The contemporary jewellery creations of Trinidad Contreras are imbued with ingenuity, following endless and passionate research. She combines unusual materials that then coexist in harmony, challenging their potentials and introducing new textures to old forms. Porcelain, metal, leather and fabric are incorporated into brooches, earrings or necklaces; her collections and one-of-a-kind pieces are either functional or carry a message through symbols and metaphors. She does not make sketches in advance of making, the process is organic: a constant flux of energy and ideas, of solutions and decisions made on the spot. Trinidad has participated in several exhibitions in Spain and abroad. Her background is in sculpture and specifically with an interest in porcelain – using the slip casting technique.

1638270497_2-c-ketevan-gvinepadze-5-jpg.jpeg

1638270501_3-c-ketevan-gvinepadze-7-jpg.jpeg

1638270510_1-c-ketevan-gvinepadze-4-jpg.jpeg

1638270515_2-c-ketevan-gvinepadze-8-jpg.jpeg

1638270520_3-c-ketevan-gvinepadze-2-jpg.jpeg

1638270526_4-c-ketevan-gvinepadze-6-jpg.jpeg

1638270532_brooch-porcelain-silver-photo-trinidad-contreras-1.jpeg

1638270562_1-atelier-2-photo-jorge-marin-buck-portrait-jpg.jpeg

1638270492_1-atelier-2-photo-jorge-marin-buck-jpg.jpeg

Trinidad opens the doors of her home workshop to offer an immersive journey on how to employ porcelain in the making of contemporary jewellery. Starting from scratch, she will guide participants through all the different stages, from plaster moulds to how to prepare, colour, pour and shape porcelain. Individual creativity will be encouraged through experimentation; under Trinidad’s guidance and supervision, tools will be provided to execute all necessary steps, offering an overview on the different stages of the material, from being liquid, until it becomes solid and can be cut, pierced, burnished or enamelled. No experience is required for this course.

Porcelain workshop

Porcelain workshop in Barcelona

Trinidad will guide participants through all the different stages or working with porcelain, from plaster moulds to how to prepare, colour, pour and shape porcelain.

Porcelain immersion

1650964823_mm3-jpg.jpeg

1650964823_mm2-jpg.jpeg

1650964823_portrait-jpg.jpeg

1650964823_photo-jpg.jpeg

1650964823_mm1-jpg.jpeg

Trinidad will take visitors through her workshop and show them how her pieces are made and how she approaches some of the experimentation with techniques that are employed in ceramics. During the three hour visit, there will be a general overview of the different aspects of her work, through the use of moulds, clay shaping, decoration and finally enamelling. Visitors will interact and participate in the making process. Once finished, the objects will dry and be fired by Trinidad in the kiln, finally they'll be shipped to the maker. The firing and shipment are included in the price.

Experimenting with ceramics

Ceramics for beginners in Barcelona

Trinidad will take visitors through her workshop and show them how her pieces are made and how she approaches some of the experimentation with techniques that are employed in ceramics.

Workshop visit and making a ceramic object

1650965155_mm1-jpg.jpeg

1650965155_mm2-jpg.jpeg

1650965155_mm3-jpg.jpeg

1650965155_photo-jpg.jpeg

1650965155_portrait-jpg.jpeg

This brooch is made up of the union of two shapes in different materials. The tubular shape is made of porcelain and the closure on the back. Through copper connections and silver rivets, it holds the lower part in a more organic and warm way made of leather. The leather has been modelled by applying moisture and heat, hardened with wax, it is a very ancient technique that was used to make water containers and be transported.

Amputation

1638270867_brooch-porcelain-silver-leather-photo-trinidad-con.jpeg

This porcelain brooch is shaped like a cylinder and hollow inside. The top is in graphite-coloured porcelain with a satin finish, on its surface is a subtle line of silver dots which forms a perfect circle. The base of the brooch is made by an internal drum of thick and firm leather, it is lined with leather of different colours. The porcelain top rests on the base, which are joined and fixed with the help of some small screws.

