Key takeaways
• Journalist Jennifer Altmann is authoring a book titled “”Rejeweled: Ordinary Objects Become Extraordinary Adornments,”” to be published on Earth Day in 2029 by Arnoldsche Art Publishers.
• Fiscally sponsored by the Art Jewelry Forum, the book profiles 25 American artists who create contemporary jewelry using discarded and upcycled materials.
• The publication aims to comprehensively document the thriving area of upcycling in contemporary jewelry and will feature over 150 images of unique jewels.
(LYNCHBURG, VA, US) – A necklace made of tangerine rind. A brooch with the legs of a Barbie doll. Earrings made from rabbit fur.
These jewels—and many more—will be featured in “Rejeweled: Ordinary Objects Become Extraordinary Adornments”, a book by journalist Jennifer Altmann. It will be published on Earth Day in 2029 by Arnoldsche Art Publishers, the premier publishing house for contemporary jewelry. Art Jewelry Forum fiscally sponsors the project.
The book will profile 25 American artists who make jewelry using discarded materials—everything from deer antlers to plastic takeout containers, from dollar bills to olive pits. The artists search dumpsters in Pennsylvania and pick up trash on New York City’s streets. They scour flea markets and thrift stores. They hold events to collect unwanted jewelry. Their work upends jewelry’s connection with precious gems and metals.
These artists are carrying on a tradition of using found objects that dates to the earliest days of American contemporary jewelry, when J. Fred Woell began using Pepsi bottle caps and stamps in 1966. Upcycling—transforming castoffs into art objects—is a thriving area of contemporary jewelry that has not been comprehensively documented. Art Jewelry Forum is raising funds to finance the book.
Harriete Estel Berman, Black Plastic Gyre Boa Constrictor Necklace, photo courtesy of the artist
Artists use discarded materials for many reasons: to keep trash out of the waste stream; to draw our attention to our propensity for accumulating possessions and tossing them away; to comment on societal issues through their choice of material; and to embrace an ethical artistic practice by not relying on new objects to make their work. And, for some artists, it’s simply because they fall in love with old things.
Artist MJ Tyson, photo courtesy of MJ Tyson
In short chapters written in the style of a studio visit, Altmann will capture the fascinating stories of these artists. The book will feature more than 150 images of one-of-a-kind jewels and of the artists wearing their work.
The profiled artists will include Jennifer Trask, who transforms deer antlers and animal bones into exquisite necklaces; MJ Tyson, who melts estate-sale jewelry; Harriete Estel Berman, who uses the tin cans she has saved for the last 40 years; Beau McCall, who was inspired by a jar of buttons in his mother’s laundry room; and Susie Ganch, who makes necklaces from the bottles that hold her life-saving medications.
Artist Beau McCall, photo: Abigail Ekue
Author Jennifer Altmann is a journalist who specializes in writing about contemporary jewelry, which often uses unconventional materials to express the maker’s artistic vision. An accomplished writer whose work has been published in the New York Times and many other publications, Altmann has traveled the world to visit the studios of artists on four continents.
In 2025, Art Jewelry Forum named Altmann one of four women “with their ring finger on the pulse of the art jewelry scene.” She has hosted panel discussions and taught workshops at the largest jewelry events of the year. And she has amassed a dedicated following on Instagram, where she chronicles the world of contemporary jewelry.
Arnoldsche Art Publishers is an internationally renowned publishing house that produces premium art books. It has published more than 150 books about historical and contemporary jewelry, in addition to books on ceramics, glass, textiles, and other artistic fields. Based in Stuttgart, Germany, Arnoldsche has been a leader in the field since 1987.
Artist Debra Rapoport, photo courtesy of Debra Rapoport
About AJF
Art Jewelry Forum is a nonprofit organization spreading awareness and increasing appreciation of art jewelry worldwide since 1997. Its diverse community of artists, collectors, critics, educators, galleries, historians, makers, and writers is united by a passion for art jewelry. AJF advocates for art jewelry through an ambitious agenda of education, conversation, and financial support. It commissions critical writing that sets the standard for excellence in the field, and publishes artjewelryforum.org, an Internet resource for original content on art jewelry.
