Sculpture That You Can Wear
Irena Brynner was so much more than a jewelry artist and if her last name looks familiar it should. She was Yul Brynner's cousin.
A word about the spelling of her last name. Her early pieces were signed Bryner. She later changed it to Brynner.
She was born in Russia, moved to China
and studied Art in Switzerland before immigrating to the United States in 1946.
At that time the "scene" was in Greenwich Village, New York. If you had a passion for art, mostly the adventurous type, you wanted to be there!
Looking back on it now I can't believe some of the highly regarded names in American Studio Modernist jewelry that had shops there. Sam Kramer, Henry Steig and Rebajes to name a few. I would have gone broke on jewelry shopping alone!
Ms. Bryner, Brynner did have a shop in
Greenwich Village during the latter part of the 1950s. She also had a shop in San Francisco, one of the first to offer this type of jewelry.
Her work is highly regarded by collectors and some of the pieces, especially those in gold can be very pricey.
Click on the image for a full description or to purchase!
Irena Bryner, Bryner Modernist Sterling Cufflinks
You have to see these hand made sterling silver cufflinks in person to see just how dimensional they are. I mentioned earlier that Ms. Brynner was an accomplished women, sculpting being another thing she did. These cufflinks have a sculptural appearance. In fact, I am sure
I read somewhere, probably in one of Marbeth Schon's excellent books, that Irena actually thought of jewelry as sculpture for the body!
Irena passed away in 2002. Her jewelry is on display at several prominent museums including the Smithsonian.
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