Robert Weldon, G.G., has been appointed as manager of Photography and Visual Communication at GIA, effective March 20. He will be based in GIA’s Richard T. Liddicoat Gemological Library and Information Center after moving to Carlsbad, Calif., in July. In the interim, Weldon will work out of the Institute’s offices in New York City.

According to Dona Dirlam, director of the Richard T. Liddicoat Library, Weldon’s GIA duties will include library reference work, writing and photographic assignments aimed at supporting the library as well as various Institute publications, such as the award-winning quarterly journal, Gems & Gemology. Weldon's skills in writing and photography will also be tapped by other departments, such as the GIA Laboratory and the Institute’s course development team.

“Robert brings a wealth of knowledge to GIA. I know his photographic and writing skills will be great assets to the Library and GIA as a whole. With his years of experience in the jewelry industry, he will help support the outreach programs our librarians provide,” said Dirlam.

Weldon began his industry career at GIA in 1987, shortly after earning his Graduate Gemologist Diploma. He worked as a research librarian and photographer at the Institute until 1990, when he was hired as the senior editor of gemstones for Jewelers’ Circular Keystone (JCK) magazine. During his tenure at JCK, Weldon specialized in colored gemstone reporting and photojournalism. He also edited Heritage magazine, a JCK publication serving the antique and estate jewelry market. 

In 1997, Weldon left JCK to join colleagues in the creation of Professional Jeweler, a new industry publication. He was appointed director of photography and senior writer, gemstones. Combining his years at JCK and Professional Jeweler, Weldon has written about major diamond and gemstone issues for nearly two decades. Weldon established a unique style of gemological photojournalism by photographing gems and combining these images with pictures captured at exotic localities.  Weldon has written and photographed from such places as  Burma, Thailand, India, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania, Russia and Bolivia.

Last year, Weldon authored two gemstone books, both of which are to be published later this year.  Weldon, who is fluent in three languages and possesses a working knowledge of several others, has lectured on gemological, gem source and photographic topics throughout the world. He has won numerous awards and accolades for his writing and photography work, including several 1^st Place Chilton Editorial Awards, four Richard T. Liddicoat Journalism Honorable Mention Awards, and being chosen as a nominee for the Antonio C. Bonanno Award for Excellence in Gemology in 2003.

 “I have always sought to combine all of the things I love doing and to forge a career out of them,” Weldon says. “My aim is to bring these industry experiences back for the benefit of GIA and the GIA Library, while also immersing myself anew in gemological challenges,” he adds.