About Mariko Sumioka
Sumioka has developed her jewellery inspired by her love of architecture. She carefully observes architectural elements where she has travelled; the natural material colours and textures, dark and bright contrasts, geometric shapes and spaces. She sublimates them into a sculptural piece of jewellery.
Her architectural jewellery pieces that remind us of the tremendously long passage of time she felt in front of the architecture and that contain spaces like treasure boxes are the works that allow the viewer or wearer to freely wander and heave personal memories and stories within them.
She used Japanese architecture as inspiration sources which she has collected for years. She is fascinated by the beautiful collective roof tiles views and textures at the shrines and temples. Her original interest in architecture was when she saw people live and work in buildings, which looked like they live in small boxes from a far distance. She found it very interesting to imagine that we all spend time in these boxes. At the same time, we see things through windows and buildings. These frames capture the views and moments which will not be the same depending on the person and timings. This combination of architecture, views and the moment is a key element for her to incubate her unique ideas of views through the frames.
Studying at the Edinburgh College of Art was an opportunity to be inspired by the philosophy of contemporary jewellery, such as how to conceive and select materials. It was also a challenging time to transform her background and ideas into a form of jewellery. They were taught that the making process was as important as the finished product while researching their own interests and developing ideas. Her attitude of accepting discoveries and failures during the creative process has created Sumioka's style today. Her obsession with beautifully crafted details makes her work even more unique.
The stories told inside these miniature precious compositions are unfinished – it is up to you, the wearer to invent the rest.