GemGeneve 2023- May exhibition

For the second time in a row, I had the honor of taking part in the extraordinary and exclusive GemGeneve gemstones and jewelry exhibition in Geneva (Switzerland, May 2023). I consider this to be one of the extremely important events in my artistic biography, because the opportunity to present my works as one of 6 people in the world selected for the “Emerging Talents” section (and one of 16 contemporary designers), is a great honor. GG focuses on the presentation in a carefully selected way of unique gemstones, antique and collectible jewelry, contemporary designer fine-jewelry, sculptures, museum specimens and other things that are easiest to describe with the word “treasures”. During this edition, GG cooperated with the Museum of Art and History of the City of Geneva (MAH) by lending a collection of automatons, i.e. works of jewelry/watchmaking art that have the ability to move in a programmed way or produce music. The exhibition also featured exhibits from the “International Museum of Horology at la Chaus-de-Fonds” and private collectors. I invite you to watch the video below, in which I recorded GemGeneve’s treasures as those that caught my eye the most.

 

Here’s what my exhibition space looked like:

 

As usual, my space is filled with photos by Margo Skwara Photography, which travel with me to every exhibition. Margo made 4 portraits of models with my jewelry for me, which perfectly reflect the nature of my work. All photos are hypnotic, magical and masterfully balanced. The contrast between the seemingly carefree age of these girls and their maturity and inner wisdom that they seem to possess seems to perfectly reflect what I include in each of my works. 2 of these portraits always travel with me to fair exhibitions. Margo can be found on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/margoskwara  and on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/margoskwaraphotography/  and her website https://www.margoskwara.com/index 

The designers from the “Emerging Talents” section of GemGeneve (May 2023) are 6 people from around the world who were personally selected by the curator – Nadege Totah, who not only has great taste and knowledge of the jewelry industry (passed on to her by 3 generations of industry dealers and decades of practice), but also the mission of finding designers whose works arouse in her a feeling of extraordinary and uniqueness.

I am very proud and happy that my work was presented alongside world-class artists such as Aso Leon, Denise Cassou​, Teresa Escudera, Wallis Hong, and Fred Fa.

 

Among the artists invited to take part in the exhibition, there were many whom I had heard about for years, admiring their talent and never dreaming that my name might appear in the same place with them. They say “never meet your heroes”. But in Geneva I met one of my own and it was a great experience! Austy Lee- Austy Lee Art Jewelery– turned out to be an extremely warm and humble person. We talked a little, I got his autograph, I even saw his sketches and I could try on one of his iconic bracelets that I admired on his Instagram. I also really liked his assistant in Geneva, who is a very polite and charming person: Cheung. Thank you very much for our meeting. You made my trip to Geneva almost like a dream come true. I hope we will meet again!

Here are some photos of Austy Lee’s brilliant works:

Another brilliant creator I discovered at GemGeneve is Aso Leon, known in China as the “Prince of Titanium”. He is a precursor of working with titanium as material used in exclusive jewelry, bringing this metal to the level of art and has been engaged in jewelry OEM production in Panyu, China for more than 20 years. Because of those reasons Aso has been invited by many universities in China to give lectures. “Today, he emerges as a jewelry artist on the international stage, transforming Made in China into Created in China.” As far as I was able to get to know this artist, he gave the impression of an extremely modest, warm man, who knows his craft perfectly, and at the same time is full of artistic sensitivity and maturity. His works are ethereal, very light, colorful and richly decorated with stones. Although we had a small language barrier, he took the trouble of approaching my exposition space and told me, that he really likes my works and they remind him of his brother’s art. That is one of the nicest things any other designer has ever done for me.

But I would also like to talk a bit about the second plan hero – his assistant in Geneva, Zoe Wang, who herself studies jewelry design in Paris. Zoe is an extremely talented person who, in addition to speaking several languages fluently, working in the fashion department in the heart of Paris, studying and having a passion for jewelry, is also a joyful, witty and crazy person! One evening after the fair, we went on a “girls’ night out”, that is, because we were extremely tired, we ate instant soups in the kitchen of a hostel in Geneva. Because I’m an introvert, I was extremely happy that Zoe’s vision of a “party in the city” was the same as mine, i.e. eating warm soup in silence and cooling off from all the events of the day. It was great for me because it was the first time I ate instant soup with a vacuum-packed egg attached (you can see it on Zoe’s fork).

GemGenève is not only jewelry. In large part, it is a show dedicated to unique gems of the highest quality. That is why I am so pleased that my invitation to the exhibition was accepted by Filip Ożdżeński – from a well-known family of gemologists and jewelery experts in Poland (http://jacek-ozdzenski.pl/ ). Mr. Ożdżeński not only took over his father’s passion for gemology, but also expanded his knowledge and expertise as an appraiser by majoring in Art History. Thank you very much for taking the trouble of traveling so far and for visiting me at the exhibition. I hope it has given you many reasons to make the trip worth it. I think it’s great that people who are passionate about their work are able to travel great distances to discover new things, learn more and grow. To paraphrase the words of Filip Ożdżeński: “What we had the opportunity to see at GemGeneve were top-shelf specimens.” The first photo of this post shows paraiba tourmaline, and the calculator shows its price in Polish zlotys.

