Cover Photo: Mondadori via Getty Images
Photo: Mondadori via Getty Images
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Brenda Kang of Revival Jewels & Objects introduces four modern jewellery masters that we should be keeping our eyes on
When you think of jewellery that will stand the test of time, one’s mind inevitably wanders to top heritage brands like Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Bulgari, Chaumet and more. But a new contemporary crop of jewellery masters is growing to rival these burnished brands, each with its own collective of dedicated, discerning fans that snap up their eye-wateringly beautiful creations, as Brenda Kang, founder of Revival Jewels and Objects, Singapore’s first and only vintage jewellery boutique, tells us.
“During this pandemic period, there was a time when it was really hard for me to find jewellery that really got me excited,” Kang says. “So, I started to think about the next collectible pieces in contemporary jewellery; which ones will hold their value, and that will still stand the test of time 50 or a 100 years down the road.”
See also: The Rise of Coloured Gemstones and How To Wear Them
The result is an exhibition that brings four of these masters—namely JAR, Bhagat, Hemmerle and Forms—together for the first time in Singapore, through which Kang aims to introduce these cult favourites to a wider audience. “I strongly believe in these jewellery houses and what they’re doing; the way that they’re making that jewellery; the way that they are putting it across,” she explains. “I think it’s very different from what most of the other brands are doing, and also from all of the other contemporary jewellers that we’re seeing.”
Here, Kang shares why these four artist-jewellers are the ones to keep your eye on, and why you should be seriously considering adding their pieces to your jewellery collection.
JAR
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Who: JAR (aka Joel Arthur Rosenthal)
Why: “JAR is actually quite rare to find today, his pieces—they make about 120 in a year. It’s kind of a cult brand in a way,” Kang says. “It’s not easily available, unless you try to find it at auction. He was actually selling needlepoint before he became a jeweller. So his eye for colours and details is really quite obvious, especially in this piece [left], when you look in the back as well, the way that he set it: it looks a bit like crochet or knots in the back, with how he’s done the setting. It’s very much a signature style of JAR—in terms of making sure that the back is just as beautiful as the front, and the combination of the colours.”
We love: The way that the designer boldly uses vivid coloured gemstones (most of them fabulously large) and the Art Deco-inspiration of the piece.
Bhagat
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Who: Bhagat
Why: “He’s really known to pick the best stones to put into the designs. And he’s known for his invisible setting in a way you can’t see much of the prongs. He likes to make stones look like they’re floating and have that very ethereal quality—very much the style of Bhagat in terms of the finesse of finishing,” Kang tells us.
We love: Bhagat is one of those brands that you have to experience. The pieces are exquisitely luscious and innovative in their design, on top of their unparalleled gemstone selections—qualities that will be sure to stand the test of time.
See also: September 2021: What’s New in Jewellery
Hemmerle
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Who: Hemmerle
Why: “[Hemmerle] is one of the highlights for me,” Kang says. “I feel like it’s so wonderful to see jewellery as a form of art, in a way, and as wearable art. Having that sort of vintage versus modern being married so well together, I feel like that it’s something that I find very rare, and difficult to find today.”
We love: The brand’s innovative approach to materials and attention to details. Using rare materials such as dendritic agate, micro-mosaics from the 1800s, and ancient coins, and contrasting them with German precision in designing these pieces in steel, copper and iron, it’s a technical marvel to say the least.
Forms
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Who: Forms
Why: “Forms is basically the youngest baby of the group, but they have actually been around for 10 years. The Hong Kong-based company was founded in 2010 by Tzvika Janover and Elad Assor, and they work with a team of Russians, as well as Hong Kongers. They have revamped their path in the last three or four years, in the kind of jewellery that they made,” Kang enthuses. “They’re only just coming out. Compared to all the other three brands, they’re very new, but I liked that they’re trying to work on different things. I love how it’s luxurious, but yet so wearable, and so contemporary, and not like anything that I’ve ever seen before.”
We love: The organic shapes and dramatic forms (pardon the pun) that the jewellery takes on, and paired with their immaculate stones and cuts, their pieces make for fantastic additions to the modern jewellery connoisseur’s collection.
See also: The World’s Last Argyle Pink Diamonds Are Now Up for Grabs
The Modern Masters: 21st Century Masterpiece Jewels Exhibition runs from now till September 17, 2021 at Revival Jewels Singapore, 501 Orchard Rd, #04-05B, Wheelock Place, Singapore 23880. By appointment only.
Pakkee Tan is the Executive Editor of Tatler Singapore. He is responsible for overseeing the editorial output of Tatler Singapore’s print magazine, website, digital strategy, commissioning and editing features and news stories, as well as overseeing Tatler Singapore’s video and social media channels. He has previously worked at Singapore’s top media titles including Vogue Singapore, Harper’s Bazaar Singapore and E! Online Asia. Follow him on Instagram at @pakkee.
