Cast silver · Densely plated in 24k gold · Pink cabochon sapphires · Natural-color sapphire beads · Dell Kinyon Taylor
Pink Lilies was created as part of one of the very last castings Dell ever performed, placing it among the final works produced through a process he had practiced for decades.
The necklace is built entirely around sapphire. At its center, pink cabochon sapphires are set into an elaborate casting. The metal spreads outward around the stones in petal-like forms, giving the central piece the appearance of a gathering of lilies. Rather than relying on faceted brilliance, Dell chose rounded cabochons whose variations in color, opacity, and surface give each flower its own character.
Every bead in the necklace is sapphire as well. Multiple strands move through pinks, pale translucent tones, deeper reds, purples, and other naturally occurring sapphire colors. Their irregularities are important to the piece: instead of forcing the material into a perfectly uniform palette, Dell allowed the natural range of the stone to become part of the composition. Larger sapphire beads finish the long drops beneath the central casting.
The richness of Pink Lilies comes as much from accumulation as from any single stone. Hundreds of small sapphires gather around the heavy gold surface, moving from delicate strands into the substantial central form and then downward again. From a distance it reads as an extravagant field of pink and gold; up close, it becomes a study of the remarkable range contained within a single gemstone.
As one of Dell’s final castings, Pink Lilies also marks the end of something. The casting, and extraordinary quantity of sapphire were brought together in one of the last objects for which he was physically able to carry the casting process through himself. It is a late work made without restraint—precious material transformed into something unmistakably his.
Cast silver · Densely plated in 24k gold · Pink cabochon sapphires · Natural-color sapphire beads · Dell Kinyon Taylor
Pink Lilies was created as part of one of the very last castings Dell ever performed, placing it among the final works produced through a process he had practiced for decades.
The necklace is built entirely around sapphire. At its center, pink cabochon sapphires are set into an elaborate casting. The metal spreads outward around the stones in petal-like forms, giving the central piece the appearance of a gathering of lilies. Rather than relying on faceted brilliance, Dell chose rounded cabochons whose variations in color, opacity, and surface give each flower its own character.
Every bead in the necklace is sapphire as well. Multiple strands move through pinks, pale translucent tones, deeper reds, purples, and other naturally occurring sapphire colors. Their irregularities are important to the piece: instead of forcing the material into a perfectly uniform palette, Dell allowed the natural range of the stone to become part of the composition. Larger sapphire beads finish the long drops beneath the central casting.
The richness of Pink Lilies comes as much from accumulation as from any single stone. Hundreds of small sapphires gather around the heavy gold surface, moving from delicate strands into the substantial central form and then downward again. From a distance it reads as an extravagant field of pink and gold; up close, it becomes a study of the remarkable range contained within a single gemstone.
As one of Dell’s final castings, Pink Lilies also marks the end of something. The casting, and extraordinary quantity of sapphire were brought together in one of the last objects for which he was physically able to carry the casting process through himself. It is a late work made without restraint—precious material transformed into something unmistakably his.
Image 1 of 5
Image 2 of 5
Image 3 of 5
Image 4 of 5
Image 5 of 5