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Jean Després Modernist Silver and Onyx "Bijoux Moteurs" Ring
$22,500
Designed and made by hand by Jean Després in the 1930s, this onyx and silver ring belongs to his "Bijoux Moteurs" style. The broad ring is set with a highly polished rectangular onyx tablet, bordered on one shoulder by a stack of descending banded rolls, and on the other by a flared edge. Beautifully engineered to balance lightly on the hand, this pure Modernist form of clean lines and discipline exemplifies Després' unique vision of futurism.
- Product Details
- Curator's Notes
Item #: R-21440
Artist: Jean Després
Country: France
Circa: 1930s
Size: 9.5 (this ring can be sized; please contact the gallery for further information)
Materials: Black onyx; Silver
Signed: J Després, French assay mark and maker's mark
Literature: A ring of this design, from the collection of Andy Warhol sold by Sotheby's in 1988, is pictured in Jean Després: Bijoutier et Orfèvre etre Art Deco et moderne, Melissa Gabardi, p. 106. Additionally, a unnumbered design sketch by the artist similar to that of the ring appears in Jean Després by Melissa Gabardi, p. 201
Interviews with Després during the 1930s reveal that he had mined his experiences as a designer in a World War I flight squadron in designing his jewelry from this period, and that the geometry and precision of aeronautic parts served as a source of inspiration for his revolutionary work. Often mentioned as motifs in Després' jewels are gears, crankshafts, ball bearings, and cylinder-cams, the last resembling the banded cylinders placed at the shoulder of this ring.