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More on Now Roots

15/05/2013
workshop
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NOW ROOTS is a  workshop where we will discover and explore the identity of the maker. We will tune you on your personal roots. Guide you on the way to dig deeper into your own language.
When we operate from the depth of our roots we generate strength and energy that leads to your form language. It is essential for an artist to draw from this inner force. Together we will search for your personal roots. This means that you will get in contact with yourself, and learn to focus on your personal roots, freedom and drive. We will guide you to your basic experience, teach you to formulate your own positions, and support you in translating this into making art and fine art jewellery.

NOW ROOTS is about taking another space at our contemporary experience of making, a statement about how you can relate to your own inner force. Artists and students are stimulated to produce work around this idea. By doing so, it is important that not only rational reflection, but also the subconscious enters into the work process. Ultimately, fine art jewellery remains a frame of reference.

NOW ROOTS  is built on step-by-step education in which the end product is not the most important goal. “The goal is the means and the means is the goal” (M. Gandhi).
The emphasis lies on personal guidance and development.
The participants are given the tools with which to continue the process on their own. By means of direct action people learn to make steps.

NOW ROOTS is about living together, cooking together, discuss, develop and make.

Dates: 12–18 August, 2013. 9.00-20.00 hrs total 60 hrs teaching
The course starts: Monday 12th  August 2013, 10.00 hrs.
The course ends: Sunday 18th  August 2013, after breakfast.
Departure: Sunday 18th August 2013, 10.00 hrs.
Place: Summer studio, Ravenstein.
Accommodations: 2 / 4 person rooms, St. Laurenshoeve, Ravenstein.
Price: Including accommodation, meals and insurance.
Inclusive 21 % VAT Tax: € 2100,–

Registration: Please mail to: info@ruudtpeters.nl

Max. Number of participants: 12
Language: English, German, Dutch,
Registration closes: July 12th  , 2013
Participation: Registrations are processed in the order in which they arrive.
Deposit: Upon acceptance the participant will make a deposit of € 1100,-before 1st of April 2013
This sum confirms the participation and is not refundable.

WELCOME TO THE NEW YEAR

24/09/2012
courses / corsi, news from graduates, workshop
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Following sort of a tradition by now, the new year begins through a workshop led by our amazing teacher Ruudt Peters. This year’s theme, as might be obvious through the images, was RED (last year it was DREAM), selected not for socialist reasons but as red is the color of the Chinese New Year and below is a short explanation of its reasons.

According to the legend, in ancient China, Nian (“Nyan”), a man-eating beasts from the mountains, could infiltrate houses silently to prey on humans. People later learned that Nian was sensitive to loud noises and the color red, so they scared it away through explosions, fireworks and the liberal use of the red. So “Guo Nian” actually means “Surviving the Nian”. These customs led to the first New Year celebrations. So this year Alchimia celebrated a sort of Chinese New Year,  Ruudt Peters  in fact has just come back from a three months trip to China.

For 3 days, and divided in couples, the students have been drawing, painting and making collages through the red colour while also being dressed in red. They also had to find red objects and reflect on a space on their body to give substance to their red dreams.

The whole workshop ended through a ‘ceremony’ in the magnificent Piazza della Signoria, when a number of colourful balloons have been launched in the sky.

‘What are you promoting?’ was the audience’s continuous question.

Nothing really, art in it’s own right while having fun, was the continuous answer…

Weekend Course: Acrylic Glass

11/09/2012
courses / corsi, weekend courses
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corso sul gioiello in vetro acrilico (plexiglass) / course on jewelry in acrylic glass
with Marzia Rossi

brooch, acrylic glass, 18kt. gold

Introduzione ai metodi di lavorazione del vetro acrilico: taglio, satinatura, lucidatura, piegatura a caldo, applicazione del colore, incollaggio. Realizzazione di uno o più gioielli combinando insieme metallo e vetro acrilico.
Questo corso può essere seguito anche da principianti.

Gli attrezzi e i materiali non preziosi vengono dati in dotazione agli studenti dalla scuola, come anche le dispense relative al corso.

Introduction to the techniques of working with acrilyc glass: sawing, mat polishing, shiny polishing, bending with heat, application of colour, joining with glue. Realization of one or more jewels combining metal and acrilyc.
This course is both for beginners and those who  have experience in jewelry making.

