Inspired by „objets trouvés" of the artist Marcel Duchamp the jewellery creator André Ribeiro in the 80s started to combine two contradicting materials with each other to new pieces of jewellery: Diamonds and black hard rubber. His decisive inspiration spring was a rubber ring which is used, actually, in the hydraulics as a gasket. With a diamond, hardest of all precious stones, Ribeiro has found the ideal contrast point to this unimportant object. Thanks to the vigor of the rubber the connection is certainly guaranteed between the diamond enclosed in white gold and the soft raw material – moreover, both materials are effective equally excitingly.
This new material mix which bumped in the 80s into a lot of lack of understanding in the jewellery branch completely corresponds to a basic setting of the designer: „The question about the value of the worthless and the worthlessness of the valuable“. Beside the content consideration to the value concept, the contrast of the colour plays in formal regard an important role for the jewellery creating of André Ribeiro.
Black is like the light, the sum of all colours. Symbol of the night and nonentity. Black demands the light, his highest contrast.
This is for André Ribeiro the diamond in the brilliant cut, symbol of the light, the cleanness and perfection. The hardest hits on the softest and the light plays in the dark.
This new vision in the jewellery area was recognised in 1997 by Karlsruhe OLG (Higher Regional Court) of special cultural meaning and protected by copyright. This was hardly conceivable till then in the serial jewellery design.
This jewellery line was distinguished in 1999 with the Red Dot Award and firm component of the collections of the New York Cooper-Hewitt of museum (1989), the Pforzheim jewellery museum (2003) and the Musée of the Arts Décoratifs is in Paris (2004).
Today after over 30 years now this jewellery collection is valid as „a classic" and is complemented regularly with new models.
André Ribeiro, born 1953 in Bordeaux / France,
has studied Jewellery-Design at the „Fachhochschule für Gestaltung“ in Pforzheim (Germany) from 1976 till 1981 by Professor Reinhold Reiling. Since 1982 free-lance designer, works and lives in Berlin.
1982 – 1985 As free-lance designer working for the jewellery industry in Pforzheim.
1989 – 1997 Lecturer at „Fachhochschule für Gestaltung“ in Pforzheim.
1990 – 1999 Freelance designer for „Montblanc-International“.
Awards & distinctions:
1981 INTERGOLD – Competition – Paris – (France). 1. Price and acknowledgment.
1982 ASUAG – Watch design competition – Bienne (Switzerland) 3. Price.
1998 „The Red Dot“, award for good design quality. NRW Design Center – Essen – (Germany).
Works in public collection:
1989 Cooper Hewitt Museum – New York – USA.
2003 Musée des Arts Décoratifs – Paris – France.
2005 Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim – Germany.