Stone and Gem Cutting with Tarja Tuupanen in Portugal

Surely you had have been in the situation of having a stone in your hand and thinking I bet I could use this to make something beautiful. Only to think it was too big, not the right shape or just not precious enough. Or that time when you needed that stone in that shape... but couldn't find it anywhere! Well, the life of a contemporary jewelry artist is too precious not to take these moments or objects or to waste a good idea on a stone that you can't buy.


Day 1

• Safety regulations, introduction for equipment (micromotor and handtools).
• Cutting and forming with micromotor.
• Different surfaces with micromotor.
• Working with handtools (face grinding, files, papers).
• Short theory lesson about the stone as a material.

Day 2

• Short lecture about the artist’s work and examples: how the stone is used in contemporary jewellery, how to connect stone to another material.
• Participants make tryouts and develop their own project with the tutoring of the teacher.

Days 3 and 4

• Developing the students’ with own project and tryouts with the tutoring of the teacher.
• Further readings, information where stone and stone machinery can be bought.

Dates: 7 - 10 Sep 2020.
Time: 9:30-13:00 h and 14:00 to 17:30 h.
Price: 300 + 50 euros ( course + material and tools fee).
Minimum students: 6
Maximum students: 9
If there are not enough students by the 31^st of August, the course will be postponed to a later date.
Included: all tools and all stones. You are encouraged to take your own stones, to either do something in class, or to get suggestions on how to do it at home.
Language: English.


About the teacher:
Tarja Tuupanen has studied jewellery and stonework in Lappeenranta in South Carelia Polytechnic, Finland (BA 1999) and she graduated as MFA from Ädellab, Konstfack University College of Arts, Crafts and Design, (SE) in 2013. Since 1997 she has taken part in exhibitions internationally, both in group and solo shows. Teaching and promoting her own professional field have been important for Tarja, along with working as an artist. Tuupanen was one of the founding members of the Finnish Jewellery Art Association and she acted as the chairwoman in 2005-2013. She has been teaching in Finland and she has also hosted several workshops abroad in different institutions, most recently in China Academy of Arts in Hangzhou. She is a member of Hibernate-group.

Classes are held with the most separation between students. Masks are compulsory in the studio. We also try to book meals so as to be around the least people possible.