Guggenheim Museum, Frank Lloyd Wright-designed, has the shape of a nautilus shell. Scientists came to the conclusion that people find beautiful work of art, buildings and even a person who meets the proportions of the golden Ratio. Nautilus shell symbolizes The Golden Ratio. The proportion of golden section is known as the phi number – 1.61803 … to infinity number after the decimal point – the “key to the physics of the cosmos” (Plato).
More »

Kiss, inspired by Gustav Klimt. Kaliningrad Amber painting

Kaliningrad Amber painting
These paintings are made by hand from amber. Every stone of amber is a frozen ray of sunshine kept for 40 million years. So, the picture from the amber is not only a unique work of art, but also a part of the sun’s heat, zipped through millions of years. Landscapes, portraits, icons, images of fauna and flora made of amber radiate a positive energy and have a positive effect on a person. Love for amber painting is due to the very nature of the origin of the material. The magic of the stone in the hands of artists becomes a work of art. It is the secret that fascinates, and turns painting into something more.
More »

Red and gold. Royal Crystal glass Moser

Royal Crystal glass Moser
Today, as 150 years ago, produced on its own unique formula, the exact composition of Czech glass Moser remains a strict secret. Exclusively hand-polished and engraved products and deep saturated colors, colored crystal – are the distinguishing features of the Moser brand. However, Glass masters do not just cut glass, but create real masterpieces of high artistic value. Meanwhile, Moser Glass Crystal is the best in the world for its artistic value, standard of quality, luxury and style. The beauty and extraordinary look of Royal Crystal glass Moser from the Czech Republic is undoubted. Indeed, even royal families, such as Queen Elizabeth II and the King of Spain Alfonso XIII appreciate it. In addition, the world-famous actors, in particular, Claudia Cardinale, Sophia Loren and Sylvester Stallone rated it. Besides, the articles of Moser Crystal glass ware, decorated with coats of arms and monograms of presidents and diplomats, always present at the reception of many heads of state.
More »

Garden beauty. Beaded Flowers by Svetlana Kosheleva

Beaded Flowers by Svetlana Kosheleva
Russian bead artist, craftswoman Svetlana Kosheleva lives in the northern Russian city of Ishim, Tyumen region. She started creating bead flowers in 2011 after she had seen flowers of beads made by masters. According to Svetlana, accidentally seen beaded work inspired Svetlana so much that she immediately started creating, and still can not stop. The desire for beauty, nature, flowers, that lived in a self-taught artist manifested in beautiful beaded compositions of Svetlana. “The work of beads is pleasing to the eye and soothes the soul. Looking at them you do not believe that such beauty is a man-made. Cleverly designed, they look alive …. and bring the tale to life! My passion – flowers, trees of beads and stone, decorated eggs, brooches and mini embroidery.”
More »

Porcus Aurelius, life-size copper wire pig, now at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. Ruth Jensen Wire Sculpture

Ruth Jensen Wire Sculpture
Talented American sculptor and jeweler Ruth Jensen (Spark flight) lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA. She is enthralled by wire, which she finds to be perfect for revealing the extraordinary beauty and transience of “ordinary” things. Interestingly, she creates each sculpture one twist at a time, without patterns or molds, using bazillions of pieces of straight wire. No solder, no molds, no preformed mesh, just hours of twisting. “I “see” the shape I want, and make the wires come together in that shape, like putting a puzzle together. (I love puzzles.) My pieces are meant to intrigue and delight you.”
More »

Sunset. Louise Goodchild miniature woven wire Jewellery

Louise Goodchild miniature woven wire Jewellery
British artist, designer, and jeweler Louise Goodchild creates truly artful jewellery. In particular, her collection consists of beautiful miniature handcrafted wire pendants made from colored copper wire, and glass seed bead. Besides, Louise Goodchild creates both traditional jewellery (mainly earrings) and more unique wire-work – little wearable wire pictures. Meanwhile, over the years, she has developed her own distinctive, instantly recognizable style. Noteworthy, Louise avoids using ready-made components in her wire pendants, so it’s always a challenge to create the motifs she needs from wire and beads. “Wire can do so many different things. Because of the immense variety of colors and gauges – and the fact that you can mix both of those up by twisting, plaiting etc. – there’s so much you can do with it…”. According to Louise, often if an idea jumps into her head and “keeps insistently poking her brain”, she’ll find a way to make it happen.
More »