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Designer Eddie Sakamoto, a Humble Artist, Dies at 72
Sakamoto, who died in mid-January following a sudden illness, is remembered for his humility and his masterful, architectural designs.
Award-winning jewelry designer Eddie Sakamoto died on Jan. 13 at age 72. (Photo courtesy of Shelly Sergent of Somewhere in the Rainbow)
Los Angeles—Jewelry designer Eddie Sakamoto died on Jan. 13 following a sudden illness.
He was 72.
News of his passing was first reported last week by the American Gem Trade Association via its ePrism newsletter.
Sakamoto was born in 1953 in Seattle and moved to Los Angeles in his 20s.
In 1979, his jewelry design career began to take off.
Independent jewelry retailers Danny and Doreen Tanaka were carrying Sakamoto’s early work in the 1980s.
At first, they weren’t sure if his line, with its contemporary, modern-style designs, would sell, but soon learned there was a desire for his art, Shelly Sergent, curator of Somewhere in the Rainbow (SITR), said in an interview with National Jeweler.
Another retailer who partnered with Sakamoto in the ‘80s was Johannes Hunter Jewelers in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which has been in business since 1988.
The store’s owners discovered him years earlier, beginning their long relationship with Sakamoto while at their former store in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
His bold designs were exactly what they were after, owner Robin Johannes said.
“He would set any colored gemstone. We set stuff in Eddie’s rings that you should [not] set in the fashion we set them, and he set them successfully, with no stone damage, in the most humble, amazing fashion,” she said.
“He executed with such grace. A lot of times, people are technically adept, but a lot of things don’t have a ton of grace. He nailed it on all fronts.”
In 1990, Sakamoto married his wife Cindy, and the couple welcomed a set of twins in April 1995. The family, which included a dog, lived in Redondo Beach, California.
Sergent met Sakamoto in 1991 in Atlanta, where he was doing a trunk show. His work spoke to her then, she said, and it later also appealed to the owners of SITR, whose focus is on modern jewelry with clean lines.
“His use of architecture, his use of negative space and his very clean lines—very feminine, very curvy, and yet masculine—he really married the yin and the yang very well,” she said.
He was tasked with creating designs around some of Somewhere in the Rainbow’s earliest acquisitions. Today, SITR has 62 pieces designed by Sakamoto in its collection.
He has won several awards for his designs including AGTA Spectrum Awards, as well as honors from American Jewelry Design Council, MJSA, and others.
“Eddie was shy about entering competitions, and I always had to push him,” Sergent said.
In 2017, Sakamoto’s “Dancing Waves” collar necklace, which features a pound of platinum and a 57-carat aquamarine, won the AGTA Spectrum Award for “Best Use of Platinum and Color” and took first place in the “Evening Wear” category.
His pieces were often complex in nature.
He was 72.
News of his passing was first reported last week by the American Gem Trade Association via its ePrism newsletter.
Sakamoto was born in 1953 in Seattle and moved to Los Angeles in his 20s.
In 1979, his jewelry design career began to take off.
Independent jewelry retailers Danny and Doreen Tanaka were carrying Sakamoto’s early work in the 1980s.
At first, they weren’t sure if his line, with its contemporary, modern-style designs, would sell, but soon learned there was a desire for his art, Shelly Sergent, curator of Somewhere in the Rainbow (SITR), said in an interview with National Jeweler.
Another retailer who partnered with Sakamoto in the ‘80s was Johannes Hunter Jewelers in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which has been in business since 1988.
The store’s owners discovered him years earlier, beginning their long relationship with Sakamoto while at their former store in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
His bold designs were exactly what they were after, owner Robin Johannes said.
“He would set any colored gemstone. We set stuff in Eddie’s rings that you should [not] set in the fashion we set them, and he set them successfully, with no stone damage, in the most humble, amazing fashion,” she said.
“He executed with such grace. A lot of times, people are technically adept, but a lot of things don’t have a ton of grace. He nailed it on all fronts.”
In 1990, Sakamoto married his wife Cindy, and the couple welcomed a set of twins in April 1995. The family, which included a dog, lived in Redondo Beach, California.
Sergent met Sakamoto in 1991 in Atlanta, where he was doing a trunk show. His work spoke to her then, she said, and it later also appealed to the owners of SITR, whose focus is on modern jewelry with clean lines.
“His use of architecture, his use of negative space and his very clean lines—very feminine, very curvy, and yet masculine—he really married the yin and the yang very well,” she said.
He was tasked with creating designs around some of Somewhere in the Rainbow’s earliest acquisitions. Today, SITR has 62 pieces designed by Sakamoto in its collection.
He has won several awards for his designs including AGTA Spectrum Awards, as well as honors from American Jewelry Design Council, MJSA, and others.
“Eddie was shy about entering competitions, and I always had to push him,” Sergent said.
In 2017, Sakamoto’s “Dancing Waves” collar necklace, which features a pound of platinum and a 57-carat aquamarine, won the AGTA Spectrum Award for “Best Use of Platinum and Color” and took first place in the “Evening Wear” category.
His pieces were often complex in nature.
Eddie Sakamoto’s award-winning “Dancing Waves” necklace was created using wax craftsmanship and minimal CAD.
A necklace featuring a 34.34-karat imperial topaz. It was cast in seven pieces and featured one of his first uses of magnetic pin-style clasps.
Sakamoto was particularly proud of this bracelet made with layers of interlocking squares and rectangles. Featuring 152 handmade moving hinges, it required him to achieve a new level of precision and mechanical alignment and took 2 years to complete. His family accompanied him to present it to the owners.
“He wanted to create something that was masterful, and he always wanted to create what the wearer would love. He never cared about an award ... He was so humble,” Sergent said.
“I never heard Eddie call himself an artist, ever.”
Three years ago, SITR gave Sakamoto a set of jade and asked if he would incorporate aspects of his culture and Asian influence—Sakamoto is Japanese and his wife is Chinese—into the design.
Though he died before completing the four-piece suite, all the components had been made.
“He was far enough along in this project that some of his colleagues who know his work well are going to be able to finish it,” Sergent said, adding that she hopes it will be done in time to enter it for a Spectrum award later this year.
Sakamoto ran his production studio, Sakamoto Design, in Torrance, California, until the pandemic hit, and he then moved into his home studio, focusing on special orders from his stores and one-off pieces.
He had worked from the same bench since 1979, Sergent said.
Sakamoto had a fascination for design in all its forms, his family said, and he also developed a strong talent in ikebana, the art of Japanese flower arranging, and fresh-water (sustainable) landscaping.
His family said the jewelry community shaped Eddie not only as a designer but also as a father, husband and friend.
“Though he would never call himself a designer by principle, he was, in every sense of the way. We are so proud of his legacy and the mark he left on the world,” they said.
“We hope that those who see his work, or are lucky enough to own it, continue to treasure his designs, his vision, and artistry. We know he simply wanted the work to speak for itself, and we are determined to honor his wishes and his legacy.”
Sakamoto is survived by his wife of 36 years, Cindy; one son, Cole; and one daughter, Kiana.
A private ceremony for family and friends already has taken place.
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