MIZUHIKI is an ancient Japanese art form that uses a special cord. The cord is created from rice paper, that is tightly wound, starched to give it stiffness, and then colored. The traditional decoration, given away at Japanese occasions, such as wedding, birth etc. The other traditional way the art is done is in decorating cards with little colored knots, similarly to how people in western cultures use a ribbon and bow. “For me I saw this MIZUHIKI in a different way. Not using them in a traditional way but combining with metal, the paper cord created the lines more into surface and showed the strongness of its color. Just by looking at them, you could not tell that they are made of papers. I find them interesting using Japanese traditional papers into something very different” says jewellery artist Liisa Hashimoto.  

BASTA CHE STAI BENE “A few years ago my grandmother gave me her old pearl necklace. The clasp was broken, so she said I could sell the pearls or make new pieces with them for money. I noticed the pearls were fake: glass beads covered with mother-of-pearl. But she didn’t know and I didn’t tell her. So I took off this layer of mother-of-pearl and replaced it with my own blood. My grandma is the most generous person I ever had in my life. She never really understood what was my job, what I was doing. But she always ends our conversations by this sentence: « Basta che stai bene », which in Italian means « As long as you’re ok ». I think this is enough… I don’t have the feeling I should tell more or go deeper into the concept and talk about family heritage, unconditional love, tribute, preciousness, blah blah blah… It’s a very personal story, but I guess people will get it” says French conceptual artist Emmanuel Lacoste.