How,then, are art jewelers engaging this global visual and cultural trend? In terms of jewelry, one could argue that "ornament" never disapeared. That said, something different is happening today that reveals a new approach to pattern, silhouette and form. A contemporary vocabulary is emerging in which the baroque, the rococo, the curvilinear and the unabashedly ornate features of historic jewelry are taking a new, redefined center stage. Artists are looking backwards to look forward, democratizing forms and patterns previously preserved for royalty through a range of new materials (form precious to industrial) and via such unexpected vehicles as t-shirts and installations.