Noticias del Portal de la Cultura de América Latina y el Caribe

From inspiration to social commitment: creative and sustainable jewellery in the Caribbean and Europe



UNESCO

UNESCO and Mad'in Europe hosted an online event to explore the jewellery industry in the Caribbean and Europe

20 October 2023/ UNESCO Havana

Jewellery has played an important cultural role throughout history. Through jewellery, creators from all over the world express their own style, but also the traditions and personality of their time. In the Caribbean, jewellery-making is an art and a way of life and livelihood for many young people. They draw inspiration from their roots and the cultural richness of their diverse region to design unique pieces both affordable and sustainable.

In addition to its artistic value, jewellery represents a global market with sustained growth in recent years. To analyse its potential and the professional development opportunities it offers to young Caribbean creators, the UNESCO programme Transcultura: Integrating Cuba, the Caribbean and the European Union through Culture and Creativity, funded by the European Union, organized the online debate Creative and Sustainable Jewellery in the Caribbean and Europe, on 19 October 2023.

"Handcrafted jewellery is increasingly popular because it is affordable without losing elegance, durability and beauty. More than the type of material, the value of jewellery is more and more based on the originality of its design, and this is where the potential for the development of this industry in the Caribbean lies."
Anne Lemaistre
Director of the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean

The event, held in collaboration with the professional European artisan network of Mad’in Europe, provided a space for interaction between young jewellery designers from Dominica, Dominican Republic and Trinidad and Tobago and European artists from Italy, Germany and Belgium, all well positioned in the jewellery industry. "Jewellery making involves many hours of manual labour, traditional knowledge and techniques that have been handed down from one generation to the next. This cultural heritage needs to be revalued and protected, and one way to make it sustainable is to promote the development of local capacities and respect for the environment."
Madina Benvenuti
Founder of Mad'in Europe

The creators reflected on sustainable jewellery practices that avoid controversial gemstone mining. They also shared strategies for reaching audiences with limited purchasing power. The Europeans offered recommendations to Caribbean designers on how to position their products in the European market. "Caribbean culture speaks through jewellery. Just as our ancestors did, now we also use innovation and creativity to make better use of resources and create something new. The challenge is to find alternatives that allow this creativity to be expressed outside the region and to protect our work as jewellers."
Sanian Lewis (Trinidad and Tobago)
Designer and artist

The online discussion also showcased innovative artistic products. Participants, for example, were introduced to the pieces of Yaena Eugene-Carbon, a Dominican artist whose works are often inspired by nature; the pieces of Coral Espinosa, a Dominican jewellery designer who is part of a family business dedicated to the manufacture of jewellery; and the fashion designs of Trinidadian Sanian Lewis, style director of her brand Sanianitos.

This event is one of many cultural exchange activities organized by the Transcultura programme to promote regional integration, knowledge sharing, professional networking and identifying opportunities for collaboration between the Caribbean and Europe to open up new markets for young artists and cultural professionals from 17 Caribbean countries.