Alice Cicolini

The sacred architecture and patterns of the Silk Route are the inspiration for Alice Cicolini’s jewelry. As her collections have evolved, inspiration flows from sources as diverse as Venice, Lahore, Hampton Court Palace and the diamond workshops of Hatton Garden, always retaining a connection to her fascination for the way in which ideas and motifs change and adapt across vast landscapes. Many of her pieces continue to be handmade in India in the studio of Kamal Assat Meenakar, one of the last Jaipuri meenakari trained in the enamel traditions of Persia, passed down through family generations over 200 years. A family whose work is owned by the Maharajas of Patiala and Jaipur, and exhibited the world over, their craftsmanship remains of the highest quality. At the same time, her renowned Memphis collection is created entirely in London, where she works with Theo Iannou, an award-winning goldsmith, and Stanislav Reymer, a lacquer enamel craftsman in the creation of her pieces.

Alice was originally drawn to jewelry through a passion for master craft and the handmade. After a decade of