Sousta

Sophia Vari Sousta, 2022 Ebony wood and 18kt yellow gold earrings 6.5 x 3.9cm edition of 6 plus 2 AP signed and numbered Sousta (Greek: Σούστα) is a Greek folk dance performed at weddings as an activity of courtship between husband and wife. It originates from Ancient Greece, and holds prominence in Dodecanese Islands and broader Aegean region. It is the second most common Greek dance, after the Sorts with many Greek islands and villages adopting their own version. Sophia Vari’s “portable sculptures”, as she likes to call them, first became part of the artist’s body of work 30 years ago; at a time in her life when demanding international schedule kept her constantly on the move. While travelling, she carried with her a small box of plasticine, from which she would mould miniature sculptures. “From that day on, I had a new creative challenge that gave me a lot of joy because I could see the pieces being worn,” she recalls. Vari approaches wearable art in precisely the same manner and strength as her abstract sculptures, collages and paintings. Her thorough exploration of bold geometric forms, the examination of volume, painterly curves and lines result in the composition both peaceful and elegant but also captures a […]

Sophia Vari Sapho , 2013 18kt yellow gold and silver earrings 10 x 4.5 cm edition of 6 plus 2 AP signed and numbered Sophia Vari’s “portable sculptures”, as she likes to call them, first became part of the artist’s body of work 30 years ago; at a time in her life when demanding international schedule kept her constantly on the move. While travelling, she carried with her a small box of plasticine, from which she would mould miniature sculptures. “From that day on, I had a new creative challenge that gave me a lot of joy because I could see the pieces being worn,” she recalls. Vari approaches wearable art in precisely the same manner and strength as her abstract sculptures, collages and paintings. Her thorough exploration of bold geometric forms, the examination of volume, painterly curves and lines result in the composition both peaceful and elegant but also captures a harmonious theatrical tension. “It is a real challenge for me, and it is very much like creating a sculpture, made to be worn. No doubt, the fact that I am a woman has its advantages. Firstly, because I can try it on me – and secondly the fact that I […]

Sophia Vari Pidithos, 2022 White resin and yellow gold earrings 8 x 6 cm edition of 6 plus 2 AP signed and numbered The variety of medium present in these works is exceptional and unique. Works made of marble from Thassos, Carrara and Belgium, gold, silver, amaranth wood, Pau Amarelo wood, resin and rock-crystal are chosen to emphasise the composition of volume, form and movement. Sophia Vari has been working in sculpture for over 55 years and the evolution came by itself; one work lead to another and the lines became more precise. Jewellery have a strong influence from her sculptures. Thirty-five years ago, Vari realised that some of her little models that she would mould in plaster to remember the compositions, could become wearable. In them she envisioned the line between function and form experimenting with a wide range of noble and singular materials. For Vari, making jewellery is to go beyond herself, to be more radical and clearer in what she wants to express. “When I create jewellery, I don’t think about jewellery, it becomes jewellery at a later stage. The difference between a sculpture and jewel is that the latter must embellish and reassure the woman who […]

Sophia Vari Sousta, 2022 Amaranth wood and yellow gold earrings 6.6 x 3.8 cm edition of 6 plus 2 AP signed and numbered Sousta (Greek: Σούστα) is a Greek folk dance performed at weddings as an activity of courtship between husband and wife. It originates from Ancient Greece, and holds prominence in Dodecanese Islands and broader Aegean region. It is the second most common Greek dance, after the Sorts with many Greek islands and villages adopting their own version. New materials such as amaranth wood and resin appeared in front of her by surprise. Vari was looking for something distinctive and by chance, when looking at the different colours of wood, she discovered the beautiful exotic amaranth wood. What is special about this wood, is that it is green in colour and then in contact with the sun, it transforms and stabilises into pink/purple. This new colour naturally redefines certain forms that the artist perceives differently with the other woods previously used.

Sissi Daniela Olivieri Nidi Olimpici (Olympic Nests), 2023 18kt yellow gold thread, South sea pearls earrings L 8.5 x 7.5 cm unique and signed With an artistic focus of anatomical study in relations to environmental elements, Sissi brings forth new ways to interpret wearable art, as the pieces transform into a second skin of light and gold for the wearer. For her wearable art pieces, Sissi interlaces the symbolism of the bird’s nest with the anatomy of the human body. The artist’s creations are hand-made and embellished, yet delicate like her sculptures. Carefully interwoven and welded with gold and silver threads, decorated with precious gemstones, Sissi’s contemplative process re-imagines a sculptural piece of art to work in tandem with the single wearer.It was pivotal to Sissi to be personally involved with the production of her wearable art pieces. Nests, Cocoons and Olympic Nests draw its symbolism from natural nests which provide a safe place. “The nest is not only the home of the body, but also a space that dresses and protects like the Cocoons wearable sculptures, cocoon-nests that enfold a content. The chrysalis represents both the rest of the being and its momentum, a continuous rebirth extended to the nature of coral. […]

Sissi Daniela Olivieri Nidi Olimpici (Olympic Nests), 2023 18kt yellow gold thread and opal earrings L 5.3 x 3 cm unique and signed With an artistic focus of anatomical study in relations to environmental elements, Sissi brings forth new ways to interpret wearable art, as the pieces transform into a second skin of light and gold for the wearer. For her wearable art pieces, Sissi interlaces the symbolism of the bird’s nest with the anatomy of the human body. The artist’s creations are hand-made and embellished, yet delicate like her sculptures. Carefully interwoven and welded with gold and silver threads, decorated with precious gemstones, Sissi’s contemplative process re-imagines a sculptural piece of art to work in tandem with the single wearer. It was pivotal to Sissi to be personally involved with the production of her wearable art pieces. Nests, Cocoons and Olympic Nests draw its symbolism from natural nests which provide a safe place. “The nest is not only the home of the body, but also a space that dresses and protects like the Cocoons wearable sculptures, cocoon-nests that enfold a content. The chrysalis represents both the rest of the being and its momentum, a continuous rebirth extended to the nature of coral. An […]

Pol Bury Round earrings, 2003 18 kt white and yellow gold earrings D 2,8 cm edition of 8 signed and numbered Filippini Edition In the early 2000’s Pol Bury started collaborating with the goldsmith industry F.lli Filippini in Verona who also invited international artists to design jewellery but in a limited edition of 8. Their collaboration was very fruitful, many rings, bracelets and earrings followed in various forms, in white gold, yellow gold or silver. The spheres varied from ‘rods’ to ‘bars’ but none were static. The Round Earrings from 2003 are made in polished 18kt white gold with yellow gold moving spheres. These earrings remind us of his glorious fountain Sphérades installed at Palais – Royale Gardens in Paris.  

Sophia Vari Atropos, 2019 Golden brass earrings with post/ clips available 5.5 x 3.5 cm edition of 6 plus 2 AP signed and numbered Sophia Vari’s approach to jewelry, came at a time in which the artist’s busy and international schedule wouldn’t allow her time in the studio. To fill the creative gap, Vari began producing mini versions of her monumental sculptures using plasticines. Despite the significantly reduced size, the same attention and preoccupations that permeates her large-scale work were applied to the smaller ones and eventually become at the basis for her jewellery design making her an incredibly versatile and unique artist. Produced in monumental scale or as table pieces, monochrome or coloured, her bold, dynamic and yet elegant sculptures portray the artist’s profound respect for the material, which is only of the higher quality, and her interest in the process, in which she is an active participant. Another quality shared by all her sculptures, and one which the artist pays particular attention to, is the relationship between the object and the space it occupies. Specifically, how they activate one another and, eventually, activate the viewer as well. Just like for her sculptural or pictorial work, only the highest materials […]

Sophia Vari Calypso II, 2012 silver earrings with clips 4.5 x 3 cm edition of 6 signed and numbered Sophia Vari’s  work is an investigation of form and balance, strongly influenced by Mayan, Egyptian, Olmec, and Cycladic traditions as well as Ancient and Baroque aesthetics. Her artist name « Vari » draws on the name of the Greek village where her family house was. Specializing in bronze sculpture, she is also known for collages, oils, watercolours and gained widespread recognition for her stunning jewellery, or « wearable sculptures » that combine geometric lines and sensual curves in silver, gold and ebony.  

Giampaolo Babetto Orecchini , 2010 18kt yellow gold and pigment earrings 1.5 x 1.8 x 1 cm Unique and signed Giampaolo Babetto’s work reflects contemporary art movements such as concrete art, minimal art, kinetic or pop art in a unique, purist and plastic manner. His pieces are immediately recognisable by its simple design. He is inspired by the architecture of his homeland, by Palladio’s villas, and by the geometries in which he finds poetry. His jewellery is innovative in concept. Made up of different abstract elements, broken down into modular units, or rendered moveable through the use of ingenious links, Babetto’s works are like small architectural pieces or small sculptures. Babetto prefers working in gold due to its stable malleability and its warm sheen which he combines with unconventional materials such as plastic or glass, ebony, dusting the internal surface with a velvet-like pigment in luminous primary colours of reds or blues or using enamel and age-old niello-based techniques. These materials are used as highlights and contrasts in works of increasingly pure and essential geometrical forms that have come to characterise the Padua School.