This year, what caught my attention most were the wonderful sculptures made of gold and natural stones by the Swiss company Crystal Art Collections. In the photo, standing next to one of his brilliant works, is Paul Blochliger – one of the two (Bruno Higgins) creative pillars of the Crystal Art company from Switzerland. I remember the amazing mineral sculptures presented by this company in 2022 – kingfisher, crystal steeds, amethyst cockatoo and many others (please read the previous entry Gemgeneve 2022). This time I was blown away by bouquets of wheat (in a realistic scale) and cornflowers made of pure gold and tanzanites, arranged on a rock crystal vase. Contact with such beauty revealed through the mastery of human hands, artistic sensitivity, sense of perfect form and material that is literally the essence of the word “treasure” gave me goosebumps, waves of tears and a strong heartbeat. I am so happy that there are people in the world who still want to create works, not “products”, for whom the act of creation is more important than thinking “will it sell” – and I am even more happy that there are people in the world who who value such mastery and want to own the works of real, contemporary masters, because it is their work that translates into the true value of humanity.

 

In addition to the “Crystal Art Collections” works, I was delighted with several other sculptures, especially agate rats eating golden cheese. The sculpture is titled “Dinner for Two” by Henn.

Here are some more photos of treasures from GemGeneve 2023, but I must admit that this time I took much fewer photos and more videos. That’s why I refer you to the first video on this page. In my opinion, this edition of the show was dominated by pearls of phenomenal size and they were the ones that particularly caught my attention. During the film, I placed my hand next to the glass so that I could understand the scale of the specimen being filmed. The same goes for emeralds.

Among the many wonderful people I had the opportunity to meet at GemGenève – Geneva International Gem & Jewelery Show, I was honored by the presence of the Mr. Ambassador Zbigniew Czech, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to the United Nations Office in Geneva. Thank you very much for the lovely meeting and charming conversation. It was an honor and a pleasure to meet you. It was a great compliment to me that you were moved by my works and the stories I weave into them. I am also grateful for the support of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Poland to the United Nations Office in Geneva (and its employees) during my trip to GemGeneve.

I have been a fan of Tetiana Pfaifer for a long time, who is known as the founder of the Jewelery Masterpiece Awards platform and the Jewelery Masterpiece Instagram community. She has excellent taste and has been teaching me and all her fans around the world about beautiful jewelry and its art for a long time. When I met her in May at GemGeneve 2023, I was truly thrilled because I felt like I was meeting a superstar. Imagine how amazing I felt when she became interested in my works and published them on her social media! I am so proud and honored that the countless hours I spend on what I do have been noticed and appreciated by someone I respect so much. She even gave me the two videos she made when I asked if I could show it off more to the world. Her kindness really touched me and I am extremely grateful for it.

The first video shows the “Heart of Medusa” necklace inspired by Forest Rogers’ sculpture titled “Octopoid”. Tetiana herself wrote in her post on Jewelery Masterpiece on Instagram about this work:

“I met a wonderful designer at @gemgeneve , Iwona Tamborska of @rekamistworzone , who creates one-of-a-kind pieces, inspired by real women’s lives. What is interesting is that the stories behind her pieces depict some truth about women, I would say … I love the honesty in her art.

For example, The Heart of Medusa necklace. Iwona started describing the inspiration behind it with the words: “You know, how men perceive a woman whom they like, like she is a princess at the beginning of the relationship and then they realize that she is just a simple woman – which is actually quite true, isn’t it?”

 

This piece was created for the exhibition at the Yes Gallery, titled “Women’s voice”. Its idea was to present women’s point of view on any topics they would like to discuss. The main theme of this work is a woman who is like Medusa – a mythical, somewhat divine creature. This is an allegory to how, at the beginning of many relationships, women are initially treated as goddesses, respected and delighted by their presence in someone’s life. Her body is made of an icicle of natural rock crystal, which I personally found during one of her geological expeditions in Lower Silesia. The entire piece is ice-white, except for Medusa’s heart, which is made of rainbow Ethiopian opal. Rock crystal and opal do not differ much structurally because they are a compound of silicon dioxide. The rainbow colors in opal come from water molecules that are trapped between the silica chains and refract the light entering it, creating the appearance of a rainbow. These colors are a symbol of the spark in the soul of every woman, which makes them unique and extraordinary. Medusa holds a piece of her heart in her hand and offers it to someone. Women, no matter how divine they seem to be, give their hearts when they love. What happens to this spark and themselves often depends on the person who receives this heart: whether the spark will die and the heart will become an ordinary rock crystal, or whether it will survive and continue to be full of burning colors. The pendant is composed of strings of natural rock crystals.

