Blog

Dec 05, 2023

Visual artist Bonseng Sangma's surreal take on 7 exquisite jewels

By Ritupriya Basu A love letter to her trip to French Polynesia, Rayamajhi’s latest collection, “She Sells Sea Shells” was handmade in her New York City home, while she was still swimming in her

By Ritupriya Basu

A love letter to her trip to French Polynesia, Rayamajhi’s latest collection, “She Sells Sea Shells” was handmade in her New York City home, while she was still swimming in her memories of the island. The Kathmandu-born jeweller and artist worked with shells that were handpicked by the local women of the islands. Each of the necklaces—featuring motifs of a shark, an oyster shell with a pearl, or a blooming hibiscus—is strung with freshwater pearls, Pupu Niau shells, glass beads, and Swarovski crystals, and is a joyous celebration of island life.

Backdrops: An Angry Sea (1887) by Thomas Moran and Three Shells, realistic still life sea shell subtle grey, tan composition by Douglas Newton.

Songbird, the latest collection of jewels from The Line, is a tribute to India’s vast history of making and wearing jewellery. The range revisits some classic Indian jewellery silhouettes: There’s an emerald encrusted kaan phool (a earpiece, translated literally as flowers for the ear); a ladhi (string necklace) with rose-cut diamonds, pearls, and rubies; and jhoomar earrings (a crescent-shaped headpiece, adapted here as earrings) with droplets of emeralds. Each piece brims with a lyrical, poetic sort of beauty of its own.

Backdrop: Delhi: A Goldsmith At Work. Watercolour by an Indian painter.

To create the Pichwai collection, Rebecca Reubens, the designer and founder of Baka, chose six pichvai painting typologies and studied them closely. The artworks were deconstructed to arrive at the elements seen throughout the collection, hand-carved in gemstones like emerald, lapis lazuli, tourmaline, amethyst, and rose quartz. Set in silver, motifs of lotuses, lotus leaves, cow horns, and peacock feathers create puzzle-like, asymmetrical compositions held together by an enamelled netra or eye—always looking on.

By Ashna Lulla

By Meera Ganapathi

By Michelle Mastro

Backdrop: Water Lilies by Auguste Wilhelmine Reichelt (Dorotheum).

Ahluwalia’s latest capsule of everyday pieces evokes the quiet power of words and mantras. A reversible pendant with the words “sabr” and “shukr” on either side. Another with a celestial portal etched on one side and a quote on the other. And a suite of pieces, from interlocking pendants to kadas (bracelets), available in sterling silver, gold-plated silver, and 18-carat gold, which can be customized with the words of one’ s choice—a mantra, a poem, or a heartsong.

Backdrops: The Watzmann From The Wimbachtal by Heinrich Reinhold and Study of Clouds Over The Sound by Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg.

A take on “everyday, everywhere jewellery”, fashion label Nor Black Nor White’s debut jewellery collection was designed in collaboration with Jaipur-based jewellery brand Kichu. Love—both for their friendship and for the colourful streets and bustling cityscape of Jaipur— was translated into a cluster of hearts, and turned into baalis (earrings), pendants, and signet rings. Crafted in silver, with a smattering of rock crystal, green amethyst, and lemon quartz, the collection is a reminder to “wear your heart on your sleeve, finger, or anywhere you desire”.

By Ashna Lulla

By Meera Ganapathi

By Michelle Mastro

Backdrop: Nor Black Nor White.

Two curling snakes form a pair of mismatched earrings. A shankh (shell) sits at the centre of a bajuband (armlet), while a haath phool (hand harness) takes on the form of a scorpion. These are the stars of the Kudrat collection by Olio. Founded by Aashna Singh and Sneha Saksena, Olio crafts jewels that tell stories— in this case, Kudrat is a study of contrasts, which sings of both the raw power and delicate beauty of nature.

Backdrop: Forest Floor Still Life with Three Snakes, Lizard and Toad by Otto Marseus van Schrieck.

All jagged edges and sharp beauty, the Tornado collection by Lune is anything but delicate. Wrought by hand in Jaipur and Goa, the family of chokers, necklaces, bracelets, belts, and ear cuffs are crafted in brass and plated in silver and gold. Founder and creative director Sreesha Shetty looked to the churning motion of a tornado to create bold pieces that seductively wrap around the body—each a statement of their own.

By Ashna Lulla

By Meera Ganapathi

By Michelle Mastro

Backdrops: A Waterspout on the Bay of Naples by Thomas Fearnley (National Museum of Art, Architecture, and Design) and Gathering Storm on Long Island Sound by John Frederick Kenset T (MET, 74.39).