Intro

1638270846_brooch-porcelain-silver-leather-photo-ricardo-vill.jpeg

This cylindrical-shaped brooch in pastel pink porcelain is covered on its side with glass microspheres and pigments. A cobalt blue enamelled sphere is placed on the top part and next to it a piece of ancient Chinese porcelain, a vestige of the past. The technique used has been casting in moulds and metal techniques applied to jewellery.

Stupa

1638270827_brooch-porcelain-silver-photo-trinidad-contreras-3.jpeg

This funnel-shaped porcelain brooch is made from Limoges porcelain and its interior is enamelled in bright yellow. The brown piece with a mushroom-like texture adds great contrast and apparently transforms into a headset. The technique used has been to cast the porcelain in moulds and combined with silver and steel needle using jewellery techniques.

Wearable apparatus

1638270806_brooch-porcelain-silver-photo-trinidad-contreras-1.jpeg

This necklace is made of various porcelain pieces, each different, forming a chain joint together by silver wire. The wire is welded very closely to the porcelain and is very resistant. The porcelain pieces are very porous and as light as a sponge. The technique used has been to immerse sponge into porcelain and then fire them at high temperatures. The sponges burn and the porcelain remains. It has also been the casting technique in moulds and metal applied to jewellery.

Material Etérico

1638270782_brooch-porcelain-silver-photo-ricardo-villalobos-3.jpeg

Since 1928, when the company's first workshop was founded in Tamames, Salamanca, Luis Méndez Artesanos has been a family affair. The three Méndez brothers, Luis, Jerónimo and Raúl, comprise the third generation of goldsmiths at the helm of the workshop, bringing the same passion and drive to their craft as their father and grandfather before them. Creating filigree is an ancient and nowadays almost forgotten technique; in their hands it has been revamped and successfully led into the 21st century. Their goal is not only to create delicate, intricate and beautiful pieces of jewellery but also to promote their craftsmen's work by participating in international fairs and exhibitions, making this centuries-old craft relevant once again.

Méndez, Luis

A centuries-old craft in modern hands

panoramic-jpg-666.jpeg

1598011377_portrait-jpg.jpeg

823-int_2.jpg.jpeg

571-int_3.jpg.jpeg

6484-mm_1.jpg.jpeg

3775-mm_3.jpg.jpeg

8956-mm_4.jpg.jpeg

5635-mm_5.jpg.jpeg

1614271321_material-jpg.jpeg

1598011588_itw1-jpg.jpeg

mm_2_v2-jpg-6534.jpeg

Brothers Jerónimo and Manuel Seco-Velasco represent the fifth generation of the oldest goldsmith's workshop in Andalusia. Based in Seville, the workshop focuses on making pieces of 'arte sacro' (holy art), creating an indissoluble connection with the city's tradition of Semana Santa (Holy Week). The company's creations also grace several churches around Spain and abroad. On an artistic level, throughout the years the workshop has developed incredible expertise in decorative pieces and built relationships with interior designers, with whom they collaborate on the creation of one-of-a kind pieces. Every day they accept new challenges, feeling the weight of their reputation as pioneers in their field, whose work is held in such high regard.

Seco, Jerónimo & Manuel

Serving Seville's holy traditions

7197-ITW3.jpg.jpeg

4379-MM5.jpg.jpeg

3138-ITW1.jpg.jpeg

1614272500_material-jpg.jpeg

1340-PANORAMIQUE.jpg.jpeg

mm1-jpg-467.jpeg

8555-MM2.jpg.jpeg

5969-MM3.jpg.jpeg

613-MM4.jpg.jpeg

4188-ITW2.jpg.jpeg

4937-PORTRAIT.jpg.jpeg

Fernando Marmolejo Hernández is the son of master goldsmith Fernando Marmolejo Camargo, and grew up surrounded by goldsmithing from a very young age. As a child, he frequented his father's workshop and played with the tools. "I did not choose this craft, it chose me. It was my destiny. I am very happy with what I do," says Fernando, who began as an apprentice in the traditional way, running errands for the workshop, holding pieces for the journeymen, and learning by watching. "When I was 15 years old I was sent to my father's new workshop in the centre of Seville, a workshop-showroom of which I was responsible, attending to customers and managing new orders," he says. "I worked in my father's workshop for about 37 years. Later, when my father and teacher passed away, I made the decision to become independent from the family workshop and opened my own in 2007."

