Faux is the french word for false and in a sense all costume jewelry is faux in that it aims to replicate more expensive materials. The verdigris on this little 1950s brass lizard is real but its development was sped up by my application of acid. The process is natural and he would have had his own natural verdigris being 60 years old had he not been sealed to prevent it. By removing the clear coating from his brass body, I can allow the elements to do their work. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc and it is the copper component that reacts to produce the lovely green patina known as verdigris. Think of the beautiful green Statue of Liberty and you have one giant verdigris sculpture.
I have also listed faux pearls today. They are glass and glass pearls that have been hand knotted like the real thing and have a substantial feel and weight, they are cool to the touch, much like genuine pearls. They are coated with nacre, the same material that coats a genuine pearl. The only difference is like the verdigris, the process is sped up through man made intervention. I wonder what is more important, the end result or the process of getting there?
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