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Beginning in the 1990s, Giovanni Corvaja’s interest in the mythic Golden Fleece led him to experiment with the ductility of metal wire. Could he create gold fine enough to feel like fleece? In this brooch Corvaja was still in the early days of playing with this idea. Working in gold and platinum he created a geometric frame crossed with thin platinum wires, then masterfully added gold granulation to the metal surfaces. Corvaja's work is rooted in structure and abstraction. Influenced by the knitting skills his mother taught him, he developed a three-dimensional knitting technique that allowed him to build strong forms using soft metal threads. Over the next decade, he continued to draw wires thinner and thinner, until he unveiled his Golden Fleece ring in 2008 and a Headpiece in 2009.
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Spille brooch
Giovanni Corvaja (Italian, born in 1971)
Italian
1999
Medium/Technique
Platinum, gold (24k)
Dimensions
Overall: 5 x 4.5 x 1.2 cm (1 15/16 x 1 3/4 x 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Yoshiko Yamamoto in honor of Yvonne J. Markowitz
Accession Number2014.2061
CollectionsEurope, Jewelry, Contemporary Art
ClassificationsJewelry / Adornment – Brooches
Beginning in the 1990s, Giovanni Corvaja’s interest in the mythic Golden Fleece led him to experiment with the ductility of metal wire. Could he create gold fine enough to feel like fleece? In this brooch Corvaja was still in the early days of playing with this idea. Working in gold and platinum he created a geometric frame crossed with thin platinum wires, then masterfully added gold granulation to the metal surfaces. Corvaja's work is rooted in structure and abstraction. Influenced by the knitting skills his mother taught him, he developed a three-dimensional knitting technique that allowed him to build strong forms using soft metal threads. Over the next decade, he continued to draw wires thinner and thinner, until he unveiled his Golden Fleece ring in 2008 and a Headpiece in 2009.
DescriptionThis three-dimensional geometric brooch consists of a triangular frame with very fine platinum and tiny gold balls filling the negative space.
Provenance2000, sold by Charon Kransen Art, New York, NY to Yoshiko Yamamoto, Boston, MA; 2014, gift of Yamamoto to the MFA. (Accession date: December 10, 2014)