George Brooks

George Brooks studied at École des beaux-arts de Montréal. Training under Georges Delrue and Hans Gehrig is recorded. Residence is recorded at Santa Barbara. Work by George Brooks is recorded in the collections of Smithsonian American Art Museum and Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

• Name — George Brooks • Birth Name — George Rybnicek • Born — 11 September 1925 • Birthplace — Brno, Czechoslovakia • Died — 21 July 2023 • Place of death — Santa Barbara, California, U.S. • Known for — Jewelry design • Education — École des beaux-arts de Montréal • Spouse — Jean Brooks • Website — http: www.georgebrooksjewelry.com

Born George Rybnicek in Brno, Czechoslovakia on September 11, 1925, Brooks immigrated with his mother and sisters to Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1931. His father was already living and working in Montreal as a tailor. After studying electrical engineering in college, Brooks chose to focus on visual arts. He attended the École des beaux-arts de Montréal, where he studied sculpture and metalsmithing, and served apprenticeships with local jewelers before opening his own shop.

• Illustration — Silver brooch (1950). Forged from a single sheet. • Illustration — Gold & silver bracelet (1960). With turquoises • Illustration — Gold & silver pendant (1967). With diamond & pearl. • Illustration — White gold pendant (1967). With diamond & pearl. Brooks's first apprenticeship was as a goldsmith with Henry Birks and Sons in 1948. He also set up a workshop at home where he could produce his own unique designs, markedly different to the conventional jewelry produced by Birks & Sons. In 1950, he transferred his apprenticeship to Georges Delrue, a French avant-garde jeweler based in Montreal since 1947. Delrue's work was influenced by European modernism, such as the work of Jean Arp, Joan Miró, and Jacques Lipchitz, and his workshop was the first modernist jewelry workshop in Canada. Brooks worked with Delrue for seven years, where he learned from craftspeople such as the silversmith Hans Gehrig (1929-1989). Gehrig and Brooks went on to found the Montreal Gem and Mineral Club in 1957. That same year, Brooks opened his first shop, which he sold in 1961. Brooks and his wife Jean then travelled, visiting gem sources around the world, including mining for opals, in Andamooka, South Australia. Brooks became a recognised authority on opals, amassing one of the world's largest collections of this gemstone. In 1962 Brooks relocated to Santa Barbara, California, where he continued working and producing unique, one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry until his retirement in 1991.

Brooks died in Santa Barbara on July 21, 2023, at the age of 97.