Piecing Stories Together

Jewelry and accessory designer Kritha Makwana finds inspiration in discarded bits and bobs that tell their own forgotten tales

 

 Why does an architect move to designing jewelry?

KM: My passion for jewelry started while I was a student at the School of Architecture, CEPT University. In 2012, while sketching for a mapping exercise to study spatial constructs in the old city of Ahmedabad, I found a sewing machine bobbin and a rusted metal hinge lodged within a heap of metal waste. Exploring further I found more interesting, abstract and undefined metal waste. It seemed to carry stories and associations, and had the openness to adapt and gain a new meaning. This piqued my interest in adopting these beautiful discarded pieces and using them to make different accessories for myself. It didn’t start with an idea to make it for people or to sell it.

So, you prefer to work with discarded items?

KM: Any discarded piece has beauty of age, time, meanings, and relationships hidden in it. The idea is not to decipher what it brings along with it. It is the mere joy of celebrating its openness to adapt to a new form, keeping intact its past associations.

What led to the launch of ‘Krithaa’?