Jewelry often makes a statement, but jewelry by artist James Cleland tells a story. Using metals, gems, and intricate overlay, Cleland sets his work apart with his forging, piercing, and hand-engraving techniques. He crafts ornate designs inspired by natural forms combined with elements from his Irish and Scottish heritage, Celtic art, and Japanese symbolism to create new and whimsical styles.
His work recently earned him first place out of more than 3,000 submissions in the Art Buzz international competition, which selected 106 pieces total from various artists.
Art Buzz is a nonprofit collective founded in 2006 by artist Tony A. Blue. It links professional artists to art dealers, collectors, and lovers worldwide. Cleland’s award-winning designs have also been published in The 2012 Collection of Art Buzz, a 10-by-10-inch hardcover book available at artbuzz.org.
“It’s basically who they think is the best, and for this year apparently they thought my jewelry was the best,” Cleland said.
Though he won the competition with his jewelry, don’t call him a jeweler. His designs go beyond simply wearable art; they convey meaning, and provide a sense of fun.
“I’m no jeweler. I’m an artist; I’m a sculptor,” Cleland reiterated, only half jokingly.
Cleland and his wife Ginger moved to Solvang from St. Louis and opened Designs in Gold. She’s an estate jewelry dealer conducting business in the area twice a year, so the move made sense for them. Since settling in Solvang, Cleland said he’s developed a large fan base of locals and that his clients appreciate the uncommon designs and the detail on the reverse of each piece.
Cleland has degrees in the biosciences and geology. During the summers he travels to Montana to dig for dinosaur bones, often bringing back other interesting finds in the process. His interest in jewelry artistry had its start in a rock shop he owned during his college years.
He and two college friends opened their shop in an old Chinese laundry. Then his two friends dropped out of the venture. Shortly after, a more suitable space opened up across the street.
“Then they ended up putting a freeway right in front of my shop,” Cleland said. “That was the start of my success.”
Eventually, he moved from rocks to jewelry artistry. People didn’t want just rocks, they wanted them set in silver or other metal. So Cleland hired someone to do just that. When his silversmith quit, Cleland’s career really took a turn.
“I had watched him do it, so I just jumped in and started doing it,” he said.
Cleland is a certified gun engraver, but he doesn’t engrave guns. He’s a wax cutter, but he doesn’t cut candles. Instead, he applies those skills and others—he’s classically trained in about a dozen fields—to the metals he uses in his pieces.
His work is largely inspired by nature. He may works off of pictures, or the piece may dictate what it’s meant to be, he said. Either way, it’s always an interesting process.
“Sometimes I know exactly where the inspiration comes from,” Cleland explained. “Sometimes it just works itself out.”
Finding inspiration is always an interesting process for Arts Editor Shelly Cone. Contact her at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Apr 5-12, 2012.
