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Walker's Celtic Jewelry
Fairport Store
Open May 2009
Three generations of the Walker family are involved in
Celtic jewelry. Stephen and Susan are shown here with their children at
the home of grandmother Barbara Walker at her home in Andover, NY
Family inspiration for Celtic Art
Stephen Walker at his workbench.
Shop for Celtic Jewelry Online
www.WalkerMetalsmithS.com |
As his family grows, so does the business for Celtic jewelry
designer Stephen Walker. Walker will be moving his Rochester store to
Packets Landing with his daughter Jeannie. Walker’s Celtic Jewelry is a
satellite store for Walker Metalsmiths of Andover, NY. The Walkers
celebrated their 25th anniversary in business this year, although
Stephen Walker’s work with precious metals and Celtic design goes back
much earlier. The store will feature their original gold and silver
designs authentically crafted in the being created in Ireland and
Scotland.
Unlike some modern Celtic jewelers, the Walkers are very innovative with
the traditions of interlaced knotwork and spiral designs, not simply
copying designs from ancient sources, but actually mastering the
intricate tradition. Stephen Walker explains, “Many feel that
authenticity comes from faithful reproduction of historical Celtic
designs. I was fortunate to have been taught a very young age that true
authenticity of comes from being so immersed in the tradition that you
can create original work that is good and true without plagiarizing all
your designs from the past. This is the tradition I am passing on to my
children and apprentices”.
Soon after he was introduced to the mystical designs of the medieval
Book of Kells by his Irish-American grandmother, he was hooked. His
Scottish immigrant grandfather encouraged his mother to learn bagpipes,
a tradition Stephen also followed. “ Shortly after Grandma Walker made a
visit to Ireland in 1968”, Walker explains, “my family moved to Andover,
NY, where the art teacher was very accomplished in Celtic art. William
MacCrea did a lot to teach and inspire a number of other artists who
continue to work in the Celtic tradition”. After High School, Stephen
spent a year in Ireland and the British Isles playing his bagpipes as a
“busker” or street performer. Returning to the States he attended
Syracuse University for a BFA degree in silversmithing and jewelry
design and then went on to earn his masters degree in Metalsmithing from
Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in 1982.
Stephen’s wife and business manager, Susan, is also of both Scottish and
Irish heritage. Her grandmother was an immigrant from Co. Tipperary and
her father’s family claims descent from Nova Scotia Scots. Susan was a
math and business major at Syracuse, where the couple met. It is claimed
that her mathematical specialty is multiplying, as the family has six
children. All of their children have taken their turns at helping with
the family business beginning when they were very young. Andrew, the
oldest, began the Rochester store in 2007. He is returning to school and
his sister Jeannie is ready for her turn to enter the business as the
manager in Fairport. “Since I was a little girl I have been tagging
along with Dad to art festivals and trade fairs”, says Miss Walker. “I
really enjoy talking to people and helping them choose jewelry from my
Dad’s designs that will mean the most for them and compliment their
looks and style.” Jeannie is a 2006 graduate of SUNY Fredonia and also a
graduate of Leon Studio One School of Hair Design in Williamsville.
Several of the Walker’s most popular jewelry designs are adapted from
concepts originally drawn by Jeannie. The four younger children are
still in school. Two are in engineering programs and the two youngest
have already begun following their father’s footsteps as craftsmen. All
of the children have traveled to Scotland and Ireland with their parents
to keep in touch with relatives and craftsmen that supply the shop.
Walker’s Celtic Jewelry in Fairport is expected to be open in time for
Canal Days, June 6 & 7. There will be a workshop on the premises to
accommodate custom orders, sizing and repairs.
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Aidan Breen, Dublin native and pioneer
of the Renaissance of Celtic jewelry, will be the featured guest artist
at Walker’s Celtic Jewelry in Fairport during Canal Days, June 6 &7. Mr.
Breen will be exhibiting his bold jewelry designs in silver and gold as
well as demonstrating his artistry at Walker’s, which is moving to
Fairport from Park Avenue.
Breen was trained in his craft by a traditional seven year
apprenticeship as a “chaser” beginning at age 14 at H.W. Gill and Sons,
Church Furnishers in Dublin. A chaser works artistic designs into the
surface of metal with a hammer and punches or chisels. Working in a
large workshop with many other craftsmen as a young man he was able to
develop his talent and skill working side-by-side with the most
experienced and knowledgeable artisans in the field. Breen learned his
craft working on chalices, monstrances and tabernacles, while attending
the National College of Art at night. After working for several other
silver manufacturers as a chaser Breen went into business on his own in
1978, specializing in the distinctly Celtic design tradition that had
nearly died out in metal arts. Many people are surprised to learn that
there were practically no jewelers in Ireland working in Celtic design
in the middle of the 20th century. When Breen introduced his range of
designs at a decorative arts tradeshow in 1979, his jewelry was snapped
up by many of the most posh and fashionable people in Ireland.
Breen’s example in the renaissance of Celtic design and popularity of
his work led many other Irish craftsmen to look to their heritage for
inspiration. “As a young lad, I was always fascinated with the ancient
and medieval treasures on display at the National Museum in Kildare
Street. This was a place I frequently visited on weekends and still
often go for inspiration.” Breen is an avid researcher and collector of
books on the earlier Celtic Revival, a movement which began in the 1840s
and continued into the first several decades of the 20th century. As the
Celtic Revival faded in other decorative arts in Ireland it remained
strong in church furnishings and sports trophies. Since Breen was
immersed in this area as a young man, he had no idea at the time how out
of fashion this style was. But as luck would have it, when the Celtic
Revival got its second wind in the 1970s, Aidan Breen was in a unique
position to lead a new generation of artists and craftsmen as the
acknowledged master of this style.
Breen continues to produce larger pieces as well. He has made silver
bowls chased with biographical themes for Mr. Gay Byrne, host of
Ireland’s most popular TV program, The Late Show, and a 12" dish for the
Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Charles J. Haughey. Embossed on the plate was
Mr. Haughey's sailing boat, "Celtic Mist". He has also made the Irish
Times Literature Awards since their inception. Irish President Mary
McAleese is often seen wearing a brooch Breen crafted in the form of
four swans, illustrating the “Children of Lir” legend. More recently
Breen was given one of the highest honors available to an Irish
goldsmith, being commissioned by the Dublin Assay Office to make a piece
for the permanent collection. This masterpiece, which took over three
years to complete, is a silver sculpture in the form of a Moorish tower,
chased with scenes from James Joyce’s novel, Ulysses. He is currently
working on another prestigious project, a commission for the National
Museum of Ireland that will be featured in an upcoming exhibit of Irish
silver and will then remain in the museum’s permanent collection.
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Irish Craftsman to be featured at Canal
Days
Aidan Breen, chasing a silver
brooch. The silver is held on the surface of pitch while designs are
embossed using small punches and chisels.
Silver brooch by Aidan Breen set with Connemara
marble, quarried in the West of Ireland.
More Celtic Jewelry
by Aidan breen
Shop for Celtic Jewelry Online
www.WalkerMetalsmithS.com
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