The MEMORY CARDS exhibition is dedicated to the 25th anniversary of A-Gallery. It brings together the work of 57 jewellery artists with comments from the designers themselves about the featured piece or their connection with A-Gallery more broadly.
A-Gallery was the first gallery opened in Estonia to showcase the work of designer jewellery. It is the largest of its kind in the country and was founded by the artists themselves. Since 1994 it has aimed to give both the local and international audience a deeper understanding of designer jewellery. In its 25 years of operations it has showcased the design techniques, use of materials and conceptual approaches of the artists represented at the gallery. Each new generation of jewellery artists has brought its own sense of style typical of its era. Tradition and innovation go hand in hand here, precious metals combining with a wide range of materials charged with meaning for the artists utilising them.
The jewellery, which will be presented in Vault as photos, will also be shown by the artists in the sales room. In addition to showcasing the creations of the artists, these photos speak of their time and of memory, traditions, conceptual diversity, ways of wearing jewellery, the extensive choice of materials used and the skills of the artists – forming something of an archive characterising 25 years in the life of a gallery. The curators of the exhibition have given each of the artists carte blanche in how they present themselves to the audience.
Exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.