22.09. – 24.09.2023
“Now fashion, as we know, is a language: through it, through the system of signs it sets up, no matter how fragile this may seem, our society [...] exhibits, communicates its being, says what it thinks of the world [...]” (Roland Barthes: The Language of Fashion, London/New York 1985, S. 57)
Fashion is a language with its own sign system and jewelry a component within. It significantly shapes our non-verbal communication with the outside world and thus our habitus. Philosopher Roland Barthes describes jewelry as an essential detail that determines and completes the impression and effect of an outfit – "almost like the soul in the general economy of clothing."3 Lea Lauren's show portable timepieces is also all about the soul that manifests itself in wearable objects. Lea Lauren sees jewelry as a vessel of memories, emotions and traditions, as a mirror of its time and its wearer. She therefore seeks to breathe new life into objects that have already been worn: melting silver and gold, unsetting stones from pieces with a history to create her own story, and that of their future wearers.
According to Grimm’s dictionary, the German term for jewelry "Schmuck" is derived from the verb "schmiegen" (en: to nestle).4 Once worn or put on, jewelry not only nestles against the body, but can literally grow together with its wearer. Depending on the dimension and material, it is not taken off from time to time, but accompanies us when jumping into the water, sleeping and dreaming in bed at night, becomes an amulet to avert misfortune, makes us time travelers when remembering their previous owners. Close to the body, jewelry is thus always an integral part of the wearer's identity. portable timepieces is a homage to this unique power and emotional value of jewelry. On display is a selection that represents the entirety of Lea Lauren’s work: from her classic fluid forms in silver to recent and more playful pieces in which she has experimented with a new technique using colored powder to integrate traces and areas of color into her forms.Text by Amelie Gappa3 Barthes, Roland: The Language of Fashion, London/New York 1985, S. 58. (first published: Système de la Mode, Paris 1967).
Text by Amelie Gappa
4 URL: https://www.dwds.de/wb/dwb/schmuck (19.09.2023).
