If you were to take the tube to the South Kensington stop in London, disembark, and walk down the pedestrian subway running from the station beneath Exhibition Road, you may come upon the entrance for the Victoria & Albert Museum.
From there, it’s several exhibition halls and showcases until the Jewellery Room. The V&A has one of the most comprehensive jewellery collections in the world, amongst these displays are multiple pieces created by renowned jeweller, Bernard Instone.
While Instone’s pieces are more than deserving of their placement within the museum, indeed you can purchase a postcard image of one of his iconic brooches at the gift shop, the materials he chose to create these works are humble, especially when compared to the sparkling diamonds, gold, and platinum found nearby. This usage of more accessible and less expensive materials was by design. His belief was not that jewellery should be exclusively the right of the restricted few, but rather that jewellery should be available to everyone. The idea that a person could easily gift or wear one of his creations led him to materials such as enamel, silver, and semi-precious gems. These materials minimised costs and made his pieces more economical to those not graced with millions of pounds. The result was beautiful and well-made yet accessible gems that are just as wearable now as they were when first fabricated.
Instone’s pieces have a delicate and often naturalistic appearance, an influence of the Arts and Crafts movement. He is now remembered as a key figure in the second wave of Arts and Crafts metalworkers and designers. His stylistic pieces have less flourish than Art Nouveau and the edges are too soft for the hard geometry of Art Deco. This influence was born of his placement in world history, within the niche of the later 19th Century and World War I.
Born in 1891, Instone lived and worked in the city of Birmingham. He was attracted to metalwork and the jewellery arts almost immediately and attended the Birmingham School of Jewellery and Silversmithing, which still exists and can be found in the same location on Vittoria Street. This school is often considered a pioneering force within the world of Craft education, a history which can be seen in many of its alumni.
As an able-bodied young man, Instone naturally contributed to the war effort. Between his education and military service, his talents caught the attention of one of his future mentors, the British architect and leading craftsman in the Arts and Crafts movement, John Paul Cooper. Cooper was also the Head of the Metalwork Department at the Birmingham School of Art 1904-1907. This relationship helped pave the way for Instone’s continued work and eventual selection to train at the workshops in Unter-den-Linden, Germany. This training in combination with the influence of his mentor and even his brother’s interest and work as a silversmith informed his work throughout the rest of his life.
Instone opened his workshop in the Digbeth area of central Birmingham in 1920. He ran his shop with a firm hand and this structured environment allowed him time to focus on adapting and evolving his designs for a wider audience. He was able to realise his dream of being a reachable jeweller, with pieces that the wider masses could enjoy and more importantly, afford. He was eventually able to sell his work at the historic Liberty department store in London. A person could visit his counter and purchase a brooch or ring for themselves, or their mother-in-law or friend and these pieces were colourful and wearable. Little works of accessible art that did not have to be stored on unreachable shelves under the protection of guards and glass. Ironically, these same or similar pieces are currently under high-security supervision at the V&A.
Instone later became President of the Birmingham Jewellers’ and Silversmiths’ Association in 1937 and was a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths in London. He was a prolific designer and creator for much of his life, retiring from his workshop in 1963 after handing the reigns over to his sons. He continued to design work throughout the late 60s and passed in 1987. His work continues to inspire makers today and the quality of his pieces means that they can continue to be enjoyed by those who appreciate his beautiful unique talent.
