The Art & Times of Daniel Jocz

The Art & Times of Daniel Jocz presents the entrancing and challenging work of American jewellery artist and sculptor Daniel Jocz.

Jocz succeeds like no other in assimilating into his own jewelry creations the 'chaotic order' he knows and admires from the improvised rhythms of jazz music and the musician John Coltrane. In doing so he always manages to forge new paths and present surprising new, original, and spontaneous designs. Accordingly, his work has undergone a stark transformation since the beginning of his artistic career in the 1980s, from geometric abstractions, through lifelike forms, to the playful Pop-Art-inspired 'Candy Wear.'

Various essays guide the way through Jocz’s artistic work. Jeannine Falino takes an in-depth look at the twists and turns of Jocz’s long career from his early sculptures and his ruminations on Marlene Dietrich in the form of necklaces featuring enamel smoked cigarettes to the wall reliefs he explores today. Wendy Steiner considers Jocz’s place in the avant-garde through the lens of fashion and culture, while Patricia Harris and David Lyon examine his involvement in the rollicking Boston jewelry scene of the late twentieth century.

The artist Daniel Jocz about his work:

'Fashion to me is like candy, the kind of candy that you bought...when you were a little kid. You buy this sweet stuff and put it in your mouth, and it hits you, Kapowie! Five minutes later it’s gone. But it was fun, and you want to do it again. This is how I see fashion jewelry...There’s no depth to it — this thing is not talking to you about something important. The idea is that — Wow this thing hits you somewhere between wonderful and stunning and then it disappears. A memory of a fun experience is all that is left in time. But with jewelry you can always put it on again.'