Tools and non-precious metals as well as handouts on the course are supplied by the school

brooch: Nature and Time, acrylic glass, silver, steel, oil


Date del corso:  28, 29, 30 Settembre 2012

Durata: 15h,
Venerdi: dalle 17 alle 20
Sabato e Domenica: dalle 10 alle 17

Date of the course: 28, 29, 30 September 2012

Duration: 15h,
Friday: from 5p.m. to 8 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: from 10a.m. to 5 p.m.

bracelet, acrylic glass, colour, silk

Marzia Rossi ha studiato gioielleria in Alchimia con i professori Giampaolo Babetto, Manfred Bischoff e Robert Smit ed è insegnante della scuola da tanti anni. Il suo lavoro è rappresentato dalle gallerie: Alternatives Roma, Louise Smit Amsterdam, Sienna Gallery Boston.

Vive e lavora a Firenze

Marzia Rossi studied jewelry in Alchimia with the artists Giampaolo Babetto, Manfred Bischoff and Robert Smit and is a teacher of the school since many years. Her work is  rapresented by Alternatives Gallery Rome, Louise Smit Galerie Amsterdam and Sienna Gallery Boston.

She lives and works in Florence.

brooch, acrylic glass, 18kt gold, colour

ring, acrylic glass, oxydized silver

ring, acrylic glass, silver, oil, stones

Weekend Course: Resin Jewelry

11/09/2012
weekend courses
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corso sul gioiello in resina / course on jewelry in resin
with Yoko Shimizu

In questo corso gli studenti conosceranno la resina epossidica e potranno sperimentare le molteplici possibilità d’uso di questo materiale. Il corso sarà focalizzato sull’utilizzo della resina in combinazione con il metallo. Si userà la resina in colata ( casting)  con stampi in silicone, e si vedrà come incorporare diversi materiali (carta, legno, colori, sabbia ..) durante il processo di polimerizzazione.
Alla fine si lavorerà sulle varie possibilità di effetti di superficie e finiture.

In this course students will learn to work with epoxy resin and will be able to experience the multiple possibilities of this material. The focus of the course will be on the use of resin in combination with metal, the casting (silicon molds), the incorporation of diverse materials (paper, wood, colour, sand..) during the polimerization process,
the possibilities of surface effects and finishings.

Data del corso:          19, 20, 21 Ottobre, 2012

Durata: 15h,
Venerdi: dalle 17 alle 20
Sabato e Domenica: dalle 10 alle 17

Date of the course:  19, 20, 21 October, 2012

Duration: 15h,
Friday: from 5p.m. to 8 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: from 10a.m. to 5 p.m.


Yoko Shimizu, nata a Tokyo, è insegnante di Alchimia da diversi anni. Si è specializzata nel gioiello in resina ed espone in gallerie in tutto il mondo, i suoi lavori si trovanno in diverse collezioni museali.
Vive e lavora a Firenze: www.yokoshimizu.it

Yoko Shimizu, born in Tokyo, is teaching at Alchimia since many years. She is specialized in resin jewelry and exhibitis in galleries worldwide, her work can be found in diverse museum collections.
Lives and works in Florence: www.yokoshimizu.it

Looking Back to Look Forward part II

27/08/2012
awards, exhibitions / mostre, fairs, gallery, news from graduates
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Here we go with the second part of the short report (yes it took us a while but we didn’t forget…) of what has been achieved by Alchimia graduates and students in the last year.

Enjoy!

PART TWO

First we have to integrate the most important achievement in Summer 2011:

Marzee Graduation Prize to Nadege Roscoe-Rumjahn with her collection “Intimacy”

 In her words: A human figure placed on the human body, questions the wearers’ as well as the onlookers’ self image.  In dealing with the subject of intimacy, these trespassing- textile body objects at once caress, confront and offend.  Starting from guttural expressions, blind drawings and watercolors; instinctive emotional responses emerge.  The goal then becomes to translate these feelings into wearable objects.  Through the act of obsessive drawing, this time with thread, I create the material.  Based on the assumption that jewelry has the potential to violate the wearer’s private sphere I created these fragmented figures, which hover within one’s realm of comfort.

Eugenia Ingegno took part in the annual exhibition “Pensieri Preziosi”, Padova, Italy.

Selen Ozus and Burcu Büyükünal opened their own school “Maden” in Istanbul, Turkey.

To see more photos and get information visit their web site: madenistanbul.com

Carissa Hsu participated in “Brand New – New Brand”, Inhorgenta 2012, Munich, Germany.

Melissa Arias and Aline Battegay were selected for Talente 2012, HWM Munich, Germany.

Aline Battegay, aluminium, steel.

Melissa Arias, color pencils, resin, silver.

Sung-ho Cho and Margherita de Martino Norante were invited to Schmuck 2012, Munich, Germany.

