Under the loupe: our latest watch and jewellery finds
Sim & Stout
15 April
Fine jeweller Simone Paasche and artist and furniture designer Katie Stout are the duo behind Sim & Stout. They were inspired by the abstract nature of driftwood washed up on the beach for the Motley X Sim & Stout earrings, the latest addition to online concept store Motley. Cecily Motley, co-founder of Motley, says: ‘They worked first in wax to make the organic shapes, which they then cast in silver. Their work is totally abstract: Flotsam, Jetsam and Lagan are the general terms for things washed up on the shore - from treasure to drift wood - and is a broad house for something that has no set shape, size or form.’
Writer: Hannah Silver
V&A Museum
12 April
An enamel Art Deco Cartier vanity case playfully concealing a gold key, dating back to 1925, joins a host of other new pieces at the V&A’s recently reopened Jewellery Gallery. It is one of 49 vanity cases donated to the William and Judith Bollinger Gallery, a gift from Kashmira Bulsara in memory of her brother, Freddie Mercury. Cast in a plethora of vividly coloured stones, enamel and lacquer, the vanity cases were made by jewellers in New York and Paris including Cartier, Laloche, Van Cleef & Arpels and Charlton.
Writer: Hannah Silver
Avakian’s La Mystérieuse Collection Drop earrings exhibit a fluid flexibility; designed to be worn in a plethora of ways, stems can be spun to reveal a different colour gem stone and pear-shaped ear tops detached. This versatility lies at the heart of the brand, says Haig Avakian: ’The backs of the jewels are just as important as the front; sometimes crafted with hidden elements and secret clasps achieved through the experimenting and refining of nuanced design ideas.’ White and brown diamonds and gently swaying white agate drops cut strong geometric silhouettes, but at heart the jewellery is fun and effortlessly wearable: ’Our philosophy is to make jewellery part of day to day life, to be able to dress the pieces up and down depending on the occasion and not just have it locked up in a safe,’ he says.
Writer: Hannah Silver
Jacqueline Cullen
2 April
Jacqueline Cullen’s ‘Atomic’ multi cascade earrings were a highlight of the recent exhibition ’British Craftsmanship: Jewellery, Gold and Silver by Scholars of the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust’. Charity ‘Qest’ works to support the training of aspiring and talented craftspeople. Part of the exhibition’s display at Bentley & Skinner, these hypnotising earrings celebrate both the smoothness of Whitby jet and its broken edges. Brilliantly reflecting light, tiny diamonds glint in the hand-carved fissures and crevices. ‘Jet is a good choice for this at it breaks with a conchoidal fracture, and by carving the jet I am forcing it to break naturally,’ says Cullen. ‘In another material this would all have to be created and would look contrived. I am able to set the tiny diamonds into the jet without them losing their light.’ An early conceptual interest in jet grew into a desire to see it reworked for a modern age: ‘For so many years jet was associated with death and grief but I thought it a beautiful material that needed to be reinterpreted. As I learnt how to work with jet it became apparent that the processes suited my way of working too – it is very direct, sculptural and instinctive.’
Writer: Hannah Silver
Kathleen Reilly
27 March
There’s a literary leaning behind artist Kathleen Reilly’s upcoming exhibition As Above, So Below at Gallery S O. The show features a series of poetic writings, which unite the literary and metalworking facets of her work. The results are rich and often witty. Meanings are neatly untangled from words and become tangible; for example Reilly’s text about her grandfather becomes a glass of whisky in cast acrylic. The flimsiness of human life is imagined as a brittle cream cracker, while the age-old riddle of what came first, the chicken or the egg, becomes a physical book with two spines and no obvious beginning or end. Pictured, Life Vest Under Your Seat. As Above, So Below is on view at Gallery S O in East London, from 5 April to 26 May.
Writer: Hannah Silver
Kloto
11 March
Istanbul jeweller Senem Gençoglu’s Kloto pieces follow a purposeful symmetry, spiralling through precisely-angled planes across wrists, collarbones and fingers. Gençoglu, who previously worked with Marcel Wanders, combines her industrial design credentials with the concept of ‘sacred geometry’ - repetitive patterns found in nature - in the MOD121 ring in silver, 24-ct yellow gold and pitch-black enamel. ‘Everything in the cosmos is interconnected following a geometric code, so even though each part seems separate, they are actually all united. The ring plays with the relationship between the part and the whole,’ she says.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
Bleeker & Prince
4 March
Jeweller Leehe Segal’s Bleecker & Prince Sky Crane ring, hewn from a block of moss-green labradorite, is intended as a modern spin on a retro cocktail ring. We’re ready for cocktail hour: layered with linear striations, the angled planes of labradorite are punctuated with 10 tiny white diamonds that seem to float across the surface, hinting at the depths of stone beneath. ‘We carve out comfort fit between the fingers to make it more wearable, but this is definitely not an everyday ring, or at least not an “all day ring",’explains Segal. ‘I like to keep the iridescence of the stone as much as possible when shaping the rough. The result is surprisingly fun to wear.’
