"Let their eyes be darkened that they see not and make their eyelids continually to shake.
They have eyes and see not."
‘Untamed Skin’ and 'Ensemble of Broken Pieces' show the origins of the exquisite Romanian blouse - an untamed, yet delicate garment, traditionally worn close to the skin of its wearer and handcrafted from natural textiles and pigments and embroidered with primordial symbols and patterns.
Alexandru Nimurad teamed up with jewellery-designer Vika Tonu and developed their collaborative collection around the blouse as an organic structure, honouring its distinctive local background and visual history.
Each outfit interprets a specific blouse that was made for five ritualistic events during one's life. The strong bond between peasants and nature was beautifully represented in the simplicity and complexity of the Romanian blouses, enriched with strong symbols and worn only once in a lifetime.
There were five stages:
-Being ready for marriage
-The wedding
-Being a mother
-Helping giving birth
-The funeral
The jewellery collection 'Ensemble of Broken Pieces' is a collaborative collection which tells the story of a yearning heart, that goes through the process of loss followed by its gradual healing.
Each piece represents a step on a journey of rebirth, recovery and rejuvenation, and captures the raw and savage beauty of the heavy feelings that possess our beings when in pain.
However, our hearts are royal and are also connected to the Romanian Blouse through the figure of Queen Marie of Romania, beloved crowned ruler and an ambassador of culture and heritage, also related to Great Britain’s Royal family.
Queen Marie introduced the traditional blouse (n.r.‘ia’) as a fashionable, loaded with significance item and wore it as a symbol of belonging. After she passed away Queen Marie left her heart as a legacy and a sign of love and devotement for her country.
‘Ensemble of broken pieces’ is a jewellery collection of six heart shaped neckpieces, handcrafted, created from clay, moulded in brass and silver or gold plated. The attached elements are precious and semi precious stones like raw diamond, rubies, zirconia stone, pyrite and natural corals.
The blouse was made famous by Matisse and fashion luminaries Yves Saint Laurent, Jean Paul Gaultier, Emillio Pucci and, more recently, Tom Ford.
Each piece represents a step on a journey of rebirth, recovery and rejuvenation, and captures the raw and savage beauty of the heavy feelings that possess our beings when in pain.
However, our hearts are royal and are also connected to the Romanian Blouse through the figure of Queen Marie of Romania, beloved crowned ruler and an ambassador of culture and heritage, also related to Great Britain’s Royal family.
Queen Marie introduced the traditional blouse (n.r.‘ia’) as a fashionable, loaded with significance item and wore it as a symbol of belonging. After she passed away Queen Marie left her heart as a legacy and a sign of love and devotement for her country.
‘Ensemble of broken pieces’ is a jewellery collection of six heart shaped neckpieces, handcrafted, created from clay, moulded in brass and silver or gold plated. The attached elements are precious and semi precious stones like raw diamond, rubies, zirconia stone, pyrite and natural corals.
The blouse was made famous by Matisse and fashion luminaries Yves Saint Laurent, Jean Paul Gaultier, Emillio Pucci and, more recently, Tom Ford.
‘Untamed Skin’ is a collaboration between GALATECA Gallery of Contemporary Art and Design, Bucharest and the Romanian Cultural Institute in London. And it was part of the International Fashion Showcase and London Fashion Week, where it won three special mentions for 'Best Country Exhibition', 'Best Designer' and 'Best Curator'.
'The Aggrieved Heart'
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and gold plated, rubies and a protective hand.
”The Hardened Heart”
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and gold plated, bleeding with pure-red-silk.
”The Stitched Up Heart”
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and gold plated, bleeding with pure-red-silk.
'The Melted Heart'
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and silver plated, raw diamond and pyrite stone, silver chain.
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and silver plated, raw diamond and pyrite stone, silver chain.
'The Impaled Heart'
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and silver plated, black zirconia stone and silver chain.
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and silver plated, black zirconia stone and silver chain.
'The Drained' Heart”
Heart-shaped neckpiece, carved in clay, moulded in brass and silver plated, bleeding natural red coral and pure-red-silk.
