Love is associated with a whole range of emotions, some of them complete opposites: from serenity to passion, from harmony to fiery arguments.
We constantly see jewelry creations but rarely the drawings of the makers. Yet jewelers are more than fabricators of baubles. They’re artists as well, in the larger sense. I therefore invited jewelers from different countries to make a quick sketch of any image, object, or idea that comes to mind when they hear the word “love.”
Here are 14 interpretations of this profound concept for your appreciation. Let’s celebrate all kinds of love and expression! ♥️
Thank you to all who participated: Bryan Parnham, Ted Noten, Ruudt Peters, Julia Obermaier, Denise Reytan, Empar Juanes, Jorge Manilla, Felieke van der Leest, Aya Iwata, Titi Berrio, Vicki Mason, Marta Costa Reis, Karl Fritsch, and Lisa Walker.
▲ Bryan Parnham, drawing in pink ballpoint pen, image courtesy of the artist▲ Ted Noten, One Day I Fly Away, ring, image courtesy of the artist. Text on the image (clockwise from top): text in neon, 3D print, battery, gold, diamond, red▲ Ruudt Peters, image courtesy of the artist▲ Julia Obermaier, image courtesy of the artist. Obermaier says, “For me a disco ball is a sign of pure love … Always moving, sparkling, exciting, [it creates a] good mood and has millions of facets.”▲ Denise Reytan, image courtesy of the artist. Reytan says, “Since last year I have been working with the theme of “heart.” When something so terrible happens that your heart starts to fight. Boxing matches, pulling and tearing, dialogues, holding, helplessness, powerlessness. Here is a sketch of a heart, and the whole side of my sketchbook.”▲ Empar Juanes, Abstract Love, courtesy of the artist▲ Jorge Manilla, drawing on watercolor paper, India ink, nut shell ink, image courtesy of the artist. Manilla says: “Why are the real words of love between ink blots, and lines which say nothing but express a lot?”▲ Felieke van der Leest, image courtesy of the artist. Van der Leest says: “Here is my love drawing, originating from a small red sketchbook I started almost 30 years ago. It was specially for little drawings with a heart. The start was promising but most of the book is still empty. I am more in favor of working in three dimensions.”▲ Aya Iwata, image courtesy of the artist▲ Titi Berrio, image courtesy of the artist. Berrio says: “Love is something as simple and as profound as time, the time you dedicate to the people you love, the dreams you build with them. All the details that surround our lives are love: plants, pets, and experiences that make us enjoy every minute of our lives. In the drawing you can see my cat, my two children, and an aloe vera plant, which is a symbol of good luck in many Latin American countries.”▲ Vicki Mason, image courtesy of the artist. Mason says, “I did it on the back of an old box. Paying attention to rubbish and our endless consumer waste (what we use to package things in, where it goes, if it is sustainable, etc.) is a form of love for the planet. I love J. D. McClatchy’s quote, ‘Love is the quality of attention we pay to things.’ For me it applies to everything in this world: love between humans, for nature, etc. And the flowers are Australian. Eucalyptus flowers are a much-loved flower of mine. And there are two of them just touching like two hands, connecting, so important in ideas of love.”▲ Marta Costa Reis, image courtesy of the artist. Costa Reis says, “This is not really about Valentine’s Day because we didn’t have that tradition in Portugal. Our saint for love and marriage is Santo António (and other saints in different towns, celebrated in June). We offer pots with basil and a small banner with a sassy love poem.”▲ Karl Fritsch, image courtesy of the artist▲ Lisa Walker, image courtesy of the artist
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Elena Karpilova was born in Belarus in 1987. Since 2022, she has lived in Lisbon, Portugal. From 2005–2009, she studied art at Glebov Art College (Belarus); from 2010–2016 she studied at the University of Culture and Arts (Belarus) as a comparative art critic. She is an art critic, an artist, and the head of an interdisciplinary project for children and youth, the Architectural Thinking School for Children, which now works in Portugal with families of migrants. “Due to a lack of education in the jewelry field in Belarus," says Karpilova, "I've been studying the subject on my own."
Finalist of the AGC Italy - Association of Contemporary Jewellery's Maria Cristina Bergesio Award 2024.
Member AGC (Association of Contemporary Jewellery)
Website: https://elenakarpilova.com/
Instagram: @karpilova
![Julia Obermaier, image courtesy of the artist. Obermaier says, "For me a disco ball is a sign of pure love ... Always moving, sparkling, exciting, [it creates a] good mood and has millions of facets."](https://artjewelryforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Julia_Obermeyer-800x600-1.jpg)