Marmolejo Hernández, Fernando

Pursuing a family legacy

PROF

INT1

CENTER

INT2

An admirer of Spanish silverware from the 17th and 18th centuries, Jesús Domínguez is a Sevillian artisan who has been running the Orfebrería Domínguez workshop for more than thirty years. The workshop was founded by his father in 1945 and he started as an apprentice in 1986 at the age of 19. Since then, he has not stopped working with metals. Seville's great goldsmith tradition has influenced the work of craftsmen like Jesús. One of the first objects he made when he took over the workshop was a gold dagger for the Brotherhood of Soledad de San Lorenzo in Seville. What he likes most about his work is the methodology of all the phases and seeing the final result. For him a good silversmith must know how to pause, measure, look and check with the design. "Perfection must be the goal," says Jesús.

Dominguez Machuca, Jesus

Perfecting a family heritage

1653290705_about-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_itw1-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_itw2-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_mm1-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_mm2-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_mm3-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_mm4-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_mm5-jpg.jpeg

1653290705_portrait-jpg.jpeg

Your authorizations

Developed in partnership with Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte and made possible by the support of Cartier, Homo Faber in Città gives you a rare chance to visit over 70 artisan workshops. The project is developed in collaboration with Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Confartigianato Imprese Venezia, CNA Venezia, Consorzio Promovetro Murano, The Venice Glass Week and Venezia da Vivere.

Our Partners

Step inside the workshops and ateliers to learn the secrets of local master artisans and manufacturers

Try your hand at different crafts with an authentic experience

Marvel at examples of fine craftsmanship by doing our itineraries

This september, the second edition of Homo Faber in Città invites visitors to step off the beaten track and discover the artisanal addresses where Venetian craftspeople create objects of exquisite beauty. A rare opportunity to witness Venice’s master artisans and young talents demonstrating their crafts and presenting the tools, materials and skills involved in contemporary Venetian craftsmanship.

Enrich your experience beyond Homo Faber 2024: The Journey of Life

Account and data history

Name

Homo Faber Guide is an online portal dedicated to contemporary craftsmanship, showcasing artisans, ateliers, museums, galleries, shops and experiences. Create your user account for access to exclusive features on Homo Faber Guide: save your preferred pages, hear about hot topics first, leave recommendations for your favourite artisans and much more.

Create your account

Although the Michelangelo Foundation researches the talents for its projects autonomously, collaboration with our ambassadors is fundamental. Over 120 associations, schools and institutions allow us to map the continents for craftsmanship and to have partners in each country who share our vision and goals. In addition, we have asked well-known personalities in the craft, design and art world to be our ambassadors in the cities where they live, so that their recommendations can offer a unique insight into craftsmanship in the major cities of Europe and beyond.

Who are our ambassadors?

Download our free Homo Faber Guide app (iOS and Android) to discover artisans, museums, galleries, shops, and experiences by location. Search Homo Faber on the App store on your mobile device.

Find craftsmanship destinations on the go

Discover the addresses of esteemed manufacturers, well known for producing high quality objects across a wide variety of crafts. Read their stories and find out where you can shop their contemporary pieces, see their archive collections and even in some cases visit their workshops. Find exceptional ateliers where artisans collaborate creatively to create fine pieces of craftsmanship. Reach out to them to commission something special.

Ateliers & Manufacturers

All the artisans and small workshops featured in Homo Faber Guide have been carefully researched and selected. They are presented and narrated through a selection of images and an interview, which allows readers to immerse themselves in the universe of these makers who exemplify excellence in their individual fields or are promising talents of the future. Find masters and rising stars who share the same passion and determination, and whose workshops are ready to share their secrets with visitors.

