Susan Lenart is the genius behind Jewels of the Nomad, precious gems in forms of jewelry, with a bohemian inspiration. The line has pendants, necklaces, rings, bracelets, earrings and more. Furthermore, Jewels of the Nomad is unlike any other jewelry line. How so? the pieces are talismanic and has a rich influence of ancient ethnographic ornament from India, Africa, and Asia. In addition to that, Susan Lenart’s 30 year career in jewelry making, has made her art extraordinary, usually the pieces are amulets for the soul. Her work has also garnered her several awards and displayed in museums such as the Smithsonian in Washington D.C and the Art Institute of New York to name a few. Let us now look at 5 mesmerizing and unique masterpieces from the line.
B148 SPARKLE STERLING SILVER BRACELET – AMETHYST, RUBY, HONEY QUARTZ, LEMON QUARTZ, RHODONITE GARNET (Pictured Above)
The very first precious gem jewelry we present to you is this colorful and lovely B148 Sterling Silver bracelet. Just imagine the luck that you’ll get wearing this with all the precious gems on it! Amethyst is known to calm the wearer and give her positive vibes. Furthermore, Ruby is a stone for love. Quartz is a stone known for physical and emotional healing, while Rhodonite Garnet increases self love. I can imagine this beautiful bracelet with a golden yellow summer dress or even a black strapless fitted formal dress. It definitely is a must have for anyone wanting to up their charms!
I AM INSPIRED – DRAGONFLY NECKLACE
The next unique and captivating piece we have here is the I am Inspired dragonfly necklace. Made of sterling silver and 2 layers with a huge dragonfly adorned with gems at the center, this is a heavier piece than most. Furthermore, it features such intricate textures and designs that inspires and catches the fancy of those who view it. Just like the dragonfly, this piece of art is glowing and graceful. I can imagine this paired with a body suit, a maxi skirt, gladiator sandals and a Fedora hat at Coachella. It can even be worn with a white strapless dress for a formal, and it will be the best accessory!
RING 164 I AM CAPTIVATING – STELING SILVER WITH ADORNMENTS STATEMENT RING – R00164
The third gorgeous piece of jewelry we feature to you here is this I am Captivating Sterling Silver with adornments ring. Made of several precious gems and sterling silver, this piece is definitely an eye catcher. Furthermore, it features a cross like design with intricate carvings and a tiny rose form in the middle. The gems in this ring are Hessonite which is known for giving mental relief and being able to help release fears. It also features Green amethyst which strengthens peace and calm, and brings generosity, growth, health, happiness, harmony, stability, and fertility. Lastly, it has Garnet which is used for spiritual protection and symbolizes passion. Truly a ring that is magical and can be worn with anything, anywhere!
E243 CARNELIAN ORNATE SILVER LINKS, DANGLES, LONG FIBERS
The fourth piece we show you here is this bohemian and fiery E242 Carnelian ornate silver earrings. Made of sterling silver, carnelian gems, orange and red fiber threads, this sure has an interesting texture and look. Moreover, it features a top Carnelian gem, followed by an intricate design of a UFO-like silver dangle and orange and red hues of thread. I can imagine this cute piece worn with about almost anything. Whether it be for a casual date for lunch paired with that white dress, or a champagne dress at a formal, these links will sure make you stand out.
NECKLACE 62 I AM ADVENTUROUS STERLING SILVER CHOKER WITH ANCIENT INDIAN COMPONENTS
The fifth and last amazing piece of art in necklace form that we show you here is this daring I am Adventurous sterling silver choker with ancient Indian components. Made of sterling silver and sparkling clear quartz components, this piece will bring luck to those who wear it. Furthermore it features silver bell type components from ancient Indian tradition and a long silver chain cascading down. You can be sure that to wear this makes a bold statement and even brings along a culture and history that is so rich. Be prepared to have all eyes on you with this statement piece you can wear for an art gallery opening or any arts festival or musical.
To summarize, we showed you 5 extremely awesome jewelry that can pass for as art. Lenart truly knows her craft and even her name has art in it. To see more fine jewelry we’ve written in the past click here. Here is an interview piece we did with her:
Beverly Hills Magazine: Tell us a little background information about yourself?
Susan Lenart:
After Art school, I knew that I needed to get some raw personal experience to build on from the world to be able to create a significant and relevant body of work. I have always had a love of anthropology and specifically artifacts + adornment from cultures, so travel and exploring was my imminent direction. I Didn’t know how impactful this would be on my work as an artist and jewelry designer even to this day.
While traveling, I got to experience incredible cultural opportunities by staying in small villages throughout the world and witness to so many unique practices, which brought me back to my own.
