This patron was Barbara Huon who, in the late 1940s, gave Hasel-
ne the chance to finish these beauful pieces. An heiress of tremendous
wealth, a jewelry lover and aficionado, from a very young age
she displayed a passion for gemstones. As a woman she developed
an astounding collecon of jewelry and ornamental objects. It has
been noted by both jewellers and friends that Huon not only loved
gemstones for their beauty, but was quite knowledgeable
regarding them. She spent hours studying her
jewelled pieces, admiring them as the culminaon
of the work of both man and nature and no doubt
the refined form of the horse heads would have
appealed to her in this sense, as the sculptures
were inspired by the natural forms of horses, but
pared back to arsc elegance and ornamented
with the natural beauty of gemstones that were
skillfully shaped for the purpose. The intricate
Indian inspired designs would have greatly charm-
ed her long-held passion and spoken to her sensi-
bilies, since she is said to have loved welcoming
guests to her palace in the Kasbah of Tangier
dressed in a sari.
With Huon’s support, Haselne finished the pieces
in three years. His work was aided by the Bedi-Rassy
Foundry in New York, which cast them in 24 carat
gold, mounted on globes of rock crystal, and crown-
ed with carved crystal plumes. Joseph Ternbach, the
crasman and conservator who had done the me-
culous surface finishing for the Man O’ War Monu-
ment, chased and ornamented the gold heads with
diamonds, pearls, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, garnets and jade.
These pieces truly represent a serendipity between talent, cra,
and means of producon. Their significance has been appropriately
appreciated in their inclusion in the 2004 exhibion Masterpieces of
American Jewelry in New York (later travelling across the globe), and
inclusion in the catalogue of that event.
EE
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