Unearthing New European Makers for 2019

Artist list

Lluís Comín Vilajosana, Sarah Cossham, Barbara Decker, Valentine Dubois, Susanne Elstner, Pia Groh, Batho Gündra, Carsten Kissner, Gitta Pielcke, Jacqueline Ryan, Tanja Zessel

Everywhere we turned, people were approaching us, wanting to talk. It was amazing, says Ivan Barnett. Word was successfully spreading that we were looking for new talent to represent in the gallery and we were welcomed with open arms.

It was later confirmed that the Barnetts were the only visitors representing an American gallery at the fair. They were also the only American gallery to host a reception, which they did on March 17th as an opportunity to share information about Patina with interested makers.

From an American perspective, Allison and Ivan were impressed by what the European jewelry scene had to offer. European makers are very advanced with thought-out experimental work. They are refreshingly avant-garde and treat the material with knowledge and refinement in their craft, adds Ivan Barnett. They are home to very sophisticated craft schools and have impressively preserved the Guild System, evolving it for a new community of makers in art jewelry and craft.

Artists that have joined Patina as a result of the fair hail from different countries in Europe and possess diverse design aesthetics. Artist Sarah Cossham is fascinated by the process of submerging precious gemstones into liquid high karat gold to form her compositions of earrings, rings and necklaces. Valentine Dubois’ strong, minimal design in wearable adornment captivated the Barnetts immediately. Pia Groh works with agate and nephrite jade, drills into the form to create circular shapes which then create the foundation of her abstract pieces, most often in the form of necklaces. More jewelry artists to join Patina are Christiane Iken, Gitta Pielcke, Barbara Decker, among others. Pielcke’s husband, Erich Zimmermann, is a well-known jeweler who has been represented by Patina for many years. Each maker is dedicated to innovating their field of practice and brings their own experience and perspective to the gallery.

We were in search of great beauty, and what we found was an array of incredible, unusual and beautiful works from artists all over the continent, concludes Ivan Barnett. These works possess great craftsmanship, strong design and interesting use of materials, all of which will comprise an inspiring collection to show in July. These artists will be great to work with, and when it comes down to it, it’s about the relationships. Patina has always held a deep commitment and respect to our artists and we couldn’t be happier with how this unfolded. It’s new work we are confident our collectors will love, it’s work to expose to a new generation of Patina collectors and it’s perfect for our evolution into the next 20 years.