Copper Art Gallery
In addition to designing and making handmade sterling silver jewelry, Too Divine Jewelry also designs and makes larger pieces of artwork out of copper.
Copper is believed to be the first metal used by man. In Egypt, it was used in BC times to made weapons. The word itself is derived from the name of the island of Cyprus, which was a source of copper for the Romans.
The color of polished copper is a pale orange brown hue that darkens as the metal tarnishes. There are a number of alloys in which copper is used. Sterling silver is 7.5% copper, and bronze and brass are formed by adding small percentages of zinc to copper. Copper is easily worked, and the heating of copper with a torch makes it very soft and pliable, so much so that large works of copper that have been extensively heated through soldering will retain a certain amount of "bendability."
The copper artwork made by Too Divine Jewelry is currently not available for sale, although if you see something you just love, let us know. Email us at customerservice@toodivinejewelry.com and we can let you know whether that piece is available, or whether we can make another, and at what price.
We have developed many pieces and designs of copper artwork. We started with candleholders of various sorts and learned as we went which designs would hold up to everyday use and which would not. We have always been greatly inspired by nature, and so, much of our artwork includes leaves and flowers and suns.
Our largest piece, shown at right, is built onto a long window that was rescued from the refuse of a construction site. It spawned the idea for a copper-ivy-covered window, shown at right. We adorned it with strands of a copper relica of English Ivy and a twining flower vine, as well as a copper butterfly at the top.
Bonsai trees were the inspiration for our copper trees, as shown at left in the Japanese Maple tree, left, and the Olive tree, below left. We initially received a request to make such a piece, and it was such a hit, that we have made several more since then. These trees are miniature models of real tree types. The leaves are each cut out separately, soldered to stems, then to branches, which are soldered to the trunk. The whole process takes at least a month of hard, steady work, since each tree has over 300 individually cut, sanded, and soldered leaves. Among the types we have done thus far are a White Oak, a small Ficus, an Olive Tree and a Japanese Maple. To add to the bonsai look, we "plant" them in bonsai-like shallow ceramic containers and fill the containers with gravel.
Our framed artword consists of symmetrical, stylized creations of copper that depict vases or pots with flowers, leaves and various curling stems and tendrils. The larger pieces pictured to below, in 16" x 20" frames are natural copper. The smaller pieces, lower left, are copper that has been painted to give it a lively, colorful look.
Another framed piece which we made represented the branches of a red oak tree, with the leaves colored with green patina, and a single copper bird sitting among the branches. The oak theme was repeated in a wall piece which depicted a single white oak branch.
Candleholders are another category of artwork that can be made from copper, as mentioned above, but one must be careful of the design, since copper is not nearly as strong a metal as, say, iron, which is most often used for candleholders. A wall-mounted candleholder, such as the one pictured at the top left corner of the page, works well, since it does not often get disturbed and depends upon its mounting for support. Of course, given the proper support at the base, candleholders can be quite safe and lovely made from copper. The candleholder at top right was made by bending a large piece of copper tubing into a spiral and twining a length of copper ivy around it. It is an asymmetrical piece, with the right candle sitting behind and lower than the left. The lower right piece is a more traditional candleholder with flowers fashioned at the base of each candle. Note that the base is a circle, which provides sturdiness and balance.
Interesting copper pieces of metalwork come from designing stands and bases for glass pieces. In the photos below,we show two different pieces we designed and made around specific glass items. The first places two blue flower glass candleholders in a copper stand of stems and long leaves. The second and third photos show two different angles of a copper filigree stand designed for a clear glass bowl and used, in this case, to hold a white rose candle.
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One of the aspects of copper is that, like sterling silver, it tarnishes, and cleaning a large or intricate piece can be a problem. The piece will not retain its original color or shininess without polishing. At first, the color will get more orange-y, but over time, the tarnish turns to a deep brown color and can be lovely left just as it is.
Our copper work is a sideline to our handmade sterling silver jewelry, but it is a rewarding type of metalwork. It allows for a larger scope than jewelry in terms of design and implementation. We have in the past sold several items of copper artwork, but we have never promoted to any extent as we have our handmade sterling silver jewelry. Though made of metal, copper pieces can be relatively fragile, like glass. Just as a fine piece of blown glass must be handled carefully, so must copper artwork be sheltered from spills and falls, not because it will break, but because it can still bend out of shape if given rough treatment. However, these creations can be a beautiful addition to any decor. Copper lends an unusual color and a definite presence as a decorative object. As stated above, if you have any interest in any of these pieces, please let us know by email at info@toodivinejewelry.com and we will do our best to fulfill your request.