Styling / Art Direction
I’ll never understand the allure of demi-fine. That’s the kind of jewellery that is so whisper-thin you have to wear a multitude of pieces just to see them and even then they catch the light in an understated way. No, I revel in the big and the bold. Knuckle dusters with massive stones and hunks of gold that draw the eye mercilessly and make no apology for the fact that someone went to a lot of trouble to put them together using insane materials.
For this shoot I asked prop stylist Lou Blackshaw to build me a paper sculpture that felt like a modern monument to glamour. A tree of treasure if you will that we could perch jewels on at odd angles and shoot in a stark, almost monolithic way but which would still act like a canvas and not overpower the gems. She arrived carrying an enormous box and out of it sprang this beauty. Joel, a still life specialist shot it from a low angle so that it towered menacingly and I have to say this is one of my favourite ring shots of the last few years.
Jewellery Severine green tourmaline ring in yellow gold, Cassandra Goad, £3,980
Flying Saucer garnet and tourmaline ring in 18k yellow gold, Tessa Packard, £3,000
Luna Piccolissima ring with diamond and fire enamel in 18k gold, Frey Wille, £2,317
The Flower ring with a pear-shaped tanzanite and tsavorites set in a gold beaded surround, Elizabeth Gage, £12,400
Spike gold ring with rubies set in 18k yellow gold, Hannah Martin, £3,000
Green amethyst ring in 18k yellow gold, Kiki McDonagh, £3,500
Creative Team Stylist: Melanie Grant, Photographer: Joel Stans, Prop Stylist: Lou Blackshaw.
Photographed for 1843 Magazine at The Economist in April 2018.