I experienced beautiful performances where jewelry and adornment were used in costuming and percussion to rhythmic music and to assist in its art form and to contribute to the whole of this rich experience.
I saw in my hands and heard tales of powerful protective pieces from all over the world and I listened closely because such stories + pieces could easily become lost in common place and tall tales.
These powerful pieces are called Talismans and built to bring into your life a specific positive quality such as love, luck, abundance, protection, wealth, and freedom. They are full of Symbolism inscribed and stitched into metal, fiber and wood. All cultures and countries have their own talismans and there is a universal thread of commonality this subject.
I was exposed to beautiful powerful pieces with nails hammered into an object and made to protect a village, I have been in beautiful churches that in their practice, could heal an ailment by rubbing holy dirt all over your body, I met people in my own neighborhood who wore their lucky socks to the game and every game to ensure a win. These are all Talismans.
I discovered such an interesting and magical world that we lived in with hidden meaning behind most artifacts and ancient adornment by use of intentional or unintentional symbolisms, embedded prayers and geometric shape, use of objects, color, mineral, crystal and material.
Through every jewelry line that I have built, I brought this concept into my work by using my own symbolism and intentions to create my own Talisman of positive love and light to help put this vibration into the world.
Jewels of the Nomad is built of powerful. beautiful gems + object filled with Symbolism and energy and meant to hold the vibration of the wearer.
Years ago, I began a jewelry company called, LEN+ART COLLECTION and sold my jewelry to companies such as Banana republic, Ann Taylor, Peruvian Connection as well as multiple galleries and more.
I exhibited at American craft Council, Smithsonian Craft show and SOFA Chicago. At this time, I also did museum exhibits with my powerful ceremonial pieces and jewelry + movement where I had my jewelry put into frames, and I built displays using lighting, shadow, and mood.
Dancers used my pieces for performances where my jewelry could be used in its intended form as percussion +movement in ceremonial dance.
I built jewelry for many markets, from a hand built high-end private line and private market for collectors to a highly successful commercial line of Talismans for the lower end market with pieces built in China.
I was always interested in fashion because I love to adorn with jewelry a whole body from head to toe. The body is my canvas.
I recently showed my work at Miami swim week runway and my work won an award during 2019 Milan fashion week Artistar event with Italian Vogue accessories
Odd jobs that complimented my work and my growth was in the field of interior design, visual display and repairing ancient ethnographic jewelry in Chicago which helped me learn so much about ancient connections and symbolism that has withstood time.
I wrote three books for the jewelry industry and all were Amazon best sellers.
The first, MAKING CONNECTIONS- a handbook of cold joins, which was self-published and won awards was a compilation of appropriate ancient joins through my studies of pieces that have lasted through time.
The second is RESIN ALCHEMY, a 10-year body of work of my personal resin exploration and inventions.
Third book, INTENTIONAL METALSMITHING, is a Nomadic silversmithing course and book for aspiring creatives who can travel and build jewelry with soldering silver.
Beverly Hills Magazine: When did you discover your passion for jewelry design?
Susan Lenart: I have a love and passion for history, symbolism and storytelling of jewelry and adornment.
In its original form, jewelry was created by Nomadic travelers by melting down silver + gold coins that they gained in trade because it made it easier and much more impactful to carry while traveling. Also, when traveling in and in a state of flux and change, one was comforted knowing jewelry pieces and their vibrational energies could bring protection, safety, wealth, and success when worn in their everyday. Jewelry was built embedding symbolism to bring love, happiness, luck and protection. Think about your favorite piece of jewelry or an object that is important to you. What qualities and feelings do they bring up for you and into your life? At the very least, your wedding band is symbolic of a love + commitment Talisman.
I discovered my passion also when I hung out at the history museum where I studied artifacts and adornment. I devoured anything having to do with folk from different cultures, such as folk tales, folk, dance, folk music, and art.
This is the way that I came at my jewelry design full of so much knowledge and history of how and why pieces were built, Only then was I ready to invent my own direction and brand of jewelry.
Beverly Hills Magazine: How did your company start?
Susan Lenart After learning much about adornment throughout history through travel and study I wanted to start by building my own body of work as an American artist. I dug into my own roots to create my own authentic signature brand. I drew from my experiences of growing up in Chicago and living in California for many years, I built a line that composed a sort of Industrial Spiritualism.
I spent time walking beaches and streets near my home and thinking of what objects are meaningful and important to me and my culture. I collected unusual objects and put it to thought of how I could express myself through these personal objects to make them sacred and give them importance and in turn. create a body of wearable artwork.