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
Elie Top
26 February
Following his playful costume jewels with Alber Elbaz at Lanvin, French designer Elie Top struck out in 2015 with his own, more mechanical aesthetic, influenced in part by 17th century astronomical clocks. Top’s Mira ring takes the form of an articulated, orrery-like sphere that can be carefully opened up to reveal hidden treasure: inside, concentric circles of yellow and blackened gold surround diamonds and rubies set in the shape of a petalled daisy. On the reverse, another surprise - the ring band curves into a loveheart, concealed against the finger. Consider us charmed.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
KatKim
13 February
Los Angeles jeweller Katherine Kim’s statement pins form clean lines that resist the ear’s natural curves, re-working the safety pin earring into a singular fluid piece. Hooking over the helix, her KatKim diamond thread pin extends straight down the ear before puncturing a pierced lobe, channelling a punk rock spirit into modern fine jewels.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
Marion Delarue
11 February
Marion Delarue lives and works in Paris, and creates unique, bird-inspired contemporary jewellery, which is now on display at Galerie Pont & Plas in Ghent until 3 March. ‘The Ostrich Policy. Envisioned Nature’, features a series of feathered shoulder brooches. The collection is inspired by the philosophical and metaphorical narratives in Jean Cocteau’s poetry, who writes that ‘every human being has a parrot on his shoulder’. The parrot symbolises imitation and a kinship with humans. Delarue’s pieces, are unusually formed from the feathers of turkeys, partridges, pigeons, pheasants, ducks, chickens, geese, guinea fowl and quails, and also incorporate silver, steel wire and rice paper pulp. They appear as poetic emblems, objects positioned on the human body, as if ready to take flight.
Writer: Ruby Reding
Shamballa Jewels
8 February
Siblings Mads and Mikkel Kornerup’s refined charms, handmade in Copenhagen, combine Eastern spirituality with Danish design savvy. This yellow gold SOS ring, circled with twin rows of diamonds, is embossed with a repeating double Dorje on the spinning band: Shamballa Jewels’ signature motif, it’s an ancient Buddhist symbol representing the ‘thunderbolt’ moment of true enlightenment. We’re feeling more zen already.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
Annoushka
7 February
We love Annoushka Ducas’ precious yet witty takes on modern talismans, so we’ve really caught the bug for her new Beetle collection. Creepy-crawlies for the ear, each insect’s black rhodium-plated mandibles keep a tight grip on rose gold hoops. A custom-cut amethyst forms the body, set with grassy tsavorites and twin black diamonds. Beetle-mania is back.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
Maria Black
6 February
Copenhagen-based jeweller Maria Black has concealment on her mind. ‘I was inspired by the different masks we put on to cope in our daily lives,’ she says of the multifaceted faces which inspired her latest ‘A Pause’ collection. During 1970, Many Ray worked with Italian jeweller Gian Carlo Montebello, and one of his designs was imagined as a pair of gold plated silver eyeglasses, with multiple drilled holes in the place of clear lenses. He settled on the design as a mask, when he could not create stable arms for his design. We can’t wait to get face to face with this ‘Ray’ bangle, which nods to Ray’s original ‘Optic Topic Mask’, and features a miniature face with indented eyes and a graphic nose, which is framed by the wrist.
Writer: Laura Hawkins
Andi Gut
5 February
London-based Swiss artist Andi Gut juxtaposes the precious metals in his jewellery designs, like titanium and gold, with synthetic materials including nylon. This fibre also works at odds to the curved, natural forms his designs take. This ‘Ring Electrosmog’ resembles both a both a sound-emitting technological instrument and a gliding aquatic creature. Jewellery has strong sentimental value to many people, and this connection is emphasised here in the ring’s frond-like details. They nod to the phenomenon of Electrosmog - the unwanted connection felt between humans and electrical signals. A prescient symbol in today’s digital era, and one of the sensitive designs Gut designs on view at Gallery S O in London until 3 March.
