May Art Bead Scene

Title: Primavera
By: Sandro Botticelli
Date: 1478
Medium: Tempra on panel

Every month the Art Bead Scene challenges their readers to create jewelry inspired by a featured artwork. You have until the end of the month to share your work and then they pick two winners to receive beads and jewelry-making supplies from their sponsors. The only rule is that you must use at least one art bead in your piece!

May's challenge is based on Primavera by  Sandro Botticelli and it is one of the most written about paintings from the Renaissance.  His two most famous paintings are the allegorical subjects Venus in Primavera and the Birth of Venus. Most of his work focused on symbolism, allegory and religious subjects. His paintings were more stylized than other Renaissance artists with elongated features, weightless bodies and unnatural poses.  Many of his subjects focused on classical Greek and Roman myths.

I choose to base my necklace on the colors in the painting. The painting has lots of creams, blacks, brown and a little orange red. I was inspired to pull out a lighthouse bracelet bar by Brooke Bock which had the same creams and browns. After looking at it for a time, I decided to use it as a necklace focal. I just snipped some steel wire and filled the tiny hole to make the change from bracelet bar to focal.

Lighthouse Necklace  by BayMoonDesign

Size of  Lighthouse focal

I combined Brooke's cream lighthouse pendant with a ceramic bead by artisan Sandra Sapienza, and a black vintage bead. The neutral cream and black colors in the necklace have orange red beads included to add a pop of color. The beads are connected with black steel wire that I prepared by rubbing the wire with steel wool and Renaissance wax.  I think that the black links help to add more of the dark overtones of the painting to the necklace.  I used a natural copper chain with a handmade copper clasp that I made.  This lighthouse necklace is for sale in my online store.

What are your thoughts on this necklace?  Do you think that I was able to capture the colors?