May 2026, Part 2
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.
Some of the news items below have no accompanying images. AJF regrets not having the staff capacity to request imagery and permissions from non-members of AJF. You may send us a high-res image (1 MB or larger) for a news listing that concerns you by emailing our managing editor at nathalie [at] artjewelryforum [dot] org. We will promptly add it to the corresponding newsbyte.
AJF WEEKEND: MONTREAL—JUNE 12–13, 2026
AJF Weekends are a new way to gather with Art Jewelry Forum: shorter, more accessible programs that preserve the depth of exchange, access, and conversation that define AJF travel. Open to members and nonmembers alike. Cohosted with gallerist Noel Guyomarc’h, our first two-day, small-group program, in Montreal, will center around the opening of Dispatch from the Colonies, a new exhibition by South Africa–based artist Geraldine Fenn at Galerie Noel Guyomarc’h. Developed through the AJF Solo Exhibition Award, this exhibition represents the culmination of an extended period of research and making. Also: visit Aurélie Guillaume’s studio; curator-led tour of Wearable Art, at Musée des métiers d’art du Québec; curator-led visit to the newly reinstalled national museum galleries; celebratory dinner; and more. Info.
ATTEND THE PXL-MAD OPEN HOUSE: MAY 19, 2026
Intereted in attend grad school? Speak directly with professors David Huycke and Anneleen Swillen, and international officer Josefine Mass, from the MA Object & Jewellery program at PXL-MAD School of Arts Hasselt, Belgium. An hour-long program will feature an overview (including curriculum, studio facilities, and application process) followed by a Q&A. Tuition academic year 2026–2027: EU €1,181 · Non-EU €9,400. Admission deadline: May 24, 2026. Register here.
TRAVEL TO HOUSTON WITH AJF: SEPTEMBER 23–26, 2026
For our first visit back to Houston in almost 20 years, we’re arriving at an especially strong moment. 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. Each exhibition spans nearly 50 years of work. 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—an opportunity to gather with fellow collectors, artists, and enthusiasts. Our program will also include visits to the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, along with artist studios, museum collections, and other stops that reflect the breadth of the city’s creative life. Save the dates; more info to come!
FEEL LIKE SEEING A JEWELRY SHOW?
Find listings from around the world on our dedicated exhibition page.
EVENTS
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NEWS FROM OUR MEMBERS
ELEANOR MOTY AMONG ARTISTS IN REFLECTING: WISCONSIN’S WOMEN METALSMITHS AT RAM
This show features work by metalsmiths who have lived and/or taught in Wisconsin. The artists included push material and conceptual boundaries as they explore a wide range of processes and themes, including nature, place, value, and femininity. Work by Jessica Calderwood, Kim Cridler, Teresa Faris, Terri Gelenian-Wood, Martha Glowacki, Lisa Gralnick, Laura Marth, Moty, Masako Onodera, Mary Tingley, and Linda Threadgill. Through August 29, 2026, at Racine Art Museum. More.
BORAX INVITES YOU TO THE OPENING OF MATRICES, MAY 30, 2026, 6 PM
Explore the work of Robin Deriaz, where a cage and a nest share the same anatomy: an empty space delimited by a material boundary, capable of protecting just as much as of enclosing. This exhibition looks at the point where these two concepts intertwine and merge, and it takes place in a disused prison. There, the artist questions how the conditions of a space influence how we feel about it. In the work, metals meet organic materials, referencing both the language of the nest and of the cage in a study of the empathy of matter—aggressive structures attempting to protect fragile interiors, and vice versa. The cage and the nest are no longer opposites but equals. The body becomes the territory. Each piece exists as an autonomous ecosystem resting upon the skin. The wearer becomes the guardian of these spaces, the host who allows the object to exist. May 30–31 and June 6–7, 2026,13:00–18:00. More.
DESTINATION BIJOU CAGNES-SUR-MER, JUNE 4–7 2026
The city on the French Riviera will host its second jewelry week. With its scenic medieval old town and Espace Solidor—the only museum solely dedicated to contemporary jewelry in Europe—it’s the perfect location for a four-day event packed with a dozen exhibitions by international collectives and galleries, lectures (in French and English), open studios of local artists, guided tours, and workshops for kids and family. See an exhibition by Noel Guyomarc’h and Platina, and hear a lecture by Jennifer Altmann. More.
3RD LISBON CONTEMPORARY JEWELLERY BIENNIAL—SEPTEMBER 17–27, 2026
With Coexistências/Coexistences, the biennial reflects on how jewelry expresses and represents the web of relationships between humans and the Earth’s ecology in its broadest sense. This edition focuses on an urgently relevant theme: our ecological survival and the place of the human in the 21st century. Artists explore utopian spaces and alternative realities, combining fiction and spirituality to suggest new and radical forms of coexistence. Activating the power of imagination becomes a liberating exercise in cosmopolitics, proposing connections to other systems of knowledge—such as mysticism, magic, and Indigenous epistemologies—as well as to artificial intelligence as a new way of organizing and understanding the world. Registration for the masterclasses with Ted Noten and Sofia Bjorkman is now open. Info.
