Miss Sofie Boons Sofie.Boons@uwe.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer in Design Crafts
Man-made crystals: A review of their historic and contemporary context and use
Boons, Sofie
Authors
Abstract
This paper reports on the history and use of man-made crystals for jewelry in a contemporary context. The cross-disciplinary contextual review traces human fascination with gemstones back centuries, and covers key developments in their "imitation."The infiltration of these man-made crystals in the market sparked the development of the discipline of gemology, through which they are often painted in a negative light. With innovations in the growth of man-made crystals revolutionizing other industries (engineering, technology, etc.), and their distinction from mined crystals increasingly more challenging, the paper reports on the terminology prescribed to the industry to describe man-made and mined crystals. These descriptions, which include "natural"and "real"versus "synthetic,"are interrogated in relation to key texts and a need for the identification of an alternative terminology is proposed. The jewelry industry remains apprehensive about the influx of man-made crystals, and only a small number of man-made crystal suppliers are growing crystals for the purpose of creative exploration beyond the imitation of mined crystals for jewelry. Through the review of artifacts, where man-made crystals have been used, their ability to enable creativity is highlighted, and their further future creative possibilities explored.
Citation
Boons, S. (2021). Man-made crystals: A review of their historic and contemporary context and use. International Journal of Design in Society, 15(2), 63-71. https://doi.org/10.18848/2325-1328/cgp/v15i02/63-71
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Acceptance Date | Jul 21, 2021 |
Online Publication Date | Nov 12, 2021 |
Publication Date | Nov 12, 2021 |
Deposit Date | Nov 15, 2021 |
Publicly Available Date | Nov 15, 2021 |
Journal | International Journal of Design in Society |
Print ISSN | 2325-1328 |
Electronic ISSN | 2325-1360 |
Publisher | Common Ground Research Networks |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 15 |
Issue | 2 |
Pages | 63-71 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.18848/2325-1328/cgp/v15i02/63-71 |
Keywords | Urban Studies; Visual Arts and Performing Arts; Cultural Studies |
Public URL | https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/8073349 |
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Man-made Crystals: A Review of their Historic and Contemporary Context and Use
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Licence
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Publisher Licence URL
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
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