For as long as I can remember I have loved to draw, taking pleasure in the rituals of drawing with precision instruments. Before CAD or Computer Aided Design, my trusty analogue tools - technical ink pens, mechanical clutch pencils, set squares, french curves, a compass and a T-Square - accompanied me wherever I went.
By the time I was in high school I excelled at technical drawing, and this led to further studies in architectural drafting and industrial design. Eventually it led to the start of my career as a trainee architectural CAD technician and laid the foundations for my design process.
My Set Square design is a small nod to that period. The title itself references the use of mathematical shapes that create its form, and also the name of the straight edged object used to draw the right angles that define the signature square claws in the setting.
Square claws are rarely seen in contemporary jewellery design, particularly in the proportions I favour. When used they tend to be oversized, notched and then physically “pushed” over the gemstone to secure it in place. Only then are they given their final shape. They are also commonly set with a singular edge perpendicular to the gemstone.
With this series, I set out to challenge that convention. To achieve the angular precision of the Set Square design with a substantially proportioned claws set, a non traditional form of setting had to be devised to keep the square edges parallel and allow for the final sculpt and polish of the setting.
Scanners, Computer Aided Design software, 3D printing and laser welding equipment are the tools I use to realise my vision for this deceptively simple design.
Its execution requires patience, precision and innumerable tweaks in the manufacturing workflow to achieve a setting with clean, uncluttered lines.
The rectilinear form and elegant simplicity of the Set Square design is timeless and my intent is to keep iterating with subtle additions and alterations.