THE W GALLERY FEATURE ARTIST

Katerina Anastasiou

Profile

Jewelry Designer: Katerina Anastasiou

Location: Athens, Greece

Experience: 14+ years

Materials: marble, clay, pebbles or venetian glass tiles (smalti), silver

Influences: Nature and natural forms, cultures of ancient societies.

Connect: Website, Facebook, Instagram

I was born in Athens. After graduating in 2000 from the University of Economics in Athens (degree in Business Management), i moved to Italy to study the art of mosaic in Scuola Mosaicisti del Friuli, the only renowned school worldwide teaching this traditional craft. During my three year course I studied both traditional and contemporary techniques, and I had the opportunity to explore the capabilities of mosaics. I collaborated with well known and established architects and mosaic experts on projects around the world.
In 2004 I returned to Athens and I set up my artistic studio, whilst I also started studying painting in the traditional byzantine manner, free hand drawing and silversmithing, in order to expand my knowledge and to be able to apply it and incorporate these art forms in my mosaic creations. Since I am continuing to experiment with the language, form, thematology and materials as well as the scale and functionality of mosaics. I have completed a plethora of projects in mosaic, some of which were site-specific (compositions for a specific space) and I have presented several collections of jewelry and small sculptures/objects (mixed media, embedded mosaic). I have presented my work in art galleries, design & museum shops as well as private commissions.

The materials that I use are varied depending on the form that I strive to achieve from natural stones such as marble, clay, pebbles or venetian glass tiles (smalti). All the materials are “cut” by hand in the traditional techniques ie with the hammer called martellina and an anvil, following the techniques of embediment.

Interesting Fact: Each piece is created as part of a whole that relate is striving to find its place in the narrative of the opposites: motion and stability, abstract forms and figurative representation, fluidity and constraint.
This path of inspiration has lead me to test the limits of each of the materials hence leading the way for the finished piece.
I am approaching each of these contemporary jewelry pieces as wearable art, using a “static” technique as the mosaic and transferring into a transportable form.
The balance of the textures, the reflections of the light and the pure color, are aiming at bringing you the joy as you wear a piece of traditional craftsmanship and contemporary design.