JewelryArts24 Winner Depicts A Brutal Reality At Frieze Art Fair

Atmospheric Perspective, a work by photographer Los Angeles-based Djeneba Aduayom has been announced as the winner of JewelryArts24, a digital art competition held by the Responsible Jewelry Council (RJC), the Mineralogical & geological Museum at Harvard University (MGMH) and Gemological Institute of America (GIA). Described by the artist as a “trauma response to the deteriorating health of our planet,” the winning artwork goes on display at Silo, during Frieze Art Fair in London, today.

The competition was announced a year ago, with an open call to the public to produce a digital artwork highlighting the messages that came out of last year’s State of the Art Jewelry summit. Since April, entrants from around the world have been using data from the Summit to make art that explores the relationship between nature and the jewelry industry, within the context of a more sustainable future. Entrants were judged by a panel including Melanie Grant, executive director of the RJC; Elisabetta Cipriani, gallerist and curator of contemporary jewellery; Isabelle Bonjean, photographer; Rachel Garrahan, curator at the V&A Museum, and a number of jewelry artists and executives from the GIA and MGMH.

“In my creative practice I explore visual parallels of reality and fantasy,” says Aduayom, whose multicultural heritage includes Togo, France and Italy. “The work presented for JA24 calls for an end to our collective actions and inactions which are destroying the planet, as well as an exploration of the intricate relationship between Earth’s raw materials and human artistry, emphasising the delicate balance required for sustainable creation.” Along with the Frieze London exhibition, she will receive a fund to further her creative career, and support from Studio Nataal brand and creative studio.

Aduayom emerged as an artist in 2011, after a career as a dancer and has since grown a profile for her fashion, portraits and art photography. Her previous career is tangible in the movement and grace of her otherworldly pictures, characteristics which are clear to see in her JewelryArts24 winning entry, in which ethereal figures wearing colorful robes are presented in a desert landscape.

In a series of animated still photographs projected as an immersive installation, vibrant colors and thoughtful composition highlight a “brutal reality” that is not without beauty, as a “poetic vision of what we are transforming our planet into,” according to her artist’s statement. Aduayom used digital technologies to interpret rising levels of toxicity and “the feeling of the earth melting” in a powerful and thought-provoking work that she hopes will encourage contemplation of what will be left after we are gone.

Melanie Grant was delighted with the winning work, and reported that the judging panel came to a unanimous decision: “Djeneba’s work is a haunting visual feast that left an indelible mark on all of us – a true testament to the artistry and creativity that our industry fosters.” Moreover, the artist hopes that the sensations the viewer experiences during the installation encourage a more sustainable way of living, in which everyone plays their part in protecting the Earth.

JA24 is open for public view from 9 to 12 October 2024 at Silo, First Floor, Unit 7 Queens Yard, White Post Lane, London, E9 5DN. There will be a Meet the Artist even – 2-5pm, 13 October 2024, you can book on the Silo website.