Juan Riusech coming to AUTOR 2016!
ALLIAGES is an organisation created in 2009 by Juan Riusech, jeweler, with the aim to enhance and promote contemporary Jewellery. ALLIAGES has a permanent space where successive exhibitions happen throughout the year, where the artists, confirmed or not, have the opportunity to present their work during a longer or shorter period. Their goal is to offer quality exhibitions and help visitors to discover new talents.
Renowned artist and curator Juan Riusech will be present at AUTOR 2016 scouting for new talents, keen on finding the next best in contemporary jewelry. We asked Juan what excites him in contemporary jewellery and what are his views on today’s artists, so read on to discover how to impress him when you meet in Bucharest, on April 16th & 17th at Grand Hotel du Boulevard.
What is a piece of jewelery without its relation to the human body?
The body is the pedestal for a jewel, contemporary or not, so normally, the jewel must be designed or thought for this body. If a jewel is designed without this “constraint”, its first function, the wearability, is lost, and the jewel becomes simply decorative and often unbearable to wear.
How does art jewelery fit into our daily lives? How does it fit into yours?
Art jewelery is a new way to do jewelery and a new way to do art, and it perfectly fits to our life because its new approach of art and jewelery where each artist has his/her own way to work, his/her own way of expression. Personally, contemporary jewelery fits to my life the way since 2010 helps me to pass over certain aspects of my own existence.
What contemporary artist (who does not create jewelry) would you exchange works with?
I have no particular “favorite” contemporary artist, I’m open to all ways of contemporary art, and I could make an exchange with any.
Galleries support artists. How do artists make their part in supporting galleries?
In this 21st century, things are not the same than in the past. Galleries continue giving support and promotion to the contemporary jewelery and its artists, but with the Internet and its web-stores, blogs, social networks and other websites, communication has completely changed. Now, the artists have the control of their work and contribute to the education and promotion of the contemporary jewelery at same level as galleries do, and that’s a good point. This makes a more fair way to work for all, especially for the artists, and Alliages works in this direction.
You have showcased an impressive number of artists at Alliages. What would be one of their common features?
Indeed, I have shown maybe more than 250 artists in Alliages since we opened in 2009, this figure may be impressive. The first and main thing is the Emotion. When we do an open call and receive the proposals, the main criteria is the emotion work can give off and when we receive the works for the exhibition, quite often the first thing I want to do is to wear the jewel for a moment.
What is the hardest part of curating art jewelry?
The worst and hardest moment is when I have to say to an artist that his/her work does not fit a selection, even if in the reality it could but we don’t have enough spots to fit in it. This moment really rips me and it is even worst when I have an friendly relation with the artist.
You opened Alliages in 2009, the same year we started AUTOR. What changed in the jewelery world since then? And what would you say is still the same?
I’ve seen a real evolution during these last years regarding contemporary jewelery. In the gallery, the visitors come now to see the jewels and appreciate the multiple visions our artists have. Our visitors have finally understood that jewelery is not only gold and diamonds, that jewelery is not only the traditional techniques. They appreciate new materials, new ways to build the jewel, they ask about the approach the artist has. There is still a lot to do but this is a first step to “democratize” the contemporary jewelery and make it accept as a real art, an art made by craftsman.