Atelier bernd munsteiner biography

Bernd Munsteiner, the inventor of the fantasy cut who was sometimes dubbed the “Picasso of gems,” died on June 6 in Stipshausen, Germany. He was

Munsteiner was born into a multigenerational gem-cutting family, and began working as an apprentice at just He later studied at the Pforzheim School of Design. He won his first major award, a gold medal at a Munich craft fair, at age

As a gem cutter, Munsteiner broke from past conventions, which mandated gems be cut to a strict set of “ideal” parameters. Instead, he developed what came to be known as the fantasy cut, which historians now say modernized gem cutting.

“The only ideal proportion he acknowledged was the one that freed the natural beauty he saw hiding in the stone,” said the GIA’s website. “Many in the gem and jewelry trade didn’t know what to make of the fantasy cut. But the critics eventually became admirers, and Munsteiner’s pieces ended up in galleries and museums.”

His most notable creation was probably the 10, ct. Dom Pedro, which is considered the world&#;s largest cut aquamarine. Fashioned from a piece of rough that measured inches, the inch tall finished product took Munsteiner 10 months to create. It is now on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, close to the Hope Diamond.

Later in his career, Bernd and son Tom spent three years designing agate windows for a local church.

&#;Bernd was a very cheerful person and brought back something he found from every walk to inspire new gemstone designs,&#; said his daughter-in-law, Jutta, in a statement. &#;Going through life with open eyes was his motto.”

Bernd Munsteiner is survived by Hanne, his wife of nearly 60 years; daughter-in-law Jutta; and grandson Philipp, all of whom work in the family business. He was pre-deceased by his sons Tom, also an accomplished gem cutter, and Jörg.

“Philipp will continue the life’s work and legacy of the Munsteiner family, of Tom Munstein

Bernd Munsteiner

Bernd Munsteiner was the first contemporary artist to go off in search of the aura of the crystal. For more than forty years now, he has been turning transparent stones in particular into images, objets d&#;art and sculptures. They open up the magical landscapes inside the crystal to the viewer, extend his inner and outer visual areas into projection surfaces of the psychical.
Through his work, Munsteiner links precious stone sculpture to the artistic debates of the 20th century without denying the archaic layers in the relationship of mankind to stone and precious stones in particular. By that very act, Munsteiner&#;s precious stone sculptures elude a representation culture oriented towards performative eventfulness as well as reception in passing. On the other hand, they project into our transient lifetime as monumental symbols of the eternal – in spite of their relatively small spatial volume.

Curriculum Vitae

Born in Moerschied near Idar-Oberstein;
Trained as a precious stone cutter with Viktor Munsteiner, completed Journeyman exam;
Studied with Prof. Schollmayer and Prof. Ullrich at the school for design, Pforzheim;
completed state examination with title as designer of precious stones and jewelry;
Atelier in Stipshausen near Idar-Oberstein. Member of various national German trad and visual art organizations, concerned with the advancement, promotion and support of contemporary art, material and form;
member of &#;The Guild of Contemporary American Jewelry Design&#;;
Member of &#;International Jewelry Design Guild Inc.&#;

Honours and Awards

Design Prize Rhineland-Palatinate; Contemporary Design Group, Award, Hall of Fame, Las Vegas, USA; &#;Context-Cut&#; Honorable mention for greatest Design Quality, Design Center Nordrhein Westphalia;
Honorary Life Member, The American Gem Trade

Creativity: Fantasy, dimension, composition, structure, rhythm, contrasts, accents, color &#; I understand reliefs, gemstone cuts, jewelery and sculptures as an artistic statement of our time, an individual expression of creativity. It&#;s my way of speaking, of making myself understood. The Gemstone cut requires its own form of creativity, the recognition of natural forms, the crystallographic structure; Everything that exists must be perceived. This requires a special sensitivity to the matter, to the color of the minerals, their purity, their natural inclusions and structural changes in order to make visible and classify the invisible. On this the realization of an idea in the mineral, the own mental statement, is based. Minerals and crystals, the most fascinating matter on earth, are brought out of the earth under often difficult conditions and thanks to hard work. Selected and rare transparent crystals are the basis of my work as a gemstone sander. For many years I have been traveling to Brazil to track down such crystals at their original deposits. Bestellinformationen

The Munsteiners – Bernd, Tom and Jutta – are two generations of gem and jewelry artists. Bernd Munsteiner is a world-renowned artist and visionary. Born into a family of traditional gem cutters in Germany, Bernd did so much enter the family business as he revolutionized it.

Approaching gems with a sculptor’s sensibility, he saw them not only as gems, but as unique three-dimensional transparent media with optical properties that could be carved with an eye to form, light and expression. Bernd Munsteiner’s trailblazing opened the door to gem sculpting, a creative field carried on by his son Tom, who has pioneered remarkable works in natural minerals.

Tom’s work is influenced by contemporary architecture, sculpture and his comprehensive understanding of the crystal properties of gems. Jutta Munsteiner, Tom’s wife, is a master goldsmith and award-winning designer. In the Munsteiner studio, the artists work independently and collaboratively, creating a formidable collection of truly one-of-a-kind jewels.