What inspired you to pick up this craft?
As a prospective art student, I used to draw sculptures at the National Archaeological Museum. When I noticed the Mycenaean jewellery collection, I was enchanted by its purity, the faded shine of gold and the green-blue hues of the glass. I wanted to create objects like those.
Is your work influenced by your roots?
The images that have stuck with me since infancy are tied to my birthplace, the arid Cycladic islands. In my pieces, you’ll find the yellow-gold of the dry meadows and the blue of the sea. The dehydrated, fragile and wrinkled metal surfaces echo the barren landscape.
©Melitini Nikolaidi
How would you characterise your jewellery?
They’re more than accessories; they’re artworks in discourse with the human body, but also self-existent. When not worn, they are displayed in special cases under the right lighting. Which is why I can spend 70 hours making a pair of earrings or 200 hours on a necklace.
What defines a "well made" object?
Art objects tell stories related to matters of technique or aesthetic. Their narrative should flow uninterrupted, just like in great pieces of literature. To me, an object is well made when its story is not hindered by technical or design deficiencies.