A ring made for a Frenchman

Do you create jewellery for women or men?

This a question I have never thought about before

Sculpture by Eduardo Chillida in the hall of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam

When I told someone I was thrilled that I had sold one of my rings in a chunky men's size, I was asked the above question. In designing a piece of jewellery, I am concerned with finding shapes that capture the imagination. For me, whether the wearer of a piece of jewellery is a woman, a man, or someone who feels neither is irrelevant while designing. Out of practicality, I make the rings to my size. This way, I can simultaneously try out whether a ring is wearable and use myself as a photo model. So it came as a surprise when I received a request to make a ring in a genuine men's size. The bonus was that this man, like myself, is fond of the works of Spanish artist Eduardo Chillida. With him living in Paris while I live in Maastricht, we were in contact by e-mail. As a result, deciding on the ring size took more effort, but we worked it out. Printed and cast in Germany and finished in the Netherlands, it found a home in France.