August 2026, Part 1
Art Jewelry Forum is pleased to share all jewelry news. If you’re a member of AJF, you may add news and ideas to this bi-monthly report by submitting here. If you aren’t a member, but would like to become one, join AJF here.
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AJF LIVE WITH GERALDINE FENN—SEPTEMBER 9, 2026
The inaugural recipient of AJF’s 2025 Solo Exhibition Award will take us inside the development of her exhibition, Geraldine Fenn: Dispatch from the Colonies. The show explored the power dynamics of European colonization in Africa. We’ll see highlights from the completed show and hear how the award created opportunities to research, to learn and experiment with new techniques, and to make work on a scale that might otherwise not have been possible. Registration info to come.
TRAVEL TO HOUSTON WITH AJF: SEPTEMBER 23–26, 2026
We’ll visit the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, to celebrate two important exhibitions: the first US solo presentations of Bernhard Schobinger and Dorothea Prühl, both key figures in avant-garde art jewelry. To complement the exhibitions, we’ll attend a day-long symposium featuring leading voices in the field, followed by a reception celebrating these two exhibitions. Our program will also include behind the scenes at MFAH with special guests Helen Williams Drutt English and Susan Cummins; visits to the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, artist studios, museum collections,;and other stops that reflect the breadth of the city’s creative life. This trip is now open to all AJF members. Email danielle@artjewelryforum.org for info.
FEEL LIKE SEEING A JEWELRY SHOW?
Find listings from around the world on our dedicated exhibition page.
EVENTS
We have a dedicated page for them. Go here to see the list.
NEWS FROM OUR MEMBERS
THOMAS GENTILLE: PRIMARY CONCERNS, THROUGH SEPTEMBER 1, 2026
The title of this installation at the 92NY comes from an undated manifesto of sorts, signed by the artist, that helps us see the work on view through the artist’s own eyes. Not fond of dating his jewelry (nor of giving titles), the pioneering figure in American studio jewelry often referred to what he created as simply 20th or 21st century. This obtuse distinction carries forward into how he felt about his objects: five of the 14 three-dimensional pieces on display in this show do not have mechanisms for wearing. Yet Gentille considered them jewelry. The wearing was implied, he insisted. Gentille died in March 2026 at the age of 89.
FRAGILE, BUT SAFE, SEPTEMBER 4–6, 2026
This show brings together new works by Maria Stella Lydaki, Michaela Barochová, and Karolina Brodnicka for their annual art and jewelry exhibition as Tower Collective. At St. Mary’s Church Tower, Hornsey, London N8 7NT. Private viewing: September 3, 18:00–21:00. Info.
OPHÉLIE HILBERT: CEUX QUI NOUS HABITENT, AT ESPACE BORAX
Traditionally, a jewelry mount exists to show off a stone in its best light. This exhibition throws out that logic. The mounting becomes a support in which a material has melted and solidified. September 5–6 and 12–13, 2026. More.
THE PRACTICE OF LOOKING, AT SIENNA PATTI THROUGH AUGUST 31, 2026
Features work by Melanie Bilenker, Luci Jockel, Steven KP, Sondra Sherman, Lori Talcott, and MJ Tyson. The artists look closely, long enough for their materials to reveal particular qualities, histories, and possibilities. The longer we look, the more materials reveal the stories they hold: of time, touch, belief, loss, and transformation. This show is less about what the artists make than about how they look. Technical skill becomes a way of paying attention rather than demonstrating control. In a culture that often prizes speed, efficiency, and extraction, these works offer another way of moving through the world. They remind us that attention is not passive. It’s a form of care, practiced through looking, handling, and making. View the exhibition here.
COMPLAIN TO THE EDITOR OF WALLPAPER*?
Wallpaper* recently reviewed Constellations and wrote: A rare chance to see more than 350 pieces of artist-designed jewellery at the Chrysler Museum of Art in Virginia. Apple News+ then took the article and changed the title to: This show of artist-designed jewellery is simply gripping. AJF member Michele Fox wrote in to say, “I think the title of the article is wrong because it says jewelry is not art in and of itself.” If you dislike the implications of the title, too, why not write a letter to the editor? It doesn’t have to be long: a paragraph or less. Read the review here. Email Wallpaper* here: contact@wallpaper.com
CHERYL R. RILEY TAUGHT “SCULPTURES IN THE FORM OF A NECKLACE” WORKSHOP
During Rher current residency at the McColl Center, in Charlotte, NC, US, locals got the opportunity to plunge into the artist’s cache of beads and objects. “I was enchanted by their excitement,” she said in a newsletter.
JENNIFER ALTMANN TO PUBLISH BOOK TITLED REJEWELED
A necklace made of tangerine rind. A brooch with Barbie doll legs. Earrings made from rabbit fur. These jewels—and many more—will be featured in Rejeweled: Ordinary Objects Become Extraordinary Adornments. The book will profile 25 American artists who make jewelry using discarded materials—everything from deer antlers to plastic takeout containers, from dollar bills to olive pits. AJF is raising funds to finance the book. To find out more, go here. To donate, go here.
CHECK OUT THE PROGRAM FOR 3RD LISBON CONTEMPORARY JEWELLERY BIENNIAL
With the theme of “Coexistences,” the program includes exhibitions, a colloquium, a gallery expo, and master classes. Takes place September 19–27, 2026, with many of the shows lasting beyond those dates. Info.
