Allyson Bone

In Allyson Bone’s Vines Rectangle Earrings (2012), form and material carry the weight of time. Each earring features a looped vine motif created in oxidized sterling silver suspended above a rectangular frame that cradles fossilized mammoth ivory. The ivory, ancient and once-living, introduces a sense of suspended history. It is not merely decorative but an artifact embedded in contemporary form.

The piece’s structure creates a quiet interplay between hardness and flow: the infinity-like vine loops suggest natural growth patterns, while the rectangular forms provide visual grounding. Bone’s choice to set prehistoric ivory within such a contemporary visual language raises questions about preservation, permanence, and the human tendency to hold onto relics. These earrings do not just ornament the body—they anchor it within deep time.