Ring

Margaret De Patta, Ring, 1953, white gold and baroque pearl, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1969.79
Copied Margaret De Patta, Ring, 1953, white gold and baroque pearl, 7⁄8 x 5⁄8 x 1 1⁄8 in. (2.3 x 1.7 x 2.9 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1969.79

Artwork Details

Title
Ring
Artist
Date
1953
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
7⁄8 x 5⁄8 x 1 1⁄8 in. (2.3 x 1.7 x 2.9 cm.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase
Mediums
Mediums Description
white gold and baroque pearl
Classifications
Object Number
1969.79
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1969.79

Artwork Description

Margaret De Patta emphasized the irregular shape and iridescent cobalt color of this baroque pearl by setting it without any visible prongs or bezels. The lustrous white gold and the hole in the side of the setting allow even more light to reflect off the pearl. Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, a well-known figure from Europe’s Bauhaus design school, once told De Patta to “[catch] your stones in the air . . . don’t enclose them.” De Patta made three different rings in this design, all of which now belong to museum collections.