From Turkey, the jewels that have inherited the Ottoman Empire charm, by Sevan Biçakçi ♦
Sevan Biçakçi is a designer wich a style so unique that it can not be compared with any other. Maybe because his carving on translucent materials, performed with dental instruments, is so careful to leave no words. The fact is that the Armenian jeweler likes a lot. Even to those who love a minimalist style.
In his incredible rings it is usually reproduce monuments of Istanbul, the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, the old Cistern, the portraits of the sultans and the gods, but also flowers, birds, fruits and insects. In fact, in the bottom of aquamarine, quartz, emeralds, sapphires and other gems they are engraved domes, petals, beaks, all miniatures that float in the transparency of the cabochon-cut stones mounted on ornately chiseled ring shank in gold, silver and enamel. In short, there is all the Byzantine artistic tradition and turkish Ottoman Empire, a kind of time machine that seems to be looking at it in the pages of the book written by Orhan Pamuk, My Name is Red, set in Istanbul of the sixteenth century.
His jewels are a myth for over the world and have won a place of honor also for sale at Barneys New York.
The series of rings with the Hagia Sophia made it known all over the world, but the real fame, especially in the US and one of the stars of Hollywood comes thanks to Gwyneth Paltrow, who often wears her necklace with a lock, one of the most recognizable themes Biçakçi, who is also one of the symbols of Turkish culture. Used to close the fences around the graves, represented the promise of good deeds in exchange for a merciful treatment for their loved ones, and take it in the neck meant to recall the commitment making valuable the person wearing it. And then the stylized daggers (the name Biçakçi in turkish means knife) on the facts bracelets with metal mesh as the armor of ancient warriors and other decorations typical of the Muslim world which has an important place even calligraphy.
In his workshop of five floors near the Grand Bazaar and then a few steps from all the most important buildings of the Turkish capital, the goldsmith with his collaborators, ten people, produces a maximum of 500 units a year, because the work d ‘ etching takes a long time. But not only that the notch on the bottom of the stone is a delicate technique, the risk of cracks in the gem is high and if at the end of the day the result is not excellent is thrown away everything. Fortunately the experience of many years of work, more than twenty, also allows to approach the finest materials without too much fear and create even more three-dimensional and colorful objects. As Jar does not work on commission and the price is established only to finished jewelry, although on average, ranging from 10 000 to $ 30,000 for a ring, and $ 3,000 for a simple necklace.
