When jewellery designer Vasundhara Mantri successfully experimented with blown-glass jewellery last year, she realised that there are art jewellery enthusiasts in the city. As a treat, Vasu, as her friends call her, has lined up a pop-up of fun, quirky and statement art jewellery in Junction’ 2020. If all you’ve been discussing is the pandemic, these pieces, on you, will start a different conversation for sure. We caught up Vasu ahead of the showing.

What’s the idea behind the edit?

The idea was to introduce different forms of art jewellery to the Indian audience. Over my travels last year and after participating at art jewellery fairs, it opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me. I wanted to bring the different art forms to India as I was really amazed by the creations of artists. This seemed like the perfect time, as people are not being able to travel — so it’s a source of exploring world jewellery in Calcutta. I also feel that my Calcutta clients are ready for unique and exquisite jewellery.

Tell us a bit about the designs you have at the showcase. They look really funky and cool.

I’ve brought the works of three unique artists from Europe. One creates jewellery with porcelain and gold plating . They are abstract, exquisite one-off pieces. The other artist explores jewellery with acrylic. It’s colourful and geometric and the mechanism to create it is very technical. The third is 3D-printed jewellery. It’s something that is becoming a big trend world over and I love the way the artist has created abstract forms with it .

Tanisha De sports stunning 3D-printed jewellery, all the way from Romania. Pabitra Das

Are you showcasing any of your lines?

I’m also showcasing my first line from Slate, which are minimal musings. I recently launched it as I feel people are working from home, have smaller parties to attend. The world is moving towards minimalism and I feel this was the best time to introduce this style to my clients.

What kind of a woman comes to mind when you see this kind of jewellery?

Women who are fashion forward, stylish, who love to experiment and are open to exploring possibilities. Someone who is confident and suave.

The acrylic jewellery from Spain on Anushka Laha reminds one of colourful toys. Pabitra Das

You have yourself gone into experimental and minimal jewellery with An Interaction and now Slate. What kind of dialogues are you planning to start?

Yes. I feel people need to get exposed to various styles. My clients are already people who have seen me grow and experiment through various styles and I always believe in introducing them to something different and new. As a designer, it also keeps me challenged and motivated.

Last year I had experimented with blown glass. Seeing how 2020 is been, I felt the need to come up with a line of minimal jewellery which is pocket-friendly. Hence I introduced Slate — I wanted a range which people could easily buy online too. Going forward, I want to keep experimenting and coming up with different kinds of jewellery, keeping in mind world art and trends. As a designer, it is very important for me to keep learning and moving forward.

How experimental are you when it comes to jewellery?

I’m very experimental when it comes to jewellery. I believe in wearing minimal clothing and teaming it up with a statement piece.

These pieces from Vasundhara’s Slate, on Tanisha, can take you from work to party. Pabitra Das

What did you buy last?

I’ve really not shopped this year. When I travelled last year for my jewellery fairs, I bought many different kinds of experimental jewellery, few of which are going to be on display at the pop-up. My favourite is a porcelain necklace which I got.

An artist you like for his/her creative jewellery...

I happened to meet an artist last year in Barcelona — Raluca Buzura. I loved her art, she makes extremely delicate porcelain fine jewellery and each piece with her own hand. I totally loved her work and concepts.

Can you tell us about your quirky jewellery picks?

There is this coral piece which I picked up from London. I like buying pieces which I can keep for a long time. I have an acrylic and stainless steel piece from Mexico.... Some of the Junction’ 2020 pieces. I possess one each myself. It was a test for me to see how people react.

White porcelain with a touch of gold plating. Anushka’s casual look gets a glam touch with these pieces from Greece. Pabitra Das

How creative have you been in these months?

I think these months gave me a lot of time to think and think out of the box. When we are leading our regular lives, we sometimes get caught up with creating things only for commercial consumption. However, since I had so much extra time, I’ve been planning collections that I would have not usually come up with and I’m very excited about taking it a step forward and creating a whole new market of creative jewellery! I’ve also done a few online courses, which hopefully will help be explore my creativity further.

What did you design last?

I just completed designing a new collection for my regular line and the next collection for Slate, to be launched January-end. Slate will be another minimal collection, but we are changing the colour polishes and styles.

Models: Anushka Laha, Tanisha De
Hair and make-up: Sujoy and Nabo

What: Junction’ 2020
Where: Vasundhara
17/1F, Alipore Road
When: December 22 to January 2,
11am to 5pm