Bodyworks: The Jewelry of Art Smith

Explore the wearable modern art of Art Smith, one of the world's most celebrated 20th-century jewelers

This striking jewelry coffee table book features 160 photos of more than 60 jewelry pieces

Mid-century modernist jeweler Art Smith (1917-1982) considered the human body to be as integral to his jewelry as the metals, wire, and semiprecious stones he used to make it, calling his necklaces "neck pieces" and his rings "hand decorations." Bodyworks: The Jewelry of Art Smith presents 160 images, including previously unpublished design sketches and historic photographs alongside newly commissioned photography. Together, they offer a comprehensive visual record of Smith's bold, fluid, and creative designs, including:

• "Lava" bracelet which evokes volcanic movement through its layers of long, curving, and patinated sheet metal
• "Lil's Wire" pendant, inspired by the atom, representing Smith's interest in mid-century scientific discoveries and the space age
• "Minetta" necklace with a carnelian stone, whose name alludes to the historical Little Africa neighborhood in New York City

Art Smith was influenced by jazz, dance, visual art, pan-African regalia, and relationships he formed with New York's African American arts community. In his Greenwich village studio, he created custom pieces for many high-profile clients, including First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and jazz pianist Duke Ellington, and had work featured in Vogue. Art Smith was a luminary to his contemporaries and remains one to today's artists. With stunning photography and essays that reflect on his life, influences, and legacy, Bodyworks is the magnificent retrospective Smith's pioneering career deserves.

Author: Joanne Hyppolite,Toni Greenbaum
Publisher: Smithsonian Books
Published: 10/06/2026
Pages: 176
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 2.30lbs
Size: 11.00h x 8.10w x 0.90d
ISBN: 9781588348234


Review Citation(s):
Library Journal 08/01/2026 pg. 79
Foreword 08/27/2026
Booklist 10/01/2026

About the Author
THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE is the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture. JOANNE HYPPOLITE is the Assistant Director for Culture at the museum and curator of the Cultural Expressions permanent exhibition which showcases Art Smith's work. Under her direction, the museum has acquired two major archival collections on Art Smith. TONI GREENBAUM is an art historian specializing in twentieth and twenty-first-century jewelry and metalwork. She has written extensively on modernist jewelry, including Messengers of Modernism: American Studio Jewelry 1940-1960, considered the standard text on the subject.