Sung Ho Cho, wood, silver, steel.

Margherita de Martino Norante, textile, gold.

Alchimia was present at Melting Point Valencia with the exhibition “Hazardous Experiments”.

Hazardous Experiments

Several teachers and former students as Ruudt Peters, Lucia Massei, Peter Bauhuis, Daniela Boieri, Flora Vagi, Ara Kuo, just to name a few, were present at Collect 2012, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK.

Heather White from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design worked in Alchimia thanks to a Fullbright Grant. She taught workshops in Poliurethane casting and organized the exhibiton “Full-Middle-Endless” (Florence -Boston).

Dinah Lee, Weronika Marek and Izabella Petrut were selected for Marzee Graduation show.

Installation view

Work by Weronika Marek

Work by Dinah Lee

Installation view

Our graduates with Marzee

Last but absolutely not least, it is important to announce again, since the vacation period is dissolving and the new year is just about to start and we are all (!) looking forward to it, that Alchimia has been accredited by the European Accreditation Board of Higher Education Schools E.A.B.H.E.S.

From now on Alchimia will offer to its students a European Bachelor and Master degree of Fine Arts in Contemporary Jewellery. Click here for more information, or write directly to info@alchimia.it, to ask for more details.

As you can see (read?), as usual Alchimia’s new year brings some novelty, continuing on its reflexive and flexible premises in relation to contemporaneity and the students’ needs and specificities.

This blog will be back on full activity now so…stay tuned!

 

Preparing an Exhibition

14/06/2012
event, exhibitions / mostre, workshop
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The last week we passed to fine tune the Graduation Show “Purus” .
All was ready concept, layout, press release, publicity…………

except : THE REAL THING

Fortunately we had

Giulia

and of course many others

there is so much work to do and even if you know beforehand exactly what you want and how you think to achieve it..

there are always details that do not turn out as you expected, new decisions to take..

need for rapid adjustment, ideas if technical issues do not work as expected

but then when things slowly take form and become clear, turn out maybe even better than expected

then you understand that the energy you have put in was worth while

but there was not only the graduation show to prepare but  also the End of the Year exhibition of the second and the third year…

Lucia, Peter and all the students are still working to get it all done

for Thursday 14.th of June 2012 at 6 p.m.

(big problem, at this precise hour Italy is playing against Croatia in the European Soccer Championship)

but somebody will come, we are sure

and then there is still Chica….

Hazardous Experiments

16/05/2012
event, exhibitions / mostre
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At Valencia Melting Point

As always the report comes a bit late, but there are some other sites that were faster than us. Please take a look at them:

Valencia Melting Point, Hazardous Experiments, carolinagimeno Blog, Bijou_Contemporain Jewelry, Mardecolorrosa, chiarame, dorismaninger

But now lets start from the beginning

arrival in the evening and immediate start of set up work. Big, beautiful space, wonderful hosts, lots of beer, and some confusion

boxes full of experiments to open

The task was to open all of them, line the materials on the foam boards and only after go to eat, fortunately in Spain you can eat also at midnight

It was tough but we did it

and the next day was almost a miracle

The foam boards we had ordered were exactly the color of walls and floor tiles

the amount we had bought was exaclty the right one,

and what we had immagined worked out !!!!!!!

we could happily drink after hard work and wait for the visitors to come

and they came, young and old, and more and more

after a while there was no time for drinking and joking anymore

all the students had to work: explain, explain, explain

the later it got the more visitors came and the explanations got better and better

and probably also more inspired

once in while a little rest was allowed

we had real glasses, no plastic and nothing broke

it was a wonderful evening, warm and full with the smell of spring blossoms, and it was Spain

miraculously none of the foam boards fell and no experiment either

nothing was lost, no piece displaced, touched but not dispaced

we found many new friends, some known over the web but never seen as Marianne Gassier from Bijoucontemporain

or some of the members of the BORAX group

The teachers and students from EASD Escola d’Art i Superior de Disseny de València
who had organized all this, exhibitions, conferences, dinners, workshops had done a great job.

everybody asked questions and wanted to know about the materials and the working process

it was unusual for all to be able to touch freely the exhibited pieces

and this was a big part of the success of our exhibition

we were all  happy about this evening, it was one of the moments when you really feel sorry for the passing of  time.
IT was  the teamwork that had let to this result that made us particularly proud. We had done it all together and could be happy together, each one of the Hazardous Operations Team had been precious to the end result.

