A brooch by designer Tod Pardon, of Saratoga, New York, won Best in Show at TOP Jewels – National Jewelry Design Exhibition at the Durango Arts Center. First place came with $1,500.

Second place went to another brooch by Connecticut designer Judith Kaufman. She won $1,000.

Third place, and $750, went to an “interstitial” by Meghan Riley, also of New York.

Three artists won honorable mentions: Pennsylvania’s Jessica Armstrong, for a connected brooch; Illinois’s Christy Klug, for a deux brooch; and North Carolina’s Lisa Klakulak, for a body chain. Each was awarded $450.

Works by two other artists received special recognition: a pigeon lenticular brooch by New York’s Chris Irick and a lava brooch by Maryland’s Wendy McAllister. This plaudit came with $200 per artist.

The juried show took more than 18 months to organize, with artists from all over the country submitting nearly 500 pieces for consideration. Renowned local jewelry designers Susan and Jeff Wise winnowed down the entries to 144 finalists by 73 artists now on display at the arts center.

Allison Buchsbaum Barnett, co-owner of the Patina Gallery in Santa Fe, chose eight winners among the finalists last Thursday. Winners were announced on Friday at a reception at the arts center. Altogether, they’ll take home $5,000 in prize money.

Tod Pardon, who took Best in Show, is one of the artists represented by judge Barnett’s Patina Gallery. As of Monday afternoon, Patina’s website listed three of his pins at $2,200. A fourth already had sold.

cmcallister@durangoherald.com