Product Info

Ruth and Ed Sernoff were a husband/wife team of painters and silversmiths living and working in the Ein Hod artist’s colony in Israel in the 1960’s and 70’s. Though their work is little-known today, it was thought of highly when it was produced, garnering a two page spread in the 1974 book Crafts of Israel by Ruth Dayan. I've taken a photo of the brooch next to a photo of the same brooch design shown in the book.

The biomorphic design of the brooch and earrings may have been influenced by the artist Jean Arp, whose biomorphic jewelry designs were produced by another Ein Hod jeweler, Johannan Peter. In addition, the Ein Hod artist's colony was started by Arp's friend and Dada colleague Marcel Janco. I've listed a brooch by Arp here.

The design of the brooch and earrings resembles a cluster of bubbles or coral and, judging from the photos in the book, this was one of their signature designs. The brooch features a dark blue/green stone set amongst the bulbous silver.

While the brooch does not have a bale it could easily be worn as a pendant either by threading a chain through one of the openings, or adding a large jump ring through one of them.

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