“THE NATURE OF THINGS: THE MAKING OF THINGS”, CONTEMPORARY NORWEGIAN JEWELRY DESIGNER AND ENGINEER SIGURD BRONGER’S FIRST SOLO EXHIBITION IN ASIA HAS OPENED AT ATTA GALLERY. LET’S FIND OUT HOW MONGOLIAN CAMEL SHIT HAS BECOME A COLLECTABLE, AND WEARABLE, PIECE OF JEWELRY ART
TEXT & PHOTO: PAWIT MAHASARINAND
MAIN IMAGE COURTESY OF ATTA GALLERY
(For Thai, press here)
A few days after ATTA Gallery, Thailand’s first and still only contemporary art jewelry gallery, had shipped art works by many Thai designers to participate in FRAME, as part of Schmuck, the world’s longest-running annual contemporary art jewelry exhibition held at the Internationale Handwerksmesse (IHM) in the Bavarian capital, they found out that IHM was cancelled due to COVID-19.
“I really feel sorry for them” is one of the first sentences by Bronger in our interview.
More than a decade ago, ATTA’s founder and gemologist Atinuj “Atty” Tantivit–even before she founded ATTA–listened to a talk by Bronger at Schmuck and was impressed by his humor that’s always reflexive in his works. Their conversation continued in the subsequent editions of Schmuck and Bronger revealed, which Atty at first took as a joke, that his twin brother lives and works in Bangkok.
Bronger and Atty
“I immediately felt we had something to share,” adds Bronger. “ATTA Gallery looks very professional and could be a contemporary gallery in Europe,” and he then initiated the idea for this Bangkok exhibition, which was realized last year when Atty visited Norway, with the invitation by Norwegian Crafts.
Bronger’s works are now in the collections of world-class museums such as Museum of Art and Design (MAD) in New York, Nasjonal Museumeet in Stockholm and Het Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. He has been honored with, among many others, Torsten and Wanja Sodenbergs Design Award, the world’s largest, and Prince Eugene Medal. For the former, a jury member Ted Hesselbom said, “When I look at and touch Bronger’s jewelry, I feel like a young boy at a funfair or caught up in a wonderful mechanical fairytale world–I forget everything else around me. Sigurd Bronger’s design changes my perception of what is possible.” Receiving the latter from the hands of H.M. King Gustaf, Bronger amused the Swedish king with the fact that he created a work, now in the national museum nearby, from his mother’s gallstones, which many people have noted they look like five fish balls on a stick.
With a wide variety of materials Bronger is working with–from Mongolian camel shit to a Thai sea shell his daughter brought back from her vacation, one wonders where he draws his inspiration from. He explains, “Most of my ideas come from the nature, science and technology as well as everyday life. To be honest, it’s like an old-fashioned way from a century ago–seeing the beauty of nature and the incredible technique of technology. I am also inspired by architecture, design, literature, theatre and film. Cultural impetus is very important because it’s about communication and so are my works.”
Responding to comments that his works are sculptures, to be exhibited, rather than jewelry, to be worn, he says, “My aim is not only to make pieces you can wear. I like it when collectors of my works put them in the glasses or on the shelves when they’re not wearing them. It’s a challenge to wear them of course. All the pieces are unique: I’ve never made the same piece twice. That’s why it’s quite pricey and they’re collected as art pieces.”
An adjunct professor at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts (KHiO), Bronger shares how he inspires the next generation of jewelry designers in his four-week course, “I teach them mainly concepts and ideas of contemporary jewelry and at the same time include them in the international scene. I require them to go to Schmuck, at least once. I also tell them about ATTA and say that it’s possible for their works to be exhibited here.”
Earlier that day he gave a lecture at Silpakorn University’s Faculty of Decorative Arts and his suggestion for aspiring jewelry designers is: “If you want to work in this small field, you have to be fully devoted to and passionate with the whole scene. You have to also be patient because it takes a long time before you get recognition. But I’m convinced if you work hard you’ll get there. I work all the time: talking to you, talking to people I get ideas.”
Bronger says that he is now preparing for his largest solo exhibition at a 5,000-square-meter gallery at Die Neue Sammlung: The International Design Museum in Munich in 2022, but, of course, to get a glimpse of his creativity, you neither have to wait that long nor travel that far.
Sigurd Bronger’s “The Nature of Things: The Making of Things” is at ATTA Gallery, O.P.Garden, Charoenkrung Soi 36 (Rue de Brest) until April 18, 2020, Tuesday to Saturday 1 to 6:30pm (for other times, make an appointment at info@attagallery.com)