'the scientific nature of jewellery'

as part of the vienna design week 09 austrian studio mischer’traxler were invited to participate
in the passionswege series, where 10 designers were brought together with local shops
and manufacturers, given an opportunity to experiment, make use of workshops or intervene
in the business' premises.

their project -'the scientific nature of jewellery' was realised together with rozet & fischmeister
court jewellers.famous for their silverware, they have recently begun to focus once again on
fine jewellery. for mischer’traxler researching into hand-crafted jewellery and all its productions
steps, it became obvious that the making of jewellery requires much training and specification as
well as patience, careful planning, love for perfect details, and an immense amount of knowledge
in materials. this finding was translated into an experimental set up consisting of three parts;
the installation interprets the profession of goldsmith from various angles and opens up towards
new inputs.


'the scientific nature of jewellery' installation in the window of rozet & fischemeister store, vienna


original necklace by rozet & fischmeister
one used in the installation by franz fischmeister

it requires many working steps and fine-tuning until a classic piece of jewellery is finished.
the piece is melted, hit, wrought, soldered, edged, polished …to emphasize the importance
of details, beauty and precision, an original piece by rozet&fischmeister is examined through
magnifying glasses.


experiment: discolouring necklace

knowledge about material and its physical and chemical properties, enable  people to broaden
the borders of classic craftsmanship. in this experiment a silver necklace is doused, again and again,
in sulphide liquid. after some time, black graphics emerge on the necklace. in this case, the silhouettes
of two children become visible. – a reinterpretation of classical amulets showing the ones we love.


experiment: discolouring necklace




experiment: growing necklace

to make a beautiful and accurately-made piece of jewellery, it needs time, mindfulness
and patience - similar to a grain, which slowly develops and becomes the plant. in this experiment,
gemstones are replaced by grains. tenderly cultivated, taken care of and shaped, the seed gradually
grows up, becoming the actual 'piece of jewellery'. the owner can cultivate and form the plant
to their imagination and experiment with various species.


experiment: growing necklace


growing necklace


'the scientific nature of jewellery' installation


katharina mischer and thomas traxler of mischer'traxler
image © designboom