Some Distant WorldSculpture by John T. Benedict
An ornate brass key pendant with a small gear set at its center, on a gold chain against black cloth.

Jewelry made with Angie

A line of jewelry designed and made by John and his wife, Angie, much of it from recycled parts, the way he builds his art.

Pl. 1 · A key with a gear.

By John T. Benedict12 photographsFirst appeared on somedistantworld.com

The old site said it simply: Some Distant World added a line of jewelry, designed and created by John and his wife, Angie, and much of it made with the same idea of recycling parts that John uses in his art.

The jewelry page held more than forty photographs. Gears turn up again and again. A pair of earrings hangs as three gears each, stacked small to smaller. An old-style key carries a gear at its waist, and two more keys end in hearts. A round pendant holds a gear around a green stone.

Leaves are the other thread. Real-looking leaf skeletons come in copper, bronze, silver and green, some with a cross, a crystal or an ammonite fossil set on top. Stones are wrapped in wire, among them a tourmaline.

On the old Art Show Pictures page, two photographs show how the jewelry traveled: necklaces hung on a black panel, and a tall black cylinder stand covered in pendants and earrings, in a show hall.

Angie runs through The Artist and the Algorithm as well. The book's acknowledgments close with her:

To my wife, family, and my friends, thank you for your love and support.

She turns up in its lighter moments too. One evening, a few minutes into their hour of TV, John heard her say quietly, "Dammit."

Not missing a beat, I said, “That’s OK, honey. I’ll go get ice cream.” We both burst out laughing! Because that was exactly what she was thinking.

The plates

A pair of earrings, each a column of three silver gears joined by small red beads, on black cloth.
Pl. 2Gear earrings.
A silver chain holding a gear with a green stone at its center and two smaller dark gears hanging below.
Pl. 3Gears around a green stone.
Two long key pendants with heart-shaped bows, one silver and one brass, wrapped with red and copper wire, on black cloth.
Pl. 4Two heart keys.
A silver leaf-skeleton pendant with a dark polished inlay, on a black cord against black cloth.
Pl. 5A silver leaf on a black cord.
A bronze leaf-skeleton pendant with a silver cast piece laid across it, on a dark chain.
Pl. 6A bronze leaf with a silver piece.
Two gold leaf skeletons spread like wings behind a long white crystal, on a gold chain.
Pl. 7Gold leaves and a white crystal.
A small silver teardrop frame holding a green stone, on a silver chain against black cloth.
Pl. 8A green stone in a silver teardrop.
A copper leaf pendant on a twisted beaded chain, laid out on a white background.
Pl. 9A copper leaf on a beaded chain.
A copper leaf-skeleton pendant with a small ammonite fossil set on it, against black.
Pl. 10An ammonite on a copper leaf.
A tall black cylinder stand hung with pendants and earrings in a show hall, with a visitor in a green apron behind it.
Pl. 11The jewelry stand at a show.
A row of long necklaces with pendants hung on a black panel, beside the edge of a cylinder stand.
Pl. 12Necklaces on a black panel.

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John T. Benedict at his cutting table in the studio
Written by

John T. Benedict

Born in Dallas, Texas, in 1962, John builds sculpture from steel and recycled parts in Tucson, Arizona.

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