Superb Chrysocolla Carving of a Chameleon by Gerd Dreher


Idar-Oberstein, GermanyRetailed by Asprey & Co., London, EnglandDesigned and carved by Gerd Dreher and retailed by Asprey & Co., the present carving is an exceptionally fine example of gem chrysocolla rough has been transformed into a truly stunning naturalistic sculpture. Richly saturated greenish blue color showing a high degree of translucency at the edges and interspersed with areas of malachite, the chameleon perched on top of a rocky outcrop decorated with foliate accents which incorporate the malachite sections, the chameleon of extraordinary detail from the realistically formed eyes staring in different directions to the elongated tail wrapped around the base. Signed with monogram GD for Gerd Dreher. Height 5 1/2 x 3 3/4 x 3 1/4 in (14.00 x 9.53 x 8.25 cm)
|Provenance: Purchased from Asprey & Co., London, England.Gerd DreherThe exquisitely detailed animal carvings of Gerd Dreher make his works among the most sought-after masterpieces of the lapidary arts. Born in 1943 in Idar-Oberstein, Gerd was a fourth generation animal figure carver. Dreher's family has been involved in the art of engraving and carving gemstones for nearly two hundred years. A long-established family tradition of producing hardstone and gem animal carvings was begun in the 19th Century and by the early 1900s their name was synonymous with that of the jeweler, Carl Fabergé. The Russian master, on his frequent trips to Idar, would provide plaster models of whimsical animal carvings, which the Dreher family would create out of jasper, agate and jade. Fabergé then sold them in his famed salons in St. Petersburg, Moscow and London. Gerd was a keenly observant naturalist who maintained a massive library of videotapes of animals in motion. His devotion to realism in muscle and animation is what sets his carvings apart. In 2004 a major retrospective exhibition of 60 works entitled The Gem Carvings of Gerd Dreher: A Fabergé Legacy, was held at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. In the words of Joel Bartsch, Curator of Gems and Minerals for the Museum, "Dreher's ability to breathe life into stone has made him one of the most famous practitioners of the craft in the world today. His work is a marriage of art and science."