My Mother's Jewelry

A photo essay of Enduring Style presented with 100 years of my mother’s jewelry juxtaposed to other reflections of Enduring Style.
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Neatly tucked away in the Adler’s Hat Box and a series of other boxes and pouches, this collection entered my repository from my older sister who thought I might find it interesting. After my trip to pick up the collection, it became obvious through my lenses (camera, eyes, and mind), that this story of Enduring Style was best told in the same setting that begot the collection: 1900’s CE. With Mother we strolled the Country Club Plaza in our home of Kansas City, Missouri and enjoyed the fountains; we enjoyed the seasons that brought changes of clothing, foods, the gardens and everything around us; and we gazed at the stars and wondered.

From jewelry by famed Miriam Haskell to an heirloom mourning pin all set along side the famous fountains and architecture of the Country Club Plaza, the common elements of Enduring Style prompted my “Theory of Enduring Style”. Words and/or definitions can only be suggested here; the photos must tell the story of Enduring Style because it simply is.

In the reference section of this photo essay, I also offer timelines that reflect the ebb and flow of Enduring Style embedded in the “record of the rocks” from the study of pre-history through to present; as well as that embedded in other disciplines I have studied to date. As a curious person, observations accumulate at a rapid rate. Holding on to those observations and being able to use them to see even more is the milieu of the curious. My timelines are my place for attaching what I have learned and observed. Each timeline allows me to gaze deep into an area of interest and go back and forth in time. It is in this process of gazing up and down, back and forth that consistent underlying principles emerge regardless of stylistic differences.

While documenting the collections of a time; by happenstance, may I be so lucky to create a treasure trove that rewards exploration.