Vered Kaminski / Sand in a Bottle
Gallery Loupe is proud to present SAND IN A BOTTLE / Vered Kaminski, comprised of selections from Vered Kaminski: Artificial Stones, an exhibition held at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art from June 9 – November 28, 2015.
Kaminski, one of Israel’s most prominent artist-jewelers, was awarded the 2014 Andy Prize for Contemporary Crafts, which included a solo exhibition at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, and accompanying catalog. Her latest pieces explore rocks – both natural and artificial – with which Kaminski makes brooches and pendants featuring “stones” of cement, sand, pigment and glue, as well as actual stones, or some combination of both. Due to her exemplary craftsmanship, these fissured rock formations – whether real or fabricated – appear interchangeable.
Concrete, cast into molds that mimic genuine rock, or metal molds, similar to those used in forming terrazzo floor tiles, is used for several pieces. Cuff bracelets depict camels, palm trees, or abstract patterns; some brooches are circular or take the shape of a Star of David, while others – most notably a long, graduated necklace – recall ancient eye imagery. Additional pieces portray female athletes, oases, flowers, and trompe-l’oeil surfaces.
Tangential to the main exhibition will be jewelry from series throughout Kaminski’s illustrious career including Natural Stones, composed of rocks collected all over Israel as well as other parts of the world, which she affixes within twisted wire lattices or chains, to construct brooches and necklaces with strong personal associations; Metal Mosaics; Mosaic Loops; Soap Bubbles; Mobiles; Spaceframes; Wire Loops; Branching; and Nets.
Process is the entry point to understanding Kaminski’s practice. She delights in detail and often follows a mathematical approach to jewelry-making. Kaminski employs the meditative aspects of repetition to create delicately intricate structures that feature meandering wire lines and/or myriad forms found in her homeland, for which she utilizes diverse materials – both precious and plain. The pieces often have architectural associations, such as fencing, or ornamental connections that sometimes channel Islamic tracery, as a way of acknowledging her Palestinian neighbors.
Kaminski holds a B.A. from Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem, Department of Gold and Silversmithing, where she is currently a professor, along with a MA from University of Paris VIII, Department of Plastic Arts; she also did graduate studies at the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam. She is the recipient of several awards including the Israel Ministry of Culture Design Prize; The Alix de Rothschild Foundation Prize for Judaica, Jerusalem; and First Prize, Crate & Barrel Israeli Product Design Award for the Home and its Surroundings. Kaminski is the 2014 recipient of the Andy (Andrea M. Bronfman) Prize for Contemporary Crafts, Israel. Her work is represented in numerous public collections, among them the Israel Museum, Jerusalem; Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris; Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich; Stedelijk Museum, Schiedam, The Netherlands; Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey; the Jewish Museum and Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; and Vydalo Okresni Museum, Turnov, Czech Republic.
SAND IN A BOTTLE/ Vered Kaminski may be viewed at Gallery Loupe, 50 Church Street, Montclair, New Jersey, from June 4 – June 30, 2016. An opening reception will be held on Saturday June 4, 2016 from 6-8pm. The evening will include a conversation with Vered Kaminski and Ulysses Grant Dietz, Chief Curator and Curator of Decorative Arts, Newark Museum.