Writer: Ruby Reding
Claude Lalanne
30 January
As half of the French artist duo Les Lalanne, which she formed with her husband François-Xavier Lalanne in the 1960s, Parisian artist Claude Lalanne is known for the fantastical organic sculptures and naturalistic style associated with the Lalanne name. Now, as part of an extensive show at Ben Brown Fine Arts in London, a selection of the artist’s singular bronze, gold, silver and copper jewellery designs is also on display. Using an electroplating technique that transforms organic material into copper, Claude’s woodland and botanical flora are transformed into everlasting, jewelled motifs. These ‘Little Apple’ earrings (2017) capture the essence of this metamorphosis. They are simultaneously weighty and ethereal – as if plucked from the flora of Eden. Les Lalanne is on view until 15 Feb 2019.
Writer: Ruby Reding
Xiaoyu Guan
25 January
The surreal and beautiful photographs of plants by artist Rob Kesseler are a starting point of inspiration for Xiaoyu Guan. In her creative process, Guan places beans under a microscope to illuminate their biological intricacies. Possessing a thalassic quality, the designer’s Bean and Pearl brooches combine embroidery and ceramic with tooth-like pearls, which are then intended to serve the wearer as a good luck charm. The pieces are on display as part of the graduate exhibition The Playground at the Kath Libbert Jewellery Gallery. Alongside Guan are similarly vibrant works by Rebekah Wilson and others, which can be viewed until January 27th.
Writer: Ruby Reding
Vram
25 January
These Nocturne studs by Los Angeles house Vram, helmed by designer Vram Minassian, possess serious space-age appeal. Twin clusters of black rhodium-plated gold beads have an oily finish, set with nebulous cabochon-cut emeralds. ‘This series was influenced heavily by the science fiction that I read and watched growing up,’ says Minassian. ‘Films like Dune and Star Wars tell predictable age-old stories, but the emphasis on inventive production design and powerful visuals captured my imagination. The same synthesis is present in the 20th century sculpture that I collect — primitive and futuristic motifs balance to create something new and compelling.’
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
Mallarino
18 January
As the January blues set in we’re been setting our sights on more tropical, mood-elevating climes. Enter, Net-a-Porter’s Colombian Collective, a project that brings together a selection of brands from the country, in celebration of South American creativity. We’ll be metaphorically taking flight with these exotic bird earrings by Mallarino. The brand work with a host of artisans on their designs, and specialise in the technique of filigree, an ornamental technique which portrays the feathers of these charming creatures like delicately embroidered threads.
Writer: Laura Hawkins
Sophie Bille Brahe
16 January
Dover Street Market’s seasonal changeover is an awaited moment on the fashion calendar, for it ushers in the retailer’s newest avant-garde installations, pop-ups and latest roster of designers. Sophie Bille Brahe’s latest ‘L’Ocean Ensemble’ collection, newly installed at Dover Street Market in London, has bought a twinkling element to proceedings. It features the largest diamonds which the Copenhagen-based jeweller has used to date, and includes this ‘Escargot Ensemble’ ring, with diamonds which snail to a central point around the finger. Like the structure of Brahe’s signature ‘Croissant de Lune’ earring, the stones gradually increase in size, bringing an alluring asymmetry to the design.
Writer: Laura Hawkins
Marla Aaron
8 January
We’re latching on to NYC jeweller Marla Aaron. Her collections of sleekly-engineered hardware for the body take cues from industrial inspiration including bridge architecture and zipline harnesses. The tactile Phyllis lock is a carabiner-like clip in 18-ct yellow gold, with a spinning closure inlaid with kaleidoscopic tiles of chalcedony, opal and malachite. It hooks on to the winding All Inlay chain, itself punctuated with bright, matching links. ‘The idea began to simply do the closure as entirely inlaid and then we kept going a little further and realised we could inlay entire pieces and retain their functionality. It is always about taking an idea and extending it in as many directions as possible, and our Inlay series is the highest expression of this,’ says Aaron.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
GFG Jewellery
7 January
London-based GFG Jewellery has gone full circle. Boldly-hued, responsibly-sourced stones form the focal point of founder Nilafur Kizilkaya’s Project 20/20 earrings, as two neat golden hoops loop around emeralds from Gemfields’ Zambian mines. A tilting, pear-cut emerald appears propped up by a round white diamond, while the hoop itself is part-lined with tiny gems. The collection marks 20 years since Kizilkaya arrived in the UK capital from Istanbul - so the emeralds, traditionally gifted on a 20th anniversary, are a fitting celebration.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald