In loving memory of Nancy Abelmann

It is with great sadness we share that an incredible woman, mother, noted scholar, cultural anthropologist, and friend, Nancy Abelmann, passed away from her battle with cancer earlier this month.  She was one of the most compassionate individuals I have ever come across, and was kind enough to stay in touch with me even after I went to another institution for graduate studies and entered the financial private sector (rather than remain in academia).  

A mentee of hers from decades past (who happened to be my T.A. when I was an undergrad at the University of Illinois) asked me to design and create a piece she could wear when lecturing students, to remind her, and at the same time pay tribute to, Nancy's tremendous strength and brilliance.   

She offered me a pair of wolf teeth as a possible center to the design.  She bought them while attending an Asian American conference with Nancy.  The most primal jewelry is made from bones and claws, and this was one of the most unusual materials to cross my jewelry bench.  These wolf teeth were originally strung on simple wires.  I intertwined branches (that were reminiscent of Nancy's wavy hair!) out off 18K blackened gold and diamonds, and attempted to  transform them into totemic earrings.

Contributions in Nancy's memory may kindly be directed to:

University of Illinois Foundation

Nancy Abelmann Scholarship Fund

1305 W. Green St.

Urbana, IL 61801.

A hurried year...

Apologies for the delay in updating this journal... Summer went swiftly as my sons and I journeyed once again to our most favourite of Scandinavian cities, Copenhagen, for the month of August. It is always humbling and such a deep honor to collaborate with Illums Bulguis, and their very talented design anchors.  I look forward to returning again next year!

On the studio front, we tearfully bid adieu this month to our beloved Axel Sandstrøm.  Axel has been an integral part of Atelier Linde Lim for the past six years... he just completed his Ph.D. in comparative literature and returned to his native Stockholm with his partner to begin an assistant professor's post.  His expert administrative / technical skills, ability to maintain a firm gatekeeper's position (as many might have begrudgingly experienced!), alongside jovial nature will be sorely missed.

With that said, the studio warmly welcomes Sarah James as the new executive assistant.  They comes by way of the Neiman Marcus Group, and we are excited for their arrival during a bustling time of year! 

On the studio project docket, we received a surprising number of commissioned bracelet requests.  A designer can have such fun as they can incorporate organic and delicate lines similar to a ring, but at a more statement level.  Please enjoy the snapshots!  And we will be back again with a year in review update come winter...

Pro Bono Jeweler

A favourite metalsmith of mine, Gabriel Craig, has been revisiting the notion of the world of craft and the handmade and how it fits into our contemporary life. 

I was delighted to hear him talk last week at a seminar held at Parson's.   Love the idea!  I often receive some very strange questions about how my work is made, and it is true that in our modern society the connection to hand work has been lost to the point that many cannot even fathom how pieces of metal are alloyed, formed into sheet and wire, manipulated into various shapes, joined by heat, and finished through texture or polishing.  A thousand bravos to you, Gabriel!

In the meantime, please feel free to peruse the latest open-ended commissioned pieces from this first quarter of 2015.  These types of commissions grant me full artistic freedom stemming from the design trickling all the way to the type of metal / gemstones.  So much of these designs were inspired by what my children have been learning in their creative and loving nursery classrooms at Akiba-Schechter.  Tristan often comes home informing me of the animals and colours of the Arctic landscape;  Armand constantly provides me much insight on the newest facts on the colours, shapes, textures and temperatures of planets in our solar system (Pluto is no longer a planet!  Old news to the rest of the word, but new to me!); little Cassian is learning his colours.  He was my official assistant in selecting all of the gemstone combinations for all these creations!

On the project docket for March, I am honoured to create a piece for a school that has brought my children so much joy and instilled a deep love of learning - Akiba-Schechter. Below is a sketch of a Star of David necklace pendant I am currently working on for their fundraising event's silent auction.... After weeks of design deliberations with my boys, we decided upon a three dimensional architectural version of the star.

Please enjoy and wishing for spring's swift arrival!

2014: a year in review

Now is the time of the year that plans for 2015 are being put into place. Before the calendar changes, I wanted to go back and share some of the notable moments of 2014, both business and personal...

The early part of this year brought with it notable personal changes that directly impacted Atelier Linde Lim... the late-pregnancy loss of my daughter, and the very abrupt passing of my dear and design-talented friend, Alan "Woodie" Anfinson. 

Their losses prompted me to take a respite from the blog so that I could refocus on the remaining students at Metalwerkstatt as well as my private label clients. 

It was to my great surprise in the summer to receive design collaboration invitations to two innovative fashion houses: Galleries Lafayette (Paris) and Illums Bolighus (Copenhagen).  Before I knew it, our three boys and I were packing our bags and excited for a summer in new urban landscapes and challenging design paradigms.

Speaking of designs, below are a few examples from the private label pieces as well as the designs inspired while working in Paris and Copenhagen...

I hope you enjoy them as much as they helped lift me out of the sadness from earlier this year.  

Wishing you a brilliant year in 2015!

sketches of a collection  

a finished collection

a sketch...

production piece

copenhagen inspired

paris inspired

Summer's creative process...

What a whirlwind of custom-related activity filled the studios the past several months!  

I was pleased to have so many unique commission requests as they provided a tangible foundation to teach some of our new students a little bit more about coloured gemstones given they have had their fair share of working with diamonds the past quarter.  

Since May, they have had the opportunity to observe the step by step process of creating a piece of custom jewelry from the initial brainstorming of design ideas,  selecting quality gems and pairing them with appropriate metals, refining sketching techniques, and finally watching the fabrication process from start to finish in the studio!

Please enjoy the showcase above of some sketches as well as finished pieces that were created this summer!

Kindly note that we will be taking a break from blogging until late spring 2014 in order to keep up with the studio's workload to prepare for upcoming shows and to complete custom commissions... Have a wonderful winter holiday and best wishes for a joyful new year!

The boundaries of jewelry at Munich's Internationale Handwerkmesse...

This month we are humbled and ecstatic to be invited to participate in the design competition at Internationale Handwerkmesse in Munich, Germany.  I was also asked to give a presentation on where the boundaries of jewelry lie and what aesthetic potential the field affords!

For this uniquely exciting opportunity, I chose to design a piece out of 20K white and yellow golds that symbolises how jewelry, more than most other disciplines in the visual arts, is characterized by social and psychological utility.  The personal uses to which adornment is put suggests an aesthetic possibility that few observers have noticed: its ability to touch people.  

And that is the great potential of jewelry!  By the very nature of the form, it literally touches people.  It is worn: a person can feel the piece on their skin. But more importantly, a person has the opportunity to sense the goldsmith's empathy and compassion whilst creating the piece... Jewelry can in fact be a benevolent act.

A year gone by...

A year has gone by since our beloved friend, Claude Fouché, passed away.  The studio has not been the same without his jovial presence and he remains sorely missed. 

In his memory, we created a few pieces in 18K white and black golds which represent his love of architecture and designs that reflect movement.  These will be donated as auction pieces for the American Cancer Society's fundraising efforts to finding a cure.