African American jewelry is more than just adornment; it's a powerful medium of expression, resistance, cultural preservation, and celebration, deeply intertwined with the historical experiences of African Americans in the United States. From the era of slavery to the present day, jewelry has served as a vital symbol of identity and resilience for Black communities. This article explores the rich history of African American jewelry, highlighting its significance and influence on contemporary design.
Image of a woman wearing traditional African jewelry.
The Cultural Significance of Jewelry
At its core, jewelry expresses something. Each ring, necklace, bracelet, brooch, or piercing holds unique meaning for the wearer, the designer, and those who look upon it. For Black communities, jewelry’s meaning runs deep. Throughout history, jewelry has served as a powerful symbol of cultural identity, resilience, and self-expression.
Dorian Webb, an acclaimed jeweler and designer, emphasizes that jewelry is a "marking of place." It expresses who you are. It expresses joy and pride. In the African American community, there’s a love of something that’s a bit extra - something that’s celebratory. Jewelry is unique because it expresses who the wearer is in a non-verbal, nonconfrontational way - it invites people in. Jewelry invites connection. Unlike other art forms, jewelry’s meaning is informed by the wearer. As a designer, you create things with an ideal customer in mind or to express a story or perspective. When people purchase a piece, it becomes their own - its meaning changes and adapts to the wearer.
Hoop Earrings: A Symbol of Resistance and Identity
Hoop earrings are deep-rooted in communities of colour and streetwear culture. Unfortunately, not everyone who wears the style acknowledge its significant cultural past and the people it originated from. The style first dates as far back as to the 4th century in Africa. For some they were worn for protection and others a symbol of wealth. The hoop earring has various sizes and can be found all around the world.
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During slavery, hoop earrings were the only jewels that slaves were allowed to wear. The popularity for hoops arose especially during the 60’s among African-American women. This was the period of the emergence of the Black Power movement. The trend continued into the 70s thanks to disco divas such as Diana Ross. During the 80s they became larger in size taking the nickname door knockers. In early 2000s hoops became thinner and bigger. Popular RNB and pop singers wear them. The opposite trend are huggies which are smaller and cuffing the earlobe.
Fashion is inspired by different cultures, however, the issue arises when some women of colour face discrimination for choosing to wear hoops. Non-POCs who wear this style should do so mindfully and educate others on the meaningful discourse and importance regarding race.
Hoops as a stylistic choice worn by women of colour should be respected. Today hoops can suite anyone.
Learn the fascinating history of hoop earrings and their connection to female empowerment!
Black Jewelers: A History Revealed
Scholarship in the history of jewelry making in the 20th Century has often focused on a very narrow discourse based on primarily white European and American designers, and has often overlooked the creative contributions of other diverse voices, such as the African American community. Many of these designers coming from this community have helped develop contemporary jewelry, providing superb artistic craft to the worlds of fashion, performance, fine art, and art jewelry.
Recognizing this gap, initiatives like the "Legacy" project aim to uncover and document the contributions of Black jewelers. This project seeks to answer why so few African American jewelry artists have been discussed within the main canon of Art Jewelry discourse and whether any stories exist which document the lives and contributions of these artists.
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As America continues to develop a better understanding of its vast and multiplicitous history, continuously incorporating the diverse figures that have previously been forgotten, jewelry scholarship needs to accomplish the same task.
Featured Artists and Their Contributions
The "Legacy" project highlights several key figures who have significantly impacted the jewelry field:
- Vaughn Stubbs: A multidisciplinary artist from Philadelphia, Stubbs created opulent brooches using everyday objects, blending sophistication and kitsch. He also taught art to blind students at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
- Patrick Kelly: Known for his fashion designs in the 1980s, Kelly also created bold pins that were closely linked to his signature aesthetic, exploring issues of segregation and racism through historical references.
- Carolee Prince: A NYC-based jeweler and artist whose work was prominent in the mid 1950’s to late 1960’s. Prince worked in connection with the African Jazz-Art Studio Scene (AJASS) in Harlem which was part of the Black is Beautiful pride movement of the 1960’s. Carolee often collaborated with photographer Kwame Brathwaite, a founding member of AJASS who used his work to promote the Black is Beautiful movement by focusing on and celebrating Black identity without the influence of European based culture.
- Betye Saar: Initially a social worker, Saar began her artistic journey in jewelry making, forming the company Brown & Tann with Curtis Tann. While Tann continued to develop his enamel jewelry design working for Renoir/Matisse, Saar continued to revisit jewelry through different points in her career, including the Mojo series in the early 1970’s.
- Winifred Mason: Designed artistic works in copper during the Harlem Renaissance.
- C. Edgar Patience: Designed works using black coal.
- Bill Smith: His designs graced the covers of Vogue magazine and Harper’s Bazaar in the 60s and 70s.
- Coreen Simpson: Known for commercially successful works.
Wedgwood lady brooch by Vaughn Stubbs, c. 1987.
Challenges in Recovering Lost History
Recovering the history of Black jewelers is a complex task. There are no major texts that specifically explore the history of Black art jewelry. Many of the books that discussed Black craft in the past went out of print years ago. Very few major publications or journals profiled Black artists or jewelers in the past, and many stories of their successes were relegated to Black-owned magazines, which were few and far in between. In addition, many pieces or works by artists, or any photographic evidence of their existence, have been lost.
Despite these challenges, researchers are uncovering stories of camaraderie, creative excellence, and resilience. They are finding mentions of metalsmiths and craftspeople of the late 19th century who broke free from slavery to establish their identity through craft, jewelry designers who contributed to the Harlem Renaissance, and artists who explored new avenues of success after the civil rights movement.
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This research relies on perusing newspapers, magazines, university archives, and oral histories to piece together the lives and careers of these artists. By bringing these tales to the public, initiatives like "Black Jewelers: A History Revealed" aim to correct historical misdeeds and inspire further research.
The Future of Black Jewelry Design
Dorian Webb envisions a future where Black-owned businesses can thrive beyond their founders, with access to the capital needed to grow and scale.Black women are the fastest-growing segment of entrepreneurs, and yet they receive less than .5% of all venture capital investments. That needs to change. We need Black-owned businesses to have the financial wherewithal to expand as they should, to be located in areas where their customer resides and have the marketing dollars to reach their customers.
Since the pandemic, I think people are being more intentional about seeking out African American businesses and supporting them. Consumers are seeing how their dollars can make a difference. Going forward, I hope more customers are part of the change they want to see.
She also emphasizes the importance of supporting young Black designers by providing scholarship, mentoring, and business development opportunities.
Consumers are seeing how their dollars can make a difference. Going forward, I hope more customers are part of the change they want to see.
