Clear, crystalline and dynamic uses of an every day component
Of all the materials put to use and on display during Miami's art extravaganza, we saw several shimmering, shiny—but also innovative—works utilizing glass. Fragile, see-through and with the ability to morph light and color, it's as multidimensional as it is straightforward. It completed collages, accented drawings and encased moments of time. And in one instance, an installation matched and enhanced a collaborative collection of haute jewelry
While oftentimes wary of the fashion world usurping attention belonging to art, we were in awe of the collaboration between the gold standard of crystals, Atelier Swarovski, and the mesmerizing, experimental Parisian design house Maison Martin Margiela. The "Crystalactite" avant-garde jewelry collection is reminiscent of Superman's home planet Krypton, with its large, sharp crystalline angles. The futuristic limited edition collection is also born of a new fusion process that allows each crystal to appear to be growing from the matte white resin, a bone-like base across the rings, bracelets, pendants and broaches.
Of equal importance, however, was the installation at the Margiela Miami boutique. "Stalker" (2013) by Baptiste Debombourg was a site-specific display of cascading layers of shattered, laminated glass. Some of the glass appeared to pour from the walls, while in other areas, it wrapped up the clothes as if they'd frozen and the ice then shattered. It was there to be touched and, in some instances, stepped on—blending audience and art. Debombourg channeled the nature of stalactites, much the same way the jewelry line does.
