The Self-Portrait brooches were designed and commissioned by Gijs Bakker, who asked for a portrait of himself in the size of his little finger's nail. The brooches were handcrafted in gold with the traditional bas-relief chasing method. As the dimension of the portrait constituted a challenge, Max used a magnifying glass, and because some elements were smaller than the metal thickness, some features had to be very carefully ‘shaved' away out of the material..
Max Gielis trained as a silversmith and jeweller at St. Lucas School of Arts in Antwerp. For over ten years he developed a strong traditional backgrou ...
