Zadora : The Journey towards Recognition

Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof is accredited currently as the world's leading gem stone designer ( or else referred to as glyptic ) an age old artwork with its actual origins in pre - Babylonian/Mesopotamian days . Out of this artistic groundwork Zadora has developed a world-class workshop which has perfected just about nearly every approach create the incredible cross section of commissions his patrons bring to his atelier .

Zadora's road to his current career demonstrates the stating that 'fact is often stranger than fiction.' A hunting mishap at the young age of 12 threatened to paralyze his right hand and therefore his father come up with an innovative kind of physiotherapy by planning to apprentice Zadora with a close good friend and observed Haida totemic engraver and sculptor.

His trainer, Gordon Cross continues to be today popular as an incredible artist among the Haida folks. With this therapeutic training procedure , Zadora initially identified his faculty to "form - feel ," the potential to visualize , create and sculpt in three dimensions and determined his calling and life's work was to ponder the attractiveness of nature in just about all its forms .

His father was unsatisfied and regarded his son's love of art, a spare time activity to be relished at the best. Three years of research in a military services school in the US (advocated by his father as a part of a long household custom) persuaded Andreas to nonetheless stick with his dream of exhibiting his art in treasured materials. He struck out on his own and committed himself to an 8 year expedition of getting to grips with the interesting and exciting old world strategies from the professionals of the art forms both equally in Europe and the Americas.

Through the years von Zadora-Gerlof and his group have pulled in bespoke art , unparalled jewellery , designer watches , objects de vertu , valuable architectural installations as well as automatons and timepieces for a ecstatic carriage trade client base around the world .

The very first American exhibition of the artist's work was displayed at the Forbes Magazine Galleries in New York City in November 1992 for the advantage of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation and the New York Historical Society.

His following exhibition in October 1995 was organized at the Park Avenue Armory for the benefit of the Wildlife Conservation Society and in April 1996, a retrospective exhibition of his work was conducted at the Forbes Magazine Galleries (exclusive exhibit) to assist the American Friends of English Heritage.

Later in 1996 and 1997 Zadora presented a one man show at the Park Avenue Armory in New York City to excited public and critical recognition.

In June 2007, Zadora was hosted at the Hamilton Gallery in London for a month long exhibit and sale of his sculpted precious stone skull assortment named: "Memento Mori.”

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Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof, Prince Charles and Sean Connery

Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof 

Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof with Prince Charles

Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof with Sean Connery

Zadora Design Art Gallery

Born in Canada to Estonian parents, Zadora-Gerlof is known for his jewelry and clocks featuring precious stones carved into the shapes of animals and studded with diamonds and gold. Even after a hunting accident at the age of twelve, he did not give up his motivation and took up the profession to sculpt objects in three dimensions.

 
Zadora Design is the workshop of sculpting and art forms where, he creates elaborately mechanized clocks that are privately commissioned and run into millions of dollars, as well as architectural elements for private yachts, planes, and home interiors. He makes art pieces from marble, wood and gemstones. Marble and wood are relatively soft materials carved with chisels and hammers, whereas gemstones must be sculpted with saws and grinders. Although creating a sculpture out of gem material is a long and arduous process, when one observes the transformation from rough material to finished product, it almost seems as if the artist is a magician, who waves his magic wand.

At Zadora Design, each of the featured items has been created by Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof and his team of artisans. The art pieces from Zadora Design include collections like Jewellery pieces like cufflinks, brooches, ear clips, stud sets, necklets, bracelets; sculpted objects like rhinoceros; picture frames, letter openers, salt cellers; animal-inspired clocks; mechanical masterpieces inspired by frogs and eggs; architectural renderings and garden sculptures.

Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof

Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof was born in September 1957 in Canada into a family of Baltic aristocrats. He is a world class gem sculptor and the lead designer of Zadora timepieces.  Von Zadora-Gerlof's family left Europe and settled in Canada's Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii). He spent his childhood in hiking, fishing and hunting in the Canadian wilds of the Queen Charlotte Islands, an isolated and romantic archipelago known as "The Galapagos of Canada," situated 90 miles off the British Columbia coast. As a child, he began carving totem poles with the Haida Indians after a hunting accident left his left arm paralyzed. His physical therapy was to sculpt with the world's best totem carvers.

He studied the techniques of Haida totemic art under the apprenticeship of Gordon Cross, a close family friend and a Haida artist. Gordon Cross was a great Haida Indian artist, personally tutored him in the art of metal and gold engraving. Through this therapeutic process, and his love for nature and great interest in Indian mysticism and spirituality, he discovered his gift for "form feel," the talent to visualize and sculpt objects in three dimensions. He was thus inspired to pursue his talent for gem sculpting and metallurgy as a full time profession. In time, von Zadora-Gerlof became deeply involved in both Haida and European motifs and designs.

After three years of study in a military school in California, the artist became convinced not to pursue a military career, a very long family tradition, but much to his father's distress develop a future in the art of sculpting and jewellery. After studying at Idar Oberstein, Germany Andreas von Zadora-Gerlof established himself as one of the greatest gemstone artists of his time, also known as "America's Faberge".

Von Zadora-Gerlof now leads a world-class workshop that makes everything from fine jewellery to large sculptures. His work is included in private collections throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, the Middle and Far East. Selections from his oeuvre have been presented in exhibitions at the Forbes magazine Galleries in New York in 1992 and 1996 as well as at the Park Avenue Armory in 1995 and 1997. As the creator of some of the most exquisite works of art that exist today, many of the world’s most discerning art connoisseurs and collectors recognize his unique talent and appreciate and covet his sensational creations.

The distinguishing characteristic of von Zadora-Gerlof's gemstone sculptures is the exquisite level of detail he achieves in his portrayal of models from nature. To commemorate twenty years of the artist's outstanding gemstone sculpting achievement, a monograph, The Art of Zadora: America's Faberge, has been published in September 1999 by Vendome Press.