Wahlenbergbreen Mementos

In summer 2019, Capucine Huguet went to Longyearbyen in Svalbard, the northernmost settlement of the planet. Over there, she met eminent glaciologists who took her on fieldwork studying the melting glaciers and who explained to her the issues of the ice melting in the Arctic. But, the most important thing she learnt was that to tackle climate change, everything relies on communication and science outreach. This is why she decided to design a collection which communicates about the melting glaciers in Svalbard: Wahlenbergbreen mementos. In jewellery, memento mori used to be popular jewels worn to remind wearers that they were mortal and that everyone must eventually die. The jewels of this collection can be seen as reminders of the Arctic for the wearer and initiate a need to protect it.

Each piece illustrates a particular issue of melting glaciers, whether it is cracks, erosion, or even decay. Huguet also found a deep interest in the microscopic world, thus she studied melting snow crystals with an electronic microscope, which gave her a new vocabulary of forms. The idea is to freeze in metal the ephemeral melting snowcrystals, to make permanent what is being lost. Besides, because the ice structure is hexagonal, she chose to have hexagonal rings ’structures. But in Svalbard she had the feeling the Arctic was broken, thus she broke the hexagons of her rings to illustrate this metaphor.

For a responsible approach of her practice, the jewels are made of recycled 18 ct gold or sterling silver, and ethical gemstones.