Interview with Shana Teugels

Do you think that jewelry is being standardized?
Maybe standardizing is quiet a negative way to put it, but from my brief experience i feel there is a certain pressure to keep up with new technologies and materials on one hand and staying in a constant flow of creating what is seen as 'contemporary jewelry' on the other hand. So, yes, i think there are standards being set by the older, avant-garde generation, that have to be either dealt with or competed/broken with. Both ways are interesting and worth trying.

What is there of local and universal in your artistic work?
I grew up in Antwerp, the city of fashion. I think my work has a typical Belgian progressive feel to it combined with the dramatic characteristics of the Antwerp fashion scene. So much for local. It's the meaning of the shapes and the atmosphere they breathe that rises questions about beauty and ugliness, about taste. And when it comes to jewelry, definitely in the western world, doesn't it often come to a discussion about taste? That's what makes my pieces somehow universal.

What do you expect when exposing your work to the public (for example with an exhibition)?
A discussion about beauty and about the appropriate size of jewelry. The spectator, first suspicious - yet tempted to touch the pieces and eventually trying them on - becomes the wearer. The surprise factor of the pieces being an object at first glimpse, yet designed to be perfectly wearable. Luckily situations do not always turn out as expected. The way you feel or the way the public reacts depends on so many factors, it's hard to draw any conclusions in advance.

Are other areas besides the jewelry, present in your work?
I derive my inspiration from my surroundings. By which I don't mean the city, or the view out of my window. I get inspired by watching pictures of cute bunnies, walking over the fair, making healthy desserts and shopping at toy-stores. The content of my pieces are the sum of many of the things I love. Amongst my studies in jewelry design, i've built up a certain amount of knowledge in fine art & aesthetics, something which has directly influenced my work. My works are situated on the thin line between jewelry, objects and sculptures.

The last work, book, film, that has moved me was...
The documentary film 'Earth'.

A place, space, country whose creativity surprises me...
I don't have to go very far. I think Belgium is a country that houses a lot of extremely talented artists in all creative domains. But our culture is steeped in modesty and that is not always a virtue.

Is there any designer, jeweller, artist, you appreciate a lot?
Jeff Koons is one of my favorites. I love the fact that he himself has become a piece of his own art. His artworks have a non-bullshit attitude, they are honest. The series of his blow ups of very banal - so called 'ugly' objects - placed in the fanciest galleries and most important museums, create an honest ambiguity and vulgarity, this is something i really value. It raises questions on the role of kitsch in fine art, and the relationship between the latter, which is also of great relevance within my personal work.

What piece or work has given you the most satisfaction?
'Wild Ocean', because of how perfect the title fits the jewel.