Characteristics of Jewellery Design: An Initial Review

Abstract

Previous studies in jewellery design have primarily focused on the techniques of the jewellery design process, such as the use of tools including computer aided design, rapid prototyping and other design technology. However, limited attention has been devoted to understanding the jewellery design practice itself, including methodologies and rationale of the work. Therefore, the focus of this position paper is to understand the nature of the practice, how designers reason about jewellery making, and how they create the knowledge they need in the design process. A literature review on the topic revealed that the characteristics of jewellery design can be described by three aspects; the practice of the jewellery designer, characteristics and rationale of jewellery designers, and knowledge creation in jewellery design. In conclusion, jewellery design can be understood as an intuitive practice with an artistically driven standpoint and experimentally based approach, focusing on resolving design challenges related to the object itself.