Spot the Designer - Svetlana Prigoditch/ Netherlands
What did you want to be when you were a child?
When I was a child, I dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer or an actress.
When have you started creating jewelry? How did this passion come about?
From the outset of my career, I constantly explored new media and challenges in performance, sculpture and drawing, and always strived to exhibit the most relevant works. In 2016, while studying at Sint Lucas Art Academy in Antwerp I discovered my new passion: contemporary jewelry, and have kept creating jewelry art since then. My pieces are inspired by cinematography, literature, found objects, fragrances and natural patterns.
What was your first project or significant piece for you and from what point of view?
The project where I have started combining jewelry with perfume.
The CinemAromatique Classic Collection was inspired by the fragrant substances and based on among other French, Italian and Russian movies from the decades of the 20th century. The outcome and center of the collection is a series of brooches. Each piece resembles a small filmstrip, layering multiple cutouts from the movies creating a 3D effect.
How do you charge your batteries? What other passions and creative interests do you have?
At the moment I'm studying aromatherapie, visiting botanical gardens, enjoying live concerts and following dance classes.
What does the connection between manufacturing tradition and contemporary design mean to you?
Contemporary jewelry is a good example where art and craft need each other and work perfectly together. I think this is very unique.
Is there a self-portrait piece that speaks most about you?
Necklace ‘The blue hour’ 2021
The blue hour is a particular moment of the day when the dying light has not yet given way to darkness, or the dawn has not yet broken the veil of night. I have translated this phenomenon into the object through the dry flower petals,…still beautiful after corporeal wilting, but the essence, aroma and their breath is still alive. There is no death, just a transition with silence in-between.
The scent inside my work I could describe as dark and fresh. Wet earth, warm aroma’s of exotic flowers and herbs with a hint of ozonic undertones.
Which material have you not yet used is a temptation and a challenge for you?
I would like to find the right way to braid with dried vanilla beans.
How was the pandemic period for you as a jewelry designer?
During the pandemic I started reading books about fashion, anthropology and philosophy, in combination with the study of aromatherapie. This knowledge helped me to make a better conceptual research on the jewelry and understand the raw materials I'm using for perfume compositions better.
How do you see the future of contemporary jewelry?
I'm very enthusiastic about the future of contemporary jewelry. There are still so many ways to explore this medium! It's not just a decoration, but a personal statement, being weird on the body like an art work on the wall.