EREMOS BRINGS PEOPLE CLOSER TO GOD THROUGH ART AND CREATIVITY
Founded in London in 2026 by jewelry artist Karolina Brodnicka, Eremos offers creatives a space to share their experiences of walking with Jesus as artists and to support one another. It aspires to establish a physical sanctuary in London, open to all, with a library, art gallery, garden, art workshops, and guest house—a place of wonder where people can gather, create, rest, and worship. Until then, the community grows through monthly Bible studies and artist meet-ups, with pop-up events planned for 2027. Info.
CRISTINA FILIPE WINS FULBRIGHT FOR CURATORIAL RESEARCH AT MAD
With the Fulbright Scholarship for Professors and Researchers with Ph.D. (with Support from Camôes I.P.) for Curatorial Research, Filipe will study the Museum of Arts and Design’s collections and archives to create a dialogue between contemporary jewelry in Portugal and the museum’s pieces. This research builds on her long-term study of the field. Her research will take place April–July, 2027. In 2017, Filipe received AJF’s inaugural Susan Beech Mid-Career Artist Grant, using the prize to produce the book Contemporary Jewelry in Portugal: From the Avant-Garde of the 1960s to the Early 21st Century.
KELLIE RIGGS NAMED DIRECTOR OF JEWELRY & DESIGN PROGRAMS AT 92NY
The jeweler, curator, writer, and educator has spent the past 15 years working at the intersection of craft, contemporary art, and design. She has built her practice across creating, exhibition-making, writing, and teaching—most recently curating OBJECTS: USA 2024 and lecturing at RISD and other international institutions. Her curatorial experience includes museums throughout Europe and the US, including Museum Villa Stuck, in Munich, Germany, and New York’s Museum of Arts and Design. Her vitae includes a Fulbright Grant to Italy, and editor-at-large at Current Obsession Magazine.
NEWS FROM ALL AROUND
CAN YOU HELP SOLVE A HOMICIDE?
The International Cold Case Analysis Project—which connects law enforcement, academia, and NGOs worldwide to help resolve long‑standing unsolved cases—emailed AJF. It’s currently examining a homicide that occurred in Germany in 1991. The unidentified victim, possibly of Eastern European origin, had two rings in his pocket. Can you answer any of these questions? Where or in which country such rings were manufactured or sold; whether they’re typical of a particular region, ethnic group, or culture; if they’re wedding rings, engagement rings, friendship rings, or decorative rings; whether they can be attributed to a specific origin based on their design, material or engravings. If so, email Chistina Papst: ch.papst [at] chello.at
CURRENT OBSESSION TO OPEN A SPACE IN AMSTERDAM
Their work over the years—across digital, print, curation, research, discourse and community projects—will find a home in a physical world in the heart of the city. Details to come over time.
ZENDAYA CRITICIZED FOR WEARING ANCIENT JEWELRY ON ODYSSEY PRESS TOUR
The actress plays Athena in the film. She wore earrings fabricated from artefacts from the Ziwiye hoard, which was uncovered in Iran in 1947. They date back to 700 BCE. Backlash was swift. Archaeologists said using precious and culturally significant artefacts as accessories in the promotion of a Hollywood film hijacks Iran’s contributions to humanity. More.
CALL FOR ENTRIES: AUTOR CLUJ-NAPOCA
On October 10—11, 2026, the international platform dedicated to contemporary jewelry goes to Cluj-Napoca, in Romania, as part of the Transylvania Jewelry Festival, creating a shared context for discovery, exchange, and dialogue around contemporary jewelry. Applications from designers, galleries, collectors, and cultural professionals welcome. Info.
OPEN CALL: XI CONTEMPORARY GOLDSMITHING EXHIBITION
After 10 consecutive exhibitions, the goal remains the international diffusion and promotion of contemporary goldsmithing and jewels design. Presented by the Association of Contemporary Goldsmithing and Jewelry Designers, the show will take place at the Museo Cerralbo, in Madrid, Spain, within the Madrid Design Festival, simultaneously with the Semana del Arte-ARCO. Deadline: October 1, 2026. More.
MÁRIA ROSKÓ: ABOVE THE HORIZON, AT GALERIE V&V THROUGH OCTOBER 1, 2026
This show in Vienna, Austria, explores that fine threshold where physical form meets broader perspectives—the tangible and intangible space that surrounds us. From this vantage point, jewelry becomes a connecting element, a bridge between the heaviness of the body and a larger, ephemeral space. The sculptural rings in the exhibition, characteristic of the artist’s work, evoke imaginary landscapes. Their sweeping forms suggest the human figure and invite tactile exploration. Info.
JEWELLERY IN THE WOODS, AUGUST 21–23, 2026, 2–7 PM
Galerie Beyond hosts an open-air exhibition where contemporary jewelry, nature, space, and people meet. Within this temporary setting, the works unfold in dialogue with their surroundings. Shifting daylight, the movement of the wind, the textures of wood, leaves, and earth all become part of the experience. Nature is not a backdrop, but an active participant. Slow down, observe with intention, and make space for encounter, wonder, and connection. At Vinkenlei 4, 2950 Kapellen(Bos), Belgium. Info.
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