Further Research : Meaty Fashion

After a lot of consideration about my own final piece I have started experimentingwith raw meat.

Here is a few examples of the use of meat in today’s couture fashion.

Looking at the organic forms and textures created by Bauer I wondered about an equally organic material to express that kind of inspiration.

Meat seems to be perceived as controversial but it is slowly gaining popularity.

Icon in Meat

Meaty Fashion successfully draws attention to many serious issues including animal cruelty. The newest Jeremy Scott’s collection uses some artificial ham to reinforce the idea.

And, of course, Lady Gaga did not fail to shock wearing her truly meaty outfit complete with a head piece, handbag and a pair of heels.

Margaux Lange - Barbie Jewellery

Margaux Lange is one of my favourite jewellery designers, at this point in time.

Her work is also related to the body but this time from a different perspective – practically the opposite of organic.

Lange looks at the mass production aspect of Barbie Dolls and their iconic influence over the way the perfect body is perceived.

Ela Bauer - Degree Show Work

I feel that it is really important to highlight her initial ideas of jewellery design and how challenging her perception of our discipline was and is, continuously.

These initial pieces show the artist’s reflection upon what jewellery really is or is supposed to be.

The pieces presented at Rietveld Academy argue with the idea that jewels have toadore the body in a decorative way.

Projects : First we Quake, Now we Shake

Apart from making jewellery, Ela Bauer, with some help from fellow designers organized an international exhibition aimed at creating links between jewelers from around the World.

The exhibitions gathers contemporary jewellery from many countries and it travels from one art gallery to the next visiting: Amsterdam, Tokyo, Munich, Stockholm and Bern.

Projects: Novajoia – Creative SPA in Brasil

Ela travelled all the way to Sao Paulo to give a lecture about souvenirs and their connections to jewellery design.

She participated in a series of workshops which were focused around the idea of taking part in a journey and forming memories as the result.

Many interesting pieces of exiting, anti-cliché souvenirs got constructed and exhibited during a symposium called BOOMSP design.

Projects : Troost (Consolation)

Another highly valuable project that Bauer participated in was organized by Arte Libera from Geneva. The exposition was centered around the idea of childhood protection.

Ela’s pieces made for this are ones of my favorites.The materials that the designer has used for this project are mostly found objects, which were abandoned and forgotten, just like the lost children, the central idea behind the whole exhibition.

Projects : Prix Europeen des arts appliques

Ela Bauer is very open and exited about taking part in International Jewellery and Art Projects as well as collaborations and workshops.

One of the most successful exhibitions, she has taken part in so far was entitled:

European Prize For Applied Arts.

Bauer’s work was selected as a poster piece and distributed throughout the city of Bergen in Belgium.

The brooch she designed and made managed to publicize the exhibition very well and this collaboration was truly unforgettable for the designer.

Inspiration - Ela Bauer

The main source of inspiration for Bauer is the human body and nature.

Her designs mirror the organic. They seem to have a heart beat.

They shock with tissue like textures and keep developing themselves with the speed of the body.

A series of heart inspired jewellery.

Personally, I find it very moving and the process of creation of these pieces is fascinating, with connections to shamanism.

The hand-made element reinforces the artists concept.

Materials and techniques

Ela Bauer

The designer is continuously exploring the possibilities the plastics provide in jewellery design :

• Silicone – rubber

• Wool

• Fabric

• Copper Mash

• Latex

• Thread

And Porcelain

Only very occasionally does the designer use silver or other precious metals.

The same applies to precious stones, minerals and materials like glass and coral.

She plays with her materials for as long as necessary to achieve the kind of results she has planned for the piece.

Invention is central to her creative process.

A contemporary jewellery designer, but is that all… ?

Ela Bauer

Ela started her literature studies in Israel, in the city of Tel Aviv and after graduating, she decided to continue her education.



This time, she chose to explore Jewellery Design at the local Technical School.



The next step for the designer was to move to Amsterdam, to Rietveld Academy, where her adventure with Plastics started.

Object ’95 :

silicone – rubber

latex

fabric

pigments