By infusing geometric, architectural and spiritual aspects to their creations, Eina Ahluwalia, Eishita Puri and Suhani Parekh make jewellery that’s minimal, timeless and elegant.
Eina Ahluwalia
cM Loves: The latest collection, ‘Awake’ has semi-precious stones and healing crystals set in 18k rose gold that can be personalised. An older collection has pieces that have inscriptions of love and peace – available in Hindi, English and Urdu. If you’re looking for jewellery that’s just not for ornamentation but a form of self expression, this is it!
How did it all start? “In 2003 I realised that the corporate life wasn’t for me. I wanted to do something creative, even though I knew it was a risk. I consulted at a jewellery factory for a few years where I learnt about jewellery making from the artisans, along with running my own brand and eventually did courses at Florence, Chiang Mai and Amsterdam. So I started working with jewellery artisans to create contemporary, organic, minimal, geometric silver jewellery because all you got in the Indian market at that time was either traditional or tribal silver jewellery.”
What’s your inspiration? “My search for meaning in my work lead me to discover the world of conceptual art jewellery just by chance, and it felt like coming home. Conceptual jewellery is where the concept or the idea is most important, and the jewellery is just a way to tell the story. Such jewellery is not bound by faction or commerce, and is evaluated, like fine art, for its ideas, inventions, intuitions, and content rather than for its precious materials or conformity to tradition. My inspiration is most often life and my interaction with it. There is a strong element of activism in my work, and I use it to speak of things that need to be said and voices that need to be heard. There is also a spiritual undertone to most of my pieces. There is a need to communicate love, encouragement and share strength, power and a sense of justice. People inspire me more than anything else. Ordinary people who show extraordinary empathy, kindness, strength and courage inspire me.”
Price range: INR 1,650 to INR 35,000
Available at: www.einaahluwalia.com / Eina Ahluwalia Studio – Kolkata, By Appointment +91 9831059125
Eurumme by Eishita Puri
cM Loves: The minimal and geometric designs that can be worn from morning to night.
How did it start? “An inherent love for out of the box, eye catching jewellery, that is striking but minimal. That, coupled with the urge to create a unique accessories label – one that is driven by off beat conceptualisation and design, and garners a niche market.”
What’s your inspiration? “Every day life – be it a broken piece of crockery, leaves, twigs, or human behaviour! I try to find beauty in what is not typically considered beautiful as per societal norms, and create pieces that are perfectly imperfect.”
Price range: INR 1500 to INR 8000
Available at: Ogaan, Atosa, Ensemble, Evoluzione, Creo, Pernia’s Pop Up Shop, Aashni & Co.
MISHO by Suhani Parekh
cM Loves: The clean aesthetic of the ‘Sierra’ collection borrows from topography. The result? Eye-catching, gold, minimal pieces that every wardrobe needs!
How did it all start? “I studied Fine Art at Goldsmiths University in London where I predominantly worked with sculpture. I decided to wear one of the works I created and absolutely loved the way it looked and felt. And gradually started making sculptures that looked better on the body than they did on a plinth. With a little practice they became more comfortable to wear and this was very much the point of departure for Misho.”
What’s your inspiration? “The jewellery lies very much on the line that separates art and design; inspiration ranges from the Bauhaus school, Japanese Minimalism, Contemporary art and architecture. But inspiration varies, our current collection ‘Sierra’ for instance is inspired by topography – a birds eye view of the world below and traces the mountainous terrains of the surface of the earth. The pieces become reminiscent of an undulating landscape glistening like liquid gold as the collection explores organic minimalism through an architectural lens.”
Price range – INR 2,000 – INR 30,000
Available at: www.mishodesigns.com , Ogaan, Ensemble, Atosa, Clove, Nimai, Maalgaadi, Bungalow 8
Complied by: currentMood
All images courtesy: Eina Ahluwalia, Ektaa Hira and Suhani Parekh