Wood is a material as ancient as man’s history, yet extraordinary contemporary! Wood is, and will be, the main renewable material, whose CORRECT and PROPER use constitutes an important element of innovation and sustainability. A 100% environment-friendly material and most of all inexhaustible. Architect, engineers, biologists, open-minded entrepreneurs consider wood as an essential part of our future.
No other building material is produced with so little energy (wood grows spontaneously and constantly) . A building material that is ready, lightweight and doesn’t need great means of transportation to carry, and is highly quake-proof. Wooden buildings are today’s challenge and any comparison with other materials is always winning.
Wood is a source of bio-energy, as researches show that wood may replace fuels deriving from combustible fossils, limiting the impact of carbon emissions on global warming.
Themes such as sustainable architecture and biofuels are what will make us live better in the future, because they are pure innovation.
For me, our future depends on today’s open-mindedness.
I decided to create a collection made entirely in wood, that recalls simple and clean, but at the same time natural architectural lines and shapes.
This is why I have used screws, bolts (the jewerly pieces are all prototypes. I plan to replace these screws and bolts with personalized elements created through casting techniques) and copper or brass inserts. The Swarovski crystals, set by hand one by one, uplift the pieces; like drops of resin coming out of tree bark they add luminosity and strength to each piece, underlining the connection between our life and the future.
My jewerly pieces for the future are in wood, because I believe that wood is the “gem” of the future.
Employed Materials and Techniques
The chief material in my pieces is WOOD. I used BIRCH using the lute-makers’ techniques: after cutting the pieces, I cleaned and smoothed them with thin sandpaper, and molded them with the help of water and heat. When dry, I used a primer to obtain the desired nuance and finally I applied a semi-glossy varnish.
I cut the BRASS and COPPER inserts with a punch and then curved them with a grooved doming block cube and polished the pieces with a metal polishing machine.
The brass FASTENINGS have a screw closure. Each piece is a prototype that will be improved in detail to develop the final pieces. I would like, for example, to cast the screws and bolts myself.
The SWAROVSKI CRYSTALS (1088 Xirius chaton , PP21) will be set in the wood after piercing it slightly with a small carpenter drill.
I have also made clear RESIN inserts in the same nuance as the Swarovski crystals, to add a more ethereal feel.
I will replace the two resin cylinders with two Swarovski elements (Dome Bead Small 5542 and Crystal Rose Gold, 11mm).
jewellery designer
Lodovica Fusco
photography
Nika Furlani