Please forgive the condition of my worn-out creator’s fingers.

More photos are available on the website about this work https://rekamistworzone.com/en/produkt/the-heart-of-medusa/

The second jewelry piece chosen by Tatiana Pfeifer is the “Waterfall” necklace. Here’s what she wrote in her post on Jewelery Masterpiece about this work:

“More about original works… It’s so rare to find works of art which don’t even vaguely remind your of any other pieces.

Please have a look at the Waterfall necklace from Iwona Tamborska of @rekamistworzone. A subtly accented female figure emerges from amber, as from a waterfall, taking a bath in it…

Like I said in the first post showcasing her art work, she creates one-of-a-kind pieces, inspired by real women’s lives.

This necklace is inspired by the idea of water and the feeling of purification it gives. The base is a unique piece of amber, the inside of which gives the impression of a thousand bubbles of a foamed waterfall. The impression of movement and a water bath is enhanced by strings of fine, faceted fluorites and tanzanites, tonally arranged from white to blue-violet.
The threading process itself took 18 hours of work.
Look, depending on the angle of incidence of light, amber appears red or golden, simultaneously shedding a colorful light on the rest of the stones.”

 

More photos can be found on the website about this work https://rekamistworzone.com/produkt/wodospad/

Another pleasant surprise was the visit of Shokhista Turdiyeva, whom I met by chance in Milan and since then I have seen her as a supportive presence in my life. Shokhista is a well-known journalist and founder of the Jewelery Pursuer platform, as well as the popular Jewelery Pursuer Instagram community, currently numbering approximately 216,000. followers. During the exhibition in Geneva, she shot material that was also used by her to advertise my upcoming exhibition at the District Museum in Toruń.

The video shows the “Amethyst Butterfly” brooch/pendant, more photos of which can be found on the item page https://rekamistworzone.com/en/produkt/amethyst-butterfly-brooch-pendant/

This butterfly was also selected by the “Media Communication” section of GemGeneve as a work published in the “Press kit”, i.e. materials provided to the press to promote the event and present exhibitors.

Also a nice surprise was the visit of Laura Astrologo Porche, who recently published my “Black Castle” ring in Luxury Investment Magazine.

Laura Astrologo Porché is a jewelry journalist, editor-in-chief of the Watches & Jewels column of Swiss Luxury Publishing Group CELEBRE MAGAZINE, and owner of the Instagram page Journal des Bijoux.

You can read more about the ring on the course page https://rekamistworzone.com/en/produkt/black-castle-ring/

I was visited by so many wonderful people, I had so many interesting, moving and motivating conversations that it seems to me that it was not a week, but a month of events. One of these unique people was Maria Skwark, known as @madamekarat. An extremely charismatic gemologist from Poland, permanently living in Switzerland. She has extensive gemological knowledge and a passion for stones and jewelry, which she is able to convey perfectly on her social channels and blog. Next to me and Maria Skwark in the photo is Mrs. Małgorzata Szuma from PAIH (Polish Investment and Trade Agency), who also came to visit this event.

 

The last tidbit of my entire journey is a story that I really want to share, although it has nothing to do with jewelry. During a banquet for designers at the Marriott hotel, I stayed a bit too long and it turned out that I had missed the last bus returning to my accommodation. Unfortunately, for some strange reason, me and many other people, had problems with internet connection on our phones, so I couldn’t find an alternative, safe version of the return. At this point, a friendly member of the GemGeneve team (thank you Jahan) decided that I couldn’t be allowed to walk alone at night and reported my problem to the wonderful Nadege. Nadege, because she is as a warm and caring person, as well as sassy, said she had an idea. Then she came back to me, accompanied by a handsome young man, and said: “I asked this gentleman to take you back.” At this, some of the GemGeneve team shouted “oooo!”, tried to hide their smiles, waved at me and said: “Tell us tomorrow how it was!”.

I was a bit embarrassed by this, because the allusions had clear associations for me, so I became cold and distinguished.

We got into a slightly gold car and I told him I was grateful for his help and that I hoped this whole thing wouldn’t take him too long. To which he replied: “It depends on whether you would like me to drive fast or slow.”

So I became even more cold and replied, “Safe.”

He said, “I always drive safely.”

I didn’t comment.

The car started moving and suddenly I felt that even though it started gently, it could accelerate incredibly quickly. So I asked what kind of car it was, because it was so strange. He replied: “It happens to be the only car in the world and we are promoting this car during GemGeneve” (Lucid Air).

Such things don’t impress me too much…. But…… acceleration was like on a motorcycle, 4 seconds from 0 to 100 (I think), lightning fast braking, great maneuverability and fully electric . So I said:

…………………..

“Step on it!!!”

And it was great! Great experience, great car, great driver! Lots of fun 🙂 Now I understand Nadege’s smile, the smiles of the GemGeneve crew and the questions “how was it?” – a ride in this car is an unforgettable experience! Thank you for it! :))

Hope to see you soon!