I built a vocabulary of my own ceremonial Talisman pieces. Some of my original ceremonial pieces are personal Talismans that give me energy abundance and luck such as Poker Game, which is an entire deck of cards make to imitate a heated game of poker and the Energy Talisman, made of all worn pencil stubs charged from young kids using the powers of their metal capacity. This original work led to museum exhibits, interviews and eventually a successful commercial line built on this concept of Talisman.
Beverly Hills Magazine: What is the vision for your brand?
Susan Lenart:
My brand, Jewels of the Nomad, is based upon a body of work through my studies of an ancient science of energy and vibration through my study of yoga and energy work.
My jewelry is embedded with symbolism and intentions through prayer boxes + gems qualities which provides a powerful energy and vibration. I build personal sacred jewelry for creative people, artists, yoga, spiritual and innovative people looking to make a vibrant powerful impact in the world. It is important to me to have my work built with good energy present.
My goal is to collaborate or work with a clothing designer with the same value in business and to produce a line of powerful jewelry into the world to help reinforce vibrations of the wearer to carry with them in jewelry form throughout their day as reminder or Talisman of the direction and qualities that they are intending in their life. I build personal sacred jewelry for creative people, artists, yoga, spiritual and innovative people looking to make a vibrant powerful impact in the world.
5 words in branding of my company-
Nomadic (travel)
Spiritual (yoga, gems, vibrations, talismans,)
Freedom –(well, freedom!)
Beautiful – as in nature and natural
Inspirational – as in chose what you feel is you in color, shape, vibrancy, style and not fall to what is in fashion
Beverly Hills Magazine: What makes your jewelry unlike any other?
Susan Lenart: : I believe that a piece of jewelry is more than just a beautiful accessory and more than the sum of its parts. Jewelry throughout history and in my work is used and built for many reasons and one being storytelling, which will cherish + hold a memory through time as an important marker in your own present.
I study and use an ancient science of energy in yoga, my work is embedded through prayer boxes + gems qualities which provides a powerful energy and vibration for the wearer.
My jewelry also provides an importance in self-expression by building authentically with one’s own idea of personal symbolism, shapes, materials, colors of stones and gems, lengths and which parts of the body a specific piece is worn upon.
I feel we can have a deep understanding of ourselves by which jewelry shapes, symbols, color from that one chooses. When worn, it becomes sacred personal adornment worn for qualities such as freedom, love, happiness and more.
My jewelry line, Jewels of the Nomad, is more than just a pretty accessory, it is a lifestyle.
Beverly Hills Magazine: What is your favorite item to design?
Susan Lenart: I love and adore working with the vibrancy and qualities of gems and symbolic shapes. I definably go through stages being obsessed with a particular shape, color, or function. I had not long ago been obsessed with rings and only because with being so visible on my hand, I felt it was purely for my own enjoyment. During dinner, I could lay my hand on the table and think, oh my, girl, you are looking good! Most Recently, I love building chokers and bangle bracelets that allows me to stack and stack (and stack). Layers of color, materials, shapes, form. What can be better than that?!
Beverly Hills Magazine: Where does your creative inspiration come from?
Susan Lenart: Travel! Anywhere, everywhere. Looking at architecture, art, containers, heating ducts, furniture joins, hardware stores, nature, and the ability to work out how to bring it into a smaller form of wearable jewelry.
Beverly Hills Magazine: What is the signature of your brand?
Susan Lenart: Jewels of the Nomad- Beautiful, vibrant Talisman jewelry pieces built to hold vibrations of energies and bring specific qualities into the wearer’s life such as love, health, money, freedom and protection through prayer boxes, vibrational gems, symbolism, personal sacred objects and clearing and charging of energies.
Beverly Hills Magazine: What advice would you give to other aspiring designers?
Susan Lenart: Please young artist, to be impactful, you must Follow your true authenticity and heart when you build your own work because if you do, your own people will be able to find you. Do not worry about what is the style and what people think about your work. You will never please everyone and if you try you will only get lost. Your power as an artist or designer lies in being true to yourself. Be relevant and be powerful and only go your direction. Be only yourself.
Beverly Hills Magazine: Have you discovered a personal purpose in your contribution to the world?
Susan Lenart: I grew up in a household of nine women, so I know the power + strength that women hold + carry. I have admired the strength of women from all over the world and in all walks of life for these women are the power that really hold a family together. I have met women who were scrubbing clothing on rocks, woman who quietly and bravely built a living for their families through odd jobs. Women are the backbone of the community and support so much. I see that women hold a space for their children and husband and often make many sacrifices.
In my work I teach creativity workshops and do my best to inspire and empower women in all walks of life. I do personal work in yoga for woman and children who are homeless. I have young designers and artists that I mentor. It is important to share that love and be about the good of the whole when it is appropriate.
Also, my brand only sources and builds ethically and about the good of the whole.