Here just some more pictures all taken by HaNa Choi who had the task to document the whole event

Nubre – Final exhibition in Cairo

03/05/2012
event, exhibitions / mostre, workshop
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We have been telling a while ago about the marvellous project that is going on in Egypt.

And now we can invite you to the final exhibition!!!

 

I

Contemporary designs by Egyptian students in a European-Egyptian exhibition in Cairo

 An exhibition featuring innovative jewellery pieces will open from 9 to 12 May in Cairo. This exhibition is the first of a series of exhibitions between Cairo and Aswan to showcase the designs of 45 Egyptian students who took place in an initiative by Azza Fahmy Jewellery co-funded by the European Union (EU).

Nubre, which means design in the Nubian language, is the first private sector initiative to support students with passion for design. It was launched initially with the core purpose of enforcing a “design culture” in Egypt and creating a bridge between local and European students.

The most significant outcome of this project is that the students would get the opportunity to showcase their talents by exhibiting their work to the public. Moreover, the Azza Fahmy Foundation will also offer the best students the opportunity to work on Azza Fahmy future design projects, in addition to multiple financial prizes and recognition.

Prior to the exhibition, four workshops were held in Aswan under the theme “Linking Heritage to Contemporary Design” with designers coming from some of the best Jewellery design schools in Europe: Doris Maninger from Alchimia, Ramon Puig from Massana and Christoph Zellweger from HEAD Geneva, and  Jean Power from the UK . The main focus of was finding inspiration, recognising it, understanding it and then knowing what to do with it. During the workshops, the students worked on their design concepts using materials from the environment, and then finished their pieces with the help of Azza Fahmy and corresponding with their instructors  after the workshops.

The first stop of the exhibition will be British Council in Agouza – Cairo from 9 till 12 May 2012. The exhibition will then move to other locations in Cairo in addition to Aswan.

This project is one of the projects funded by the Delegation of the European Union to Egypt in the framework of the annual EU Calls for Proposals for Cultural Activities.

For more information on NUBRE, please visit www.nubre.com

Many amazing pieces are the results of these workshops, traditional tiara’s but done with carrubs, brooches out of Nubian plates, the colours and the forms of the Nubian tradition reelaborated with surprising materials in necklaces and bracelets.

 

but for sure most of the pieces conserve the deep sense for ornament inherent in the Egyptian culture

Beginning-Middle-Endless

26/04/2012
artists, exhibitions / mostre, Uncategorized, WINDOWS
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An  international exhibition of neckpieces
including students from
Alchimia Contemporary Jewellery School
and Massachusetts College of Art and Design
curated by
Professor Heather White

The exhibition is based on the Surrealist “Exquisite Corps” in which twenty neckpieces are on display.
Two different students living in different countries created each neckpiece. Half of the students are from Alchimia Contemporary Jewellery School, Florence Italy, the other from Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston MA.
The students were asked to create one-half of a neckpiece and Heather White made curatorial decisions on pairings and physically assembled the halves to make whole necklaces in which the unexpected ensues.

The exhibition will travel to Boston, MA USA in fall 2012.

We had a really nice opening and vistors loved the combinations and the stories about them.
Thank you Heather, here is a flower for you!!!

Many startling associations ocurred, some pieces seemed to be made for each other

whereas others were in such contrast that they completed each other in a strange way

you could find almost any material you could think of: resin, paper, plastic, silver, leather, enamel…

fabric, latex, glass, concrete, plaster, iron, brass, copper, shibuichi……..

steel, fimo, rubber, toys……..and of techniques.

to set up the show we borrowed wood from a construction site, we thought we would have to cover it all up with paper or paint……

but we needed nothing, we could just place the pieces on this wonderful yellow planks, that showed the infinite steps that had passed over them

just a pity that we have to give them back soon.

Plastic workshop with Heather White

24/04/2012
artists, workshop
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It was just before Easter vacation, and it gave lots of new inputs

Heather White Professor at MassArt (Massachusetts College of Art and Design) and since February in Florence with a Fullbright Grant, gave this workshops to our students and after also to some of our teachers about the silicon molding systems and plastic cast.

Heather opened some totally new frontiers for us and we are now fully equipped to continue the research with these materials

We have been working and experimenting with epoxy resin for years, but never with polyurethanes.
This plastic as the silcon molds used to cast are different, need some more equipment as pressure pot and vacuum but give a whole range of possibilities exciting to discover.

Heather had us follow strictly the rules to after ask us to break them all

incredible colours can come out, always a surprise….

We all want to thank Heather for this opportunity, it was so good to have her in our school and we hope to continue learning experiences with her.