Amberif – Gdansk (Poland) – Amberif – Gdansk (Poland) –Design Award & Fair : 19-22 Mars 2014

AMBERIF – International Fair of Amber, Jewellery and Gemstones

 

Amberif Design Award 2014 – exhibition of the award-winning works in the International Amber Jewellery Design Competition theme of 2014 : “Materia Prima”

The watchword of this year’s Amberif Design Award is not just the alchemic representation of the primal substance able to take on the perfect form but also a direct reference to the contemporary idea of sustainability in design which respects local tradition, refers to the historical heritage of functional arts and elevates natural materials. Prized already in ancient Rome, Baltic amber is predisposed, as a substance close to the ideal, to be transformed into an original design. The unique nature of each individual nugget has always provoked artists to look for the right form, interpret associations, make use of its internal structure, colours, shades, transparencies and natural peculiarities preserved for the lucky finder over the past 40 million years. In an era of disposable products, it is sometimes worthwhile to look back to pre-history and fix your sight on the elusive aspects of both the physical and the metaphysical. The material, the medium itself usually gives designers a hint towards their first decisions; let us try to listen to this hint and follow through with it. We expect jewellery (without any functional limitations at all) in which the amber will be a remarkably strong justification for highlighting its most natural properties.Prof. Sławomir Fijałkowski

At the session of February 15, 2014 in Gdańsk, the Jury assessed 143 works submitted by 111 artists from 18 countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Brazil, China, Czech Republic, Germany, India, Iran, Italy, Mexico, The Netherlands, Poland, Russia , Spain, Taiwan, UK, USA in the Competition with the topic Materia Prima.

THE GRAND PRIZE
sponsored by Mr Paweł Adamowicz, the Mayor of the City of Gdańsk PLN 10,000:

Nina Kupniewska – Dario Dalessandro, Warsaw, Poland

This is a potent and brave piece – funny, uncomfortable, serious and maybe controversial.
It prompts discussion about our attitudes toward menstruation. In the past, this has been considered unmentionable, embarrassing, even dirty, although it is a natural and healthy process, fundamental to human life. Amber, hidden in the ground for so long, has an association of time and the mysteries of natural processes. Displaying the tampon in such a beautiful material potentially stands for a positive change in attitude.

THE AMBER PRIZE

sponsored by the International Amber Association 1 kg of amber:
Tomasz Jan Kisiel, Gdańsk, Poland

The piece relates to the Materia Prima theme of the competition in a very convincing way.
An iconic necklace which is made special by the contrasting materials used. The qualities of the natural amber are highlighted by the contrast with the texture and colour of the other rough beads. There was much discussion about what these were made of. Tufa? Concrete? Bread?

  THE SILVER PRIZE

sponsored by the KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. 1 kg of silver:
Maren Giloy, Idar-Oberstein, Germany
The beautiful natural amber nugget has been exquisitely cut to form the regular shape of
a necklace. The artist perfectly tapped into amber’s natural assets, i.e. transparency, the tree crust effect and the proportions of the nugget. By deconstructing the upper part, the designer achieved an intriguing effect of contrast between shape and texture. The Jury acknowledged the artist’s meticulous knowledge of amber as a material and the use of unconventional techniques to transform the commonplace shape of the necklace-amulet into a piece that is both avant-garde and elegant.

 

The Jury decided to award six honorary mentions which evoke what the topic of Materia Prima brings to mind :
* Miron Kutarba, Puck, Poland for entry no. 021609
An intriguing combination of amber—a mixture of natural polymers, with plastic—artificial polymer chains.
*  Tamara Grüner, Pforzheim, Germany for entry no. 290473
Delightful piece, rich in detail and an unusual use of amber.
* Agnieszka Krzyżanowska, Bydgoszcz, Poland for entry no. 121106
For its graceful form and distinctive structure evocative of the natural conditions in which amber formed.
* Agnieszka Krzyżanowska, Bydgoszcz, Poland for entry no. 061112
Materia Prima—amber is central in more than one sense here. A very appealing and mysterious piece.
* Philip Sajet, Bruchkobel, Germany for entry no. 151053
For simplicity of message, the quintessence of amber encapsulated in a ring.
* Susanne Holzinger – Regensburg, Germany for entry no. 936717
High quality presentation with a surprising and cheeky use of amber.

Philip Sajet -  Amber Gluering

 

Susanne Holzinger

 

The Jury selected 14 further works by the following artists for publication in the AMBERIF 2014 Fair Catalogue and for display at the exhibition:
Karolina Krych, Mikołajki Pomorskie, Poland for entry no. 240488
Karolina Navus Wysocka, Gdańsk, Poland for entry no. 789156
Marta Rudnicka, Łódź, Poland for entry no. 840328
Adriana Lisowska, Łódź, Poland for entry no. 836274
Iona Mccuaig, Saffron Walden, UK for entry no. 792031
Alicja Kołakowska, Pruszków, Poland for entry no. 361903
Tamara Grüner, Pforzheim, Germany for entry no. 290474
Wanying Xu, Florence, Italy for entry no. XYZ993
Heidemarie Herb, Perugia, Italy for entry no. 281000
Sara Gackowska, Międzychód, Poland for entry no. 710342
Piotr Tołkin, Gdańsk, Poland for entry no. 280813
Adriana Lisowska, Łódź, Poland for entry no. 233715
Monika Woszczak, Bydgoszcz, Poland for entry no. 230720
Karolina Krych, Mikołajki Pomorskie, Poland for entry no. 041010

Heidemarie Herb Brooch: Untitled, 2013 925 Silver, raw amber, steel, pigment 4 x 5,5 x 1,5 cm Photo: Silvana Tili

 

 

 

Amberif 2014, Gdańsk International Fair Co.
11 Zaglowa Street
80-560 – Gdansk
Poland
Telephone: [phone]