This Young Creative Is Making an Ancient Roman Design Cool Again
Some people got into sourdough baking during the pandemic, some got into dollhouses. Lily Layton, an Atlanta-based artist and blogger behind The Sparkling Lily delved into the art of intaglios.
For the uninitiated, intaglios are recessed images made by engraving in gemstones. Think of them as the counterpart to cameos, which are carved in relief. They were popular in Italy during the Roman Empire and can be found in countries like England and France, often brought back as souvenirs by men who went on the Grand Tour in the 17th and 18th centuries. It wasn't unusual to see them worn as jewelry and used to make wax seals. Today, it’s more common to see intaglios presented as a plaster cameos in frames.
As an Italian American, Layton grew up around intaglios but found their depictions off-putting: An intaglio from the 1400s, for example might depict a sacrifice to the Roman god Janus. On the more mundane side, they might depict busts of Greek mythological figures. “A lot of the scenes can be violent and can be a little bit intense for me,” says Layton. "I prefer art that's more lighthearted, and frankly, more modern. I wanted to do stuff that respected the art form but that the content was different.”
Instead of grisly battle scenes, Layton’s intaglios feature whimsical images of flowers such as magnolias and daisies. Eschewing the dark images of yore, she might make an intaglio with a darling lion or elephant. Companies like Ballard Designs sell modern versions of intaglios, too, but not necessarily with that modern flair which makes Layton’s work so special.
Layton started making her intaglios a few years before the pandemic, but finally had time to hone her practice when the world shut down. “A lot of what I do is casting antique pieces that I find,” she explains. She seeks out inspiration in all sorts of found objects spanning across eras and geography, from Czechoslovakian beads to English horse brass work.
To make a daffodil intaglio, for example, she uses a cameo from the ‘50s and then carves the borders. “I cast them into clay, and then I take that out, and I fill it with plaster, which is how most bas-relief is done,” says Layton.
Collecting the items to make the intaglios is almost as enjoyable as seeing the finished results. Layton goes to antique shops wherever she can. “In any city, that’s the first thing I try to do because I feel like you find history in an accidental way when you do that," she explains. "Sometimes the things that people don't value are actually beautiful and intricate," she says. Building such a large cache of jewelry has allowed her to offer specialty relief works, like birth month flowers or a larger piece that displays several intaglios at once.
One such display is dubbed Spring Awakening and showcases flowers that all bloom between April and May like lilies of the valley and daisies. "All of my tiny plaster cameos are all like little buttons and other pieces of jewelry that I've collected over the years. I tried to standardize their size, so that it would allow me to do different things with them.”
What’s next in the world of intaglios for Layton? A line of dog breeds specially made for the boutique Town Country Coast opening soon in Palm Beach. The collection, which includes a cavalier spaniel and dachshund, is a play on dogs in military garb. “I wanted to do a more feminine version of that. I put crowns on them and ridiculous bows,” she laughs.
Layton’s art has drawn an overwhelmingly positive response. Many have told her that, like her, they've always appreciated intaglios but never wanted them in their house—until seeing her more lighthearted takes. “Life is just so shitty right now that it makes me want to make art that's less serious,” says Layton. “Because I just am longing for stuff that's happy.”
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