Art Deco jewelry designer Gerard Sandoz

Art Deco jewelry designer Gerard Sandoz (1902-1995)
The history of Gerard Sandoz (1902 – 1995) Art Deco jewelry spans a short period of 1920-1934. A contemporary of the 20th century, Gerard Sandoz was an outstanding artist, designer and jeweler. His fate (like the fate of Raymond Templier or Jean Fouquet) was determined by family traditions. Under the strict guidance of his father, goldsmith Gustave-Roger Sandoz, at the age of 18 he took his first steps in the jewelry business.
A member of the Union of Contemporary Artists (the Union des Artistes Moderns), Gerard preferred simple forms and geometric lines. Being colorblind, he preferred to work with contrasting colors such as coral, gold, silver, black lacquer and white eggshell.
A contemporary of the 20th century, Gerard Sandoz took inspiration in the modern Machine Age world, architecture, automobiles, and the Jazz Age aesthetic that formed around him. However, Gerard’s career in the jewelry field was unexpectedly short, because in 1928 his father sold his business to Georges L’Enfant, for whom Gerard worked as art director until 1934.

The heart of the young Sandoz was given to the cinema. The Great Silent made the artist develop as dynamically as before. In 1934 he founded the Grand Prix du Cinéma Français, awarded annually until 1984. Finally, he chose painting. Noteworthy, he returned to jewelry design in 1985, having created a small collection. At the time of his death in 1995, he was penniless.

Art Deco jewelry designer Gerard Sandoz