NACRE AND THE GRAIN: CONTEMPORARY JEWELLERY AND THE SCOTTISH LANDSCAPE
May 29, 2026, 10.30–11.15, at V&A Dundee. In this free presentation, Kristin Beeler and Professor Emeritus Dr. Sandra Wilson explore how Scotland’s landscapes inspire contemporary jewelry. From the sourcing of natural materials such as pearls (nacre) to scientific techniques to recover precious metals from electronic waste (grain), learn about the underlying connections between landscape and contemporary jewelry in the country. Meet Scotland-based jewelers and see a showcase of their work. In collaboration with AJF and Craft Scotland. More.
ANNELEEN SWILLEN GIVES TALK ON MAY 27, 2026
What if jewelry is co-created with machines? Explore more-than-human adornment with Swillen, who will share her work and research around this subject at Atelier David Gotlib, in Antwerp. Free lecture, open to the public, registration required due to limited seating. More.
SOFIA BJÖRKMAN WINS AMBERIF DESIGN AWARD
The theme of the 29th edition of the International Amber Jewellery Design Competition was The Magic of Matter. Björkman took the Silver Prize, for which she won 1 kilo of silver. Congratulations!
WILLIAM HARPER LAUNCHES WEBSITE AND ONLINE JOURNAL
After more than six decades of creating gold cloisonné enamel art jewelry, this is Harper’s first dedicated digital presence. It features his complete collection and studio archive. A new editorial journal exploring the art and craft of enameling includes “The Art of Gold Cloisonné Enamel: Inside William Harper’s Six Decades of Mastery,” an in-depth exploration of his technique and creative process, and “From Studio to Smithsonian: William Harper’s Permanent Museum Collections Worldwide,” documenting his presence in 35+ institutional collections. Find it all here.
TANYA CRANE CURATES RAM SHOWCASE: AFRICAN ADORNMENT
Through February 20, 2027, at Racine Art Museum. This exhibition is comprised of objects with layered and potentially uncomfortable histories. Specifically, these works are from a collection of incised metal bracelets and neckpieces from West Africa that span the eighteenth through twentieth centuries. Objects like this were used as currency, often within a trade or barter network, in exchange for local agricultural and luxury products. However, they were also often used in transatlantic slave trade negotiations. More info.
COAGULATED TWIST, AT FOUR GALLERY, MAY 23–JUNE 18, 2026
For Danni Schwaag, the appeal lies in making, in trying things out, experimenting with form, color, and material. She must play with the material. A circle that twists, turns, starts over and never ends, a vibrating idea stabilizes and takes shape. These works were developed during a residency at the Jakob Bengel Foundation and the Idar-Oberstein University of Applied Sciences. Mainly made of galalith, combined with enamel and mother-of-pearl. Galalith is a 100-year-old precursor to today’s plastics. Bengel’s company used it during the Art Deco and Bauhaus periods to make jewelry and buttons. The material, no longer produced, conveys a tone of the past.
NEWS FROM ALL AROUND
LEGNICA JEWELLERY FESTIVAL SILVER 2026: AWARDEES
The festival opened last week. Its awards ceremony recognized outstanding works exploring this year’s theme. Learn more here.
ROWAN PANTHER FEATURED IN SURFACE DESIGN JOURNAL
In “Simplistically Complicated: The Work of Rowan Panther,” matt lambert writes, “Using muka for lacemaking is unconventional. A demanding fiber, its length is determined solely by the length of the leaves it is harvested from. Muka fiber cannot be wound into spools like cotton or linen and is prone to breaking when used too firmly. However, if manipulated too gently, the intended pattern of the lace becomes distorted, requiring a greater sensitivity while working. Panther views muka as a material that is not used, but rather worked with in collaboration.” More.
A PHOTO ESSAY ON SHAUN LEANE
@archiveddreams is “educating the youth.” It published a post with some nice old photos from Alexander McQueen’s archives, saying “There’s a moment where an object stops being just an object and it crosses into something to a feeling.” See the post here.
BOROSILICATE GLASS JEWELRY IS 🔥 IN BARCELONA
About a dozen years ago, Agustina Ros started making adornments using lampworking techniques. She also teaches the craft out of her studio, and some of her students have set up their own brands, too. Their work is seen all over the city. More.
PAGES SPOTLIGHTING JEWELRY
FRIEDRICH BECKER PREIS 1999–2026
Since 1999, the Gesellschaft für Goldschmiedekunst (Association for Goldsmiths’Art) has fostered international networking within the jewelry and utensils scene via the Friedrich Becker Prize. The award commemorates the renowned goldsmith and designer of kinetic objects, Friedrich Becker (1922–1997). This publication celebrates its tenth triennial, featuring a special homage to its eponym alongside a comprehensive chronicle of its history. This anniversary publication is also devoted to this year’s competition, which Veronika Fabian won. Presents a total of 48 works, each showcasing craftsmanship, precision, and sophistication combined with powerful creative expression. More.
CHECK OUT ISSUE 4 OF POLISHING MAGAZINE
An initiative of the Association for Contemporary Metalsmithing and Jewelry, in Israel. Articles are in Hebrew, but when you hop on the website your browser should allow you to set the website for English. More.
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