Peculiar Creature
Stone Ridge, NY
Tom Herman of Seven Fingers Jewelers has over thirty years of experience creating beautifully chased and repoussed jewelry made in the Art Nouveau style. As a child in Minnesota, he lost three fingers in a farming accident, which turned out to be an ample precedent for determination and persistence.
With an eye for spectacular stones, detailed and organic metalwork, and impeccable worksmanship, Herman makes sweeping rings, bold brooches and luxurious bracelets. Taking tradition as his brush and language, he tweaks every piece to include his voice, that of the calm strength rooted in nature.
Many of his works are on a masterful scale. Turning bracelet into treasure box, a lid and base complete the transmutation of rich lapis lazuli inset panels into sculptural decoration. His most recent collaborative piece, the Matilija Poppy Project done in cooperation with Patsy Croft and students from the Mendocino Art Center, took inspiration from the Ada brooch by Marcus & Co. The auction sale of the Matilija Poppy raised tens of thousands for the Mendocino Art Center.