Brussels-based jewelry designer Hubert Verstraeten has always developed his own processes. The Labyrinth collection for German design house Niessing is no exception. By pressing platinum wires into a conical form at high temperatures, the designer achieved a contrasted aesthetics of geometry and organic coils. Since coming on to the scene in the early 1990s, Verstraeten has developed numerous series, all exploring themes of interaction, perceivable transition, time, movement, attraction, and exploration. Having worked for his own brands Tamawa and the Swiss avant-garde watchmaker Ventura, the conceptually-oriented designer has exhibited throughout Europe; everywhere from Galerie Marzee in Nijmegen, the Netherlands to Ghent’s Design Museum and Grand Hornu Images, near Mons. In 2000, Verstraeten received a prestigious Henry Van de Velde award.
For the designer, silver, much like platinum, has and will always have a strong reference to the world of jewelry. “Its silver, so it must be a gem,” he explains. “Even though I explore non-traditional methods of production, this material remains important to my practice. Much like with the Labyrinth collection, the use of round shapes can be deliberately simple and archaic. They work well in juxtaposing levels of distortion. With potential for both qualities, silver is extremely malleable.”
Conducive to ideas of interaction and perception, the Labyrinth collection seems to epitomise Verstraeten’s unfettered approach, even if designed over two decades ago. Like the best works of art-oriented jewelry, this design remains timeless.
