Tuesday, September 21

oh those nutty Faberges...

In the realm of things created down through history, I've always been drawn to objects and creations that exhibit creativeness, intricacies and a genius mastering of mechanics. Steampunk has always appealed to me because it touches upon all those things. You have the beauty of the mechanics (which really is an artform unto itself), the insane creativeness and intricate work. During the 1880's, to my mind, this was exemplified by the work of Carl Gustavovich Faberge and the House of Faberge.

Peter Carl Faberge was the son of Gustav Faberge who founded the house, and his son took the notable Jeweler's house to unfathomable heights under Czar Alexander III. Like Heron of Alexandria, Faberge created some of the most intricate and amazingly crafted pieces in history.

Here's the caveat; As much as I enjoy works of art that incorporate those three things that I absolutely adore.. I find Faberge eggs.. gaudy.

Seriously. If you gave me the option, I wouldn't own one. Okay, I might own one but only for the amount of time it would take me to get ahold of Christie's Auction House. So when a customer a year ago compared me to Faberge (I'll not deny it. I was absolutely thrilled when he called me the Faberge of SL (and it's not that I agree with it, I don't. There are far more detailed and intricate builders than I.), it gave me an idea. Here was a perfect opportunity to put my own craftmanship to the mix and create a Faberge-esque creation. So I started making actual eggs that were tiny, intricate, and were extremely animated. Some eggs, the key is the animation. Some eggs, it's the detailing. All of them are the same size (the egg portion), and all of them are completely different from one another. I've tried to make them all operate uniquely. They all open differently, have different tunes, some turn, some have flowers..

They're not reproductions of Faberge, but they are all made with the same genuine care and love for the genre (minus the insanely bright colors, bling and precious gems). I hope to do more and make this an entire line.

My Capalini Ornate Egg series






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