Mourning jewellery
The cast-iron jewellery known as Fer-de-Berlin was my inspiration for a new way of looking at mourning traditions.
The black Fer-de-Berlin jewellery – manufactured in the 19th century – matched the black mourning clothes worn at the time.
In the 20th century, these mourning traditions and rituals have almost all but disappeared from our society. Wearing black clothes does not refer necessarily to a period of mourning any longer.
On the one hand, this meant people no longer needed to observe all those strict rules, on the other hand, people in mourning may have lost something that helped them to physically express their vulnerability.
With my mourning jewellery, I am trying to find a way to fill this gap, both in the materials and shapes that I use.