A selection of the best artisans

Are you eager to discover a city through craftsmanship? Do you wish to spend a few hours visiting an applied arts museum or attending a course on a craft with one of the masters featured in Homo Faber Guide? Browse the section dedicated to experiences and find your next adventure.

Experiences

An expert artisan is an accomplished artisan who has been in activity for more than ten years. He or she may also be engaged in passing on their knowledge to the next generations, but they have been doing so for less than seven years. Beyond this, they will become a Master artisan.

Who is an Expert artisan?

Homo Faber Guide provides you with a selection of the best addresses across Europe and further afield, where you will be able to discover and purchase exceptional objects, some of which are created by artisans featured in Homo Faber Guide.

Galleries

Homo Faber Guide is an online platform dedicated to craftsmanship that allows you to discover artisans and their masterpieces; explore museums, visit galleries and shops selling unique objects; enjoy experiences in cities across Europe and beyond.

Homo Faber Guide is a signature project developed by the Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship, an international non-profit organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, which was set up in 2016 thanks to the intuition of Franco Cologni and Johann Rupert. The Michelangelo Foundation’s mission is to celebrate and preserve master craftsmanship, and for this reason it has created a map of the most significant representatives in this field, with the aim of connecting all its protagonists: artisans, designers, gallery owners, art curators, collectors and enthusiasts of high-quality handmade pieces.

About the Guide

Are you an artisan, atelier or manufacturer? Would you like to be featured in Homo Faber Guide? The Michelangelo Foundation encourages self-assessment initiatives and is pleased to evaluate new members to appear on the Guide or in other projects. Thanks to the Master’s Touch Evaluation Tool, every artisan can send their application: register and access a questionnaire to see if you fulfill the 11 criteria for excellence that stand behind all the activities of the Michelangelo Foundation. If your answers reach the minimum requirement, your application will be brought to our attention; if, on the contrary, you should score below the minimum requirement, we will give you some points for improvement, in the hope that you may participate in future initiatives of the Michelangelo Foundation.

Join the Homo Faber Guide!

Our artisan labels

A master artisan is an accomplished artisan who has been in activity for more than ten years, and who has also been engaged in passing on his or her expertise to the younger generations for more than seven years. This is in keeping with one of the key values of the Michelangelo Foundation: the transmission of knowledge in craftsmanship.

Who is a Master artisan?

Find museums handpicked for their links to contemporary craftsmanship and the exquisite collections they have on display. In each city, discover a museum of interest and organise your visit. From Italian museums displaying coral collections, glass pieces and ceramics to decorative art museums in Russia and Greece, marvel at the variety of museums exhibiting masterpieces, showcasing techniques and recounting histories.

Museums

A rising star is an artisan who has been active for less than ten years, and who is capable of expressing his or her craft with competence, creativity and originality. Whether self-taught or trained, the rising star represents the future of craftsmanship, in creativity, concerns and approaches.

Who is a Rising star?

The artisans featured in Homo Faber Guide have been selected through a meticulous assessment process based on the 11 criteria for excellence, identified by Alberto Cavalli, Executive Director of the Michelangelo Foundation, in the volume The Master’s Touch, written with researchers Giuditta Comerci and Giovanna Marchello. The members of the Michelangelo Foundation’s network who have been invited to participate in sourcing artisans for the Guide use an evaluation tool based on these criteria. In this way, they can identify the most suitable artisans to include in the project.

Simple rules for a transparent selection

In which city does the artisan work?

In which country does the artisan practise?

What craft does the artisan practise?

What is the artisan’s Instagram page?

What is the name of the artisan you are recommending?

Does the artisan have a website?

Hello, I thought you would be interested in this ambassador of crafts I found on Homo Faber Guide:

Hello, I invite you to explore craft through the Homo Faber App:

Hello, I thought you would be interested in this craft experience I found on Homo Faber Guide:

Hello, I thought you would be interested in this craft venue I found on Homo Faber Guide:

Hello, I thought you would be interested in this craft discovery itinerary I found on Homo Faber Guide:

Hello, I thought you would be interested in this handcrafted object I found on Homo Faber Guide: