Bursts of uninhibited making
- Christine values jewellery making's artistic autonomy
- Her inspiration comes from personal stories
- She creates pieces that fall between the classical and the free
Christine Matthias came to jewellery from interior design. "I realised I wanted not only to design objects but to control the entire process, from the idea to the final result," she says. Christine's studies at Burg Giebichenstein in Halle, under Dorothea Prühl, helped her understand that jewellery allows her to build her own world. Independently, autonomously and free from external constraints, she sets challenges for herself and brings them to life. "I am fascinated by the craft's ability to combine a free creative process with an inevitable demand on focus and precision," she says. Personal stories and everyday moments also find their way into Christine's work. "For me, jewellery is about objects with which we form an emotional bond, and those we can wear with joy," she explains. "I constantly want to create something that intrigues, touches and sometimes even irritates."
Interview
- Where do you find inspiration?
- My work often originates from personal stories and memories. They can be everyday things: formal starting points that I pick up, reduce and abstract. This includes small phenomena or formal occurrences that interest me, that I continue to develop and that eventually evoke various associations and gain meaning through the story behind them.
- What does your working process look like?
- Drawings and sketches are more like visual notes. In my work, one piece grows out of the previous one, and it would not have been possible without what came before it. I quickly take metal in my hands to make a form visible. Even with a clear idea, things often develop in different directions. This keeps the process interesting and leads me to new starting points.
- What role does tradition play in your jewellery making?
- Since I work with goldsmithing and silversmithing techniques, I am rooted in their traditions. I aim to be innovative in the sense that the artistic approach and the creative process take precedence. I see it as a challenge to create contemporary, ideally timeless, pieces using classical techniques.
- Are there techniques or materials that are most important to you?
- Silver is my primary material. My pieces are constructed in an architectural way: assembled and sometimes tensioned. I work with classical techniques, but my approach to the material is undogmatic and playful. Traces of the work process are intentionally left visible. The surface quality is secondary. My first interest lies in a strong, reduced form.
Christine Matthias is an expert artisan: she began her career in 2002
Where
Christine Matthias
