On the Cuff: Found Objects Regenerate Flower Power

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Noted Bay Area artist Joan Elan Davis is still working her magic with flowers – but this time she has moved them off the canvas and planted them skillfully onto the wrist. At least that is where they pop and bloom when you buckle on one of her new cuffs introduced for spring 2009. Aren’t they the grooviest? I love the marriage of the elements she has employed.

The retooled leather straps are adorned with found floral forms and other objects that ooze a 70s sensibility, evoking the spirit of those mod wide watches with changeable snapping bands. Mine were patent leather!

In turning to jewelry, Davis took her cue from her wildflower series of paintings now hanging at the Ritz Carlton, Lake Tahoe, and in other prestigious private collections. Adding sparkle are the vintage gems and stones that are tossed into the interesting asymmetrical designs.

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“The colorful mix of found objects was inspired by the coming of spring, a time of rebirth and renewal for all of us,” the painter told me.

Davis, who has studios in Tahoe and at the San Francisco design center (across the street from Showplace Square) is known for bold canvases and works on paper like her “power flower” studies in which she expands tiny elements of nature into grand proportions, allowing us a bird’s eye view of what we often take for granted.

In recent years, she moved into the interior design district of San Francisco to collaborate with furniture showrooms like McGuire, which featured her abstract and floral works as backdrop for its modern rattan furnishings earlier this year.

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“Designers are creative people who enjoy working with color and style,” Davis observes. “Great creativity goes into designing a home. It’s a real pleasure to be part of that process.”

The one-of-a-kind art cuffs, $50, will be available in April at Joan Davis Art Studios.

Luanne Bradley

Luanne Sanders Bradley is the West coast Editor at EcoSalon and currently resides in San Francisco, California.