Eve Balashova
Jewellery by Evgeniia Balashova is a visually captivating and tactile experience created using a combination of 3D printing and traditional hand skills. Each piece from Eve’s collection is a careful manipulation of weight, texture and kinetic qualities of 3D printed nylon and precious metals brought together in a quest to find harmony between these contrasting materials. Eve breathes in vibrancy into simple geometric forms using 3D modelling and handcrafts precious metal components using ancient metalworking techniques, various ways of metal forming, wire drawing and soldering. She works in Glasgow and exhibits her work in the UK and internationally. We are delighted to welcome Eve for her Elements debut and bring you behind-the-scenes and into the studio for a look into her work and process of making.
Describe your journey to becoming a maker.
I feel like I have always been interested in all things creative. My grandma has a big collection of books about art from her travels from when she was young, so anytime I’d go visit her she would bring them out. In my teenage years back in Russia I also attended a very traditional evening art school that took place alongside my high school studies. This was a very classical course that included traditional disciplines such as life drawing, watercolour painting, composition studies and technical drawing. I thought of taking up architecture in university and even did a whole year of preparation studies to help me get started, but during that year I realised it did not sit right with me. Perhaps I did not have the patience for it – there were too many plans and theories and I really missed having a physical hands-on connection with what I was creating. I feel like switching to jewellery just ticked the right boxes for me – there was still a sense of ‘constructing’ a piece, but in a much more intimate way and the fact that you can watch something appear in your hands from start to finish was very fascinating. The jewellery I make now is very architectural so in a sense these two areas of my interest naturally came together.
What interests you in 3D modelling and design? How did this practice become a core aspect of your work?
I started learning 3d modelling at university during my studies at the Glasgow School of Art and implemented it in some of the pieces from my degree show collection. My work was influenced by repetitive geometry and 3d modelling was a great way to achieve the level of precision I was looking for while being able to experiment with different pattern sequences and shapes. Initially I used 3d modelling to visualise my designs and eventually made the natural transition of 3d printing them. The results of my first experiments and the pieces I made for my degree show were very exciting and it felt like the material and process had a lot of potential, so I continued my journey in experimenting with it further.
What inspires your colour choice? How do you choose a palette to work from?
A few years ago, I started off with a selection of pastels, creating transitions of pink and turquoise and gradually expanded my palette to include many shades and colour combinations. I feel like every piece gains a completely new character in a new colour. Some of my colours are seasonal and get brighter and bolder during summer and slightly more tamed during the winter. They include solid colours, ombre and ‘marble’ effect, each piece painted by hand and protected with varnish for long lasting wear. Sometimes the colour in my work is a direct reflection of my surroundings. Last year I lived in Sweden for a while and my workshop was located in a beautiful little village in the North of the country. One of my favourite things about being there was watching sunsets – they were just full of incredible and unique pastel shades, it’s the kind of sunset that brings a sense of peace and calm into your soul. It inspired one of my favourite colour combinations – Nordic Sunset.
What inspires your material choice? What draws you to the combination of 3D printed nylon and precious metals in your work?
I found that combining 3d printing with precious metals really brought out the beauty of both materials – it is something that I do to this day and include handmade precious metal elements in all my pieces. I enjoy the combination of two entirely different process – something digital created by a machine fused with something that is entirely made by hand. Most of the 3d prints I make have a lovely texture that is created during the process of 3d printing – you can see build layers left by the printer and they look almost like wood grain. I usually create the precious metal elements to work in contrast with this texture and leave them plain, with a smooth reflective polish.
My main 3d printing material is nylon - it is particularly fascinating for me as it is extremely light and strong and allows me to work large scale without adding extra weight to a piece. I create my work to challenge conventional uses of 3d printing in jewellery. 3d printing has many possibilities and I design my work around this potential, not only utilising the light weight and strength, but also fantastic optical qualities and flexibility. It is a very playful process full of experiments and exploration and I love the element of surprise that comes with it – there is a real sense of discovery for me when I create the piece, as well as for the wearer trying it on for the first time. There is intrigue behind how it will feel, what kind of weight it has, how it will work with light. I think it is a very interactive and interesting experience. This material allows me to make pieces that are full of character and personality.
Creating the Fiber Brooch
Describe your process of creating a new piece.
The journey of my pieces is a little bit chaotic. There is rarely a sketch or a drawing in the beginning of my design process. I usually start out by going straight into 3d modelling software and map out a few shapes, playing with scale and patterns and trying to visualise what kind of qualities the 3d print will perform. This part usually acts as sketching for me.
I work with a rather interesting 3d printing method where every batch of prints is assigned a certain amount of space within the printer, so I aim to pack it with a few different objects and stack them up like in Tetris to make the most of that space.
Once the prints are ready and come out of the machine, I finally get to have a feel for weight and texture and test their flexibility and movement. I would usually choose the best performing ones from that batch.
I then design the precious metal frame around the piece to highlight the best qualities of the print. For example, in this Fiber Brooch the print is initially flat, and because of its flexible spine it can bend into this lovely half moon shape and create an interesting tactile texture and a mesmerising moiré effect when the light passes through the strands. Sterling silver frame is designed around the print to highlight these qualities and to hold the print in place.
I work with traditional metalworking skills during the creation of these frames – I use metal forming, soldering, piercing and folding to construct all parts of the frame. Within this particular piece there is a lovely contrast between the seemingly fragile print and the substantial look of the frame holding it, highlighting the differences between two materials.
I like the challenge of making a brooch back, as it needs to be both an integral part of the design as well as perform its function of holding the piece on the garment. The back in this brooch is particularly satisfying as it blends in with the curves of the piece and creates a seamless floating look when the brooch is being worn.
My larger works always have my hallmark on them. I particularly like incorporating laser engraved hallmarks into my work as another digital element and an additional fusion of tradition and technology. The crisp outline of these beautiful graphic elements of a hallmark is a beautiful addition to the precise geometry and sleek look of the piece.
To learn more about Eve Balashova and her work, you can find her at @eve_balashova on Instagram and evebalashova.com. Eve is one of fifty makers from across the UK taking part in this years’ digital Elements: A Festival of Jewellery, Silver and Gold.
Images and video courtesy of Eve Balashova