COLLABORATION

COLLABORATION MADE IN TRANSLATION

Ceramist Simone Bodmer-Turner transmutes her biomorphic sculptures into wearable art for a jewelry collaboration with AGMES.

By Lauren Gallow Photographed by Anastasiia Duvallie

THIS PAGE: The sterling-silver Simone necklace evokes the amorphous forms of Simone BodmerTurner’s stoneware sculptures in wearable art. OPPOSITE: Since launching her ceramics studio in 2018, Bodmer-Turner has gained a cult following for her primordial clay forms, like this Untitled piece, which plays with depth and negative space. »

For sculptor and designer Simone Bodmer-Turner and jeweler sisters Morgan and Jaclyn Solomon, a cross-disciplinary collaboration was kismet. “Jaclyn and I both independently loved Simone’s work,” says Morgan, who cofounded New York–based AGMES with her sister in 2016. “Right before the pandemic, we were struggling to define our next collection. I was sitting at my kitchen table when a message from Simone popped up. I looked up and saw a vessel [made by Simone] on my shelf that Jaclyn had gifted me, and immediately I knew she would be perfect [to collaborate with].”

With that, the trio set off to translate Bodmer-Turner’s primordial-yet-modern, casual-yet-commanding ceramic forms into jewelry. “We kept coming back to the idea of wanting to create wearable sculpture,” recalls Bodmer-Turner, who studied with communities of ceramists in Japan and Oaxaca before launching her studio in 2018.

“I have such a visceral reaction to Simone’s pieces,” Jaclyn says. “We wanted to make sure we did her work justice.” The result is a line of 18 styles in 18-karat gold vermeil and sterling silver, including earrings, necklaces, brooches, and a particularly striking ring whose weighty, sensuous curves evoke dripping, melted metal.

Recasting their typical design process along the way, the Solomon sisters encouraged Bodmer-Turner to sculpt in the materials she felt comfortable with. “Morgan and Jaclyn sent me wax and carving tools, which I tried to use, but I got so frustrated I begged to use clay!” laughs Bodmer-Turner, who used the wax to form the Turner ring and Bubble Hoops but returned to clay to create the small sculptures that comprise the other shapes in the collection.

As happens in the best creative partnerships, the collection nudged everyone into new artistic frontiers. “Working small is much harder than you’d think,” BodmerTurner says. “This collaboration cracked open a door for me—the transference to a new medium or scale is scary, but it gave me the confidence to trust myself.” h

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: The Long Diane earrings evoke dripping metal and are shown in sterling silver with a freshwater pearl drop. The Baroque Bodmer earrings are in gold vermeil with a baroque freshwater pearl drop (a pearl with an irregular, non-spherical shape). The Gertrude pendant is shown in gold vermeil with an ivory, self-tying cord.

“I’M DRAWN TO JEWELRY AS A COMPLEMENTARY MEDIUM TO MY CLAY PRACTICE BECAUSE IT’S SOMETHING YOU GET TO CARRY OUT IN THE WORLD WITH YOU, AS A SMALL OBJECT.”

“I LOVE THE RING, NOT ONLY BECAUSE IT WAS TRULY SIMONE’S CREATION, BUT BECAUSE I CAN LOOK DOWN AT MY HAND AND ADMIRE THE SCULPTURE I’M WEARING. IT’S ART ON MY FINGER.”

—Morgan Solomon, AGMES

The chunky, sterling-silver Turner ring is one of the first pieces Bodmer-Turner designed for the collection. Its form was inspired by two favorite vintage rings in the sculptor’s personal collection, which she had picked up over the years during her travels.