GemGenève is proud to welcome ten talented designers – six ‘Emerging Talents’ and four ‘New Designers’, hosted by Nadège Totah – and to have the opportunity to give their work greater exposure in a dedicated space. Their creations offer a fascinating glimpse into a very different universe of ideas and inspirations, a world of innovation and ingenuity that highlights each creator’s individuality.
With very different styles and techniques, each designer draws inspiration from the mysteries of nature in order, as they explain, to create collections imbued with the powerful symbolism that has always been an essential element of jewels. All of these designs share a common focus: the meaning, message and role of the jewel, far beyond the purely ornamental, giving them a value that exceeds their intrinsic worth. Above all, the gemstone is and has always been a talisman to protect and invoke goodwill; a talisman to keep close to us at all times, reminding us to live in a harmony of body, heart and soul.
Six Emerging Talents
Fred Fa, Belgium
An outstanding designer, Fred Fa does all his sketches, technical drawings and gouache jewellery designs by hand. His brilliant craftsmanship, sculptural abilities and technological knowhow allow him to create extraordinary, bespoke pieces – including masterworks enhanced and set with exceptional stones.
Aso Leon, China
Aso Leon is an award-winning jewellery artist in China who has been working in the jewellery industry for 27 years. In 1995, when he first came into contact with jewellery, he found that it stimulated his curiosity. Aso pursued unique design concepts and immersed himself in exploring nature. He discovered that not everything in nature is perfect; there is also incompleteness. He uses this sense of incompleteness to reflect a different kind of beauty in his creative process. He moved into titanium in 2005,
applying it to high jewellery, and becoming known as the ‘Prince of Titanium’ in the Chinese jewellery industry. ASO has been engaged in OEM jewellery production in Panyu, China for more than 20 years, and has now established himself as a jewellery artist on the international stage, transforming ‘Made in China’ into ‘Created in China’.
Denise Cassou Couture Jewelry, Brazil
Celebrating memories.
As an impassioned traveller, photographer, filmmaker and designer, Denise has always sought out art and fashion as sources of inspiration for her numerous projects. For many years she designed and made jewellery for herself, her daughters and close friends.
From this universe so rich in details and inspiring stories a brand was born, its artistic expression focused on unique jewels and a love of design. The understanding that jewels are laden with history and special moments as they are handed down from one generation to another inspires Denise. Femininity, delicacy, elegance and modernity are present in all of her pieces.
Rites of Passage Art Jewellery by Teresa Escudero, Spain
Teresa holds a Bachelor´s Degree in History from the University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain). Her academic background is the result of her love for the knowledge of human evolution and Art, to which she adds her scientific curiosity, her knowledge and passion for astronomy and geology and her long career in the world of strategic marketing. This eclecticism gives her a different vision of the creative possibilities applicable to jewellery, encapsulating a distinctive form of beauty that is anything but a mere accessory. For the jewellery she creates under the brand name Rites of Passage Art Jewellery, Teresa works with ‘extraterrestrial materials’ such as 3.5 billion-year-old metallic meteorites from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, precious and rare stones, raw stones, organic materials such as noble wood, and gold and metal alloys. The materials, techniques and blockchain technologies used by the designer allow her to create unusual shapes that become ‘wearable sculptural art’. Teresa Escudero has been chosen by US writer and jeweler Linda Korloff-Turner for inclusion in the book ‘100 Women of Jewelry’, to be published in the coming months as part of a project that will culminate with an exhibition to be held in New York in 2023 featuring 3 masterpieces by each of the 100 women jewelers.
Iwona Tamborska, Poland
Already present in May 2022 at GemGenève, Iwona Tamborska returns this year among the Emerging Talents. Amid her love of beauty, Iwona Tamborska nevertheless has something of a ruthless approach towards jewellery, with the conviction that purely decorative creations make little sense and lack interest. The objects in her world usually have a second meaning in addition to their primary role, and the same is true of her creative output. For Iwona Tamborska, jewellery ought to be fascinating, reflecting the character
of the wearer. She uses surprising materials such as meteorite fragments, plants and insects, as well as puzzle elements including
hidden moving parts and concealed messages.
Wallis Hong, Madrid, Spain
Wallis is a self-taught multidisciplinary jewellery artist based in Spain. The China-born artist’s mother is a musician and art collector, and it was his mother’s aesthetic influence that made Wallis sensitive to art and jewellery from an early age.
Wallis studied sculpture and painting at the Madrid Academy of Art. As a perfectionist by temperament, he always seeks to learn as many jewellery-making skills as he can from the very best master jewellers around the world, with the aim of perfecting the structure of his jewellery pieces. His presence at GemGenève in November 2022 was noticed by the international press; Wallis has been in great demand ever since. His iconic ‘Thorn shell’ earrings have been added to the permanent collection of the Shenzhen Jewellery Museum in China.
Four New Designers
Austy Lee Art Jewellery, Hong Kong
Former graphic designer Austy Lee creates daring, psychedelic, sculptural, complex pieces. The inspiration and styles behind Austy’s collections draw on an eclectic range of themes blending pop-punk, avant-garde, religion, antiquity, and fashion. A name to watch – and creations to discover at GemGenève.
A.win Siu, China
With the mindset and vision of an illustrator, A.win Siu expresses and visualizes emotions and sensations through the use of bold colours alongside combinations of metal and minerals, creating a peculiar and fantastic world within each piece. Founded in November 2017, the jewellery brand A.win Siu has designed many jewellery items over the years, each with its distinctive personal style, and has participated in many well-known international exhibitions. Its first time at GemGenève is an opportunity not to be missed.
Serendipity Jewelry, Paris, France
Serendipity Jewelry, one of the Emerging Talents at the November 2022 edition, will be back in May 2023 in the ‘New Designers’ category. Serendipity Jewelry was founded in Paris by Christine Chan in 2017. She discovered her passion for stones during a trip to Australia over 10 years ago – a chance encounter that led to the birth of a beautiful brand. With Serendipity Jewelry, Christine Chan presents a beautiful collection of pieces in a blend of respect for nature, respect for freedom and respect for oneself, with the result that each piece of jewellery has its own perspective, temperature and depth.
Tenzo, Estonia
Founded in 1996, the firm has evolved from a treasure trove of the rarest gemstones on the planet into a house of exquisite jewellery. TENZO brings together art and design, sublime proportions, emotive colours, natural gemstones and impressive workmanship. Alexander Tenzo and his team of world-class craftsmen explore refined techniques, etched and patinated gold settings, seamless joints and delicate, airy gemstone settings, blending their own warm, rich, softly burnished gold tones and working with soft yet tough alloys as they add finesse and intricate detail to their one-of-a-kind jewellery and artwork.
TENZO breathes new life into almost-forgotten glyptic art, cameos, intaglios, and strikingly realistic carved stone figures, animals and flowers. TENZO collections are displayed in private art exhibitions and museums.
