Juliette Lindup. Universiteit Stellenbosch University. New Talents Award Nominee 2026

Name of graduation student: Juliette Lindup
Name of guiding teachers: Carine Terreblanche, Mariambibi Khan, Joani Groenewald, Luché Oberholzer.

Nominated by Universiteit Stellenbosch University​.


Juliette's work bridges biology and contemporary jewellery, bringing the invisible world of the human microbiome into tangible, wearable form. Inspired by her research and personal experiences, she creates jewellery that reimagines the body as a living ecosystem, inviting us to reflect on our deep interconnectedness with the countless microorganisms that shape our lives. Her practice transforms complex scientific ideas into poetic objects that inspire curiosity, wonder, and a renewed appreciation for the unseen worlds within us.
/ Luché Oberholzer


Artist statement
My practice uses contemporary jewellery to reveal the intimate relationships between humans and the microbial life that shapes our bodies, health, and sense of self. Informed by microbiome research, I challenge the idea of microbes as enemies, instead celebrating them as collaborators in the continual making of human life. Worn against the skin, each piece becomes a meeting place between body and environment, self and other, transforming hidden biological processes into moments of reflection, connection, and wonder, while inviting new ways of imagining coexistence with the more-than-human world.


Summary of the Master thesis
The Extended Self: Art Jewellery as a Signifier for Human-Microbe Entanglement

My practice explores the invisible relationships between humans and the vast microbial world that exists within and around us. Through contemporary jewellery, I investigate how microorganisms shape our bodies, our health, and our understanding of identity. I am fascinated by the idea that we are not singular, autonomous beings but living ecosystems, continually formed through our relationships with countless non-human organisms. This perspective challenges traditional ideas of the body as separate from nature, instead inviting us to see ourselves as deeply interconnected with the living world.

Scientific discoveries surrounding the human microbiome have transformed the way I understand the body. Learning that microorganisms play an essential role in immune function, development, and overall well-being has prompted me to question the long-held perception of microbes as invisible enemies. Instead, I see them as collaborators who contribute to our vitality and existence. My work seeks to make these unseen relationships visible, encouraging a greater appreciation for the delicate balance that sustains life.

Contemporary jewellery provides an intimate and powerful medium through which to explore these ideas. Worn directly on the body, jewellery becomes an extension of the self, occupying both the realm of the private and the public simultaneously. As a threshold object, jewellery is uniquely suited to communicating concepts surrounding the body, identity, and human connection. Each piece invites the wearer into a physical and conceptual dialogue with the invisible microbial communities that continually shape who we are.

My creative process begins with scientific research and microscopic imagery, using photographs of bacteria, fungi, immune cells, and other microorganisms as visual starting points. These forms are transformed through drawing, digital modelling, and experimentation with materials into wearable sculptures that evoke biological structures without directly replicating them. I combine traditional jewellery materials with unconventional media such as silicone, resin, bioplastics, enamel, and polymer clay to create forms that suggest permeability, growth, fragility, and entanglement. The contrast between organic and manufactured materials reflects the constant negotiation between sterility and microbial vitality, permanence and change.

Personal experiences with chronic illness and the disruption of my own microbiome have profoundly influenced my practice. Through this experience, I came to recognise the body as a fragile ecosystem whose health depends upon balance rather than control. Making has become a way of understanding these invisible processes while transforming scientific knowledge into tactile, emotional experiences. Jewellery allows me to bridge the gap between scientific inquiry and lived experience, creating objects that invite curiosity, conversation, and reflection.

Ultimately, my work seeks to foster greater ethics of care towards the more-than-human world. By making the invisible visible, I hope to encourage viewers to reconsider their relationship with microorganisms and recognise that human life is inseparable from the countless forms of life that coexist with us. My jewellery is an invitation to imagine the body not as an isolated individual but as a dynamic, evolving ecology, one shaped by collaboration, interdependence, and continual becoming. Through this perspective, I hope to inspire a deeper sense of wonder for the unseen worlds that sustain us and the intricate entanglements that define what it means to be alive.


Contact:
Email: juliettepeta@gmail.com


Find out more about Universiteit Stellenbosch University​