On Tuesday I went to the studio of jewelry designer Monique Péan, with Margot Norton (curatorial associate, New Museum, New York).

While it was interesting (in a “makes me sick but I need to learn this even if it seems impossible to achieve without the right connexions” forensics approach) to hear her perfectly polished “politically correct and marketing saavy” bio and artist statement, what really interested me was the striking beauty of fossilized ivory and minerals from the Artic. The Brendan Smiths decorating her Meat Packing District studio, on the other hand, felt as fossilized as her necklaces.