The dance of H.Stern

The H.Stern + Grupo Corpo collection was inspired by Grupo Corpo ballets, specifically the “Benguelê” ballet (1998), which presents Brazilian music and popular dance influences. The marked rhythm of those dances, punctuated by hip movements that reverberate through the whole body, was translated into long and articulated earrings, bracelets and necklaces in which gold discs were finished with the texture of arid, desert-like soil, revealing the African ancestry that permeates Brazilian culture and history.

Launched in 2009, these pieces are a departure from the myriad colored gemstones that  H.Stern built its name on. This time around, the looks are decidedly modern and, like the dancers’ bodies, sinuous. The collection is comprised of modern, light and airy jewels, full of contrasting textures and sinuous lines that resemble the human body in movement, while the jewels showcase exquisite craftsmanship, audacity and vision.

Journeying into the universe of modern dance, the jewelry design team studied all aspects of Grupo Corpo’s renowned productions, from the conceptualization of each ballet’s theme and its choreography to costume and set design. In small, intimate creative meetings choreography and costumes were translated into finishing techniques and textures; drops of perspiration became diamonds, and the chiseled bodies of extraordinary dancers (“corpo” means “body” in Portuguese) morphed into twisted surfaces and sinuous lines caught somewhere between diversity, tradition and modernity.

This group of avant-garde jewels in 18K Yellow and Noble Gold, diamonds and colored gemstones, transcends the concept of jewelry as objects, and creates an ensemble of unique artistic interpretation. Each piece in this collection expresses fluidity of movement, and has its origins in a complex world where imbalance can be more important than planned, rehearsed steps. Yellow and Noble gold were used throughout the collection, always brushed, matted, or grooved.

Paulo Pederneiras, artistic director of Grupo Corpo, who worked with Roberto Stern and the creative team, provides an interesting insight from the other side of the creative table: “Nothing was pre-determined; we started this process without any idea of the outcome. The process determined the results.  Roberto and I are similar in many ways — we listen more than we speak, our work ethic is the same: simple, straightforward. Our teams are similar in their unassuming, non-pretentious way.  We’re professionals, not stars.” It is likely that the success of this complex, multi-layered and elaborate collection was made possible by the simplicity of its creative process and the people involved in it.

The new jewels are, like the Grupo Corpo ballets, an argumentative, inquisitive being. They point toward something else. An idea, a thought, a feeling, all of which must be experienced in different shades, from different angles.

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H.Stern is available only at Adora, 3/F Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center Makati; tel. no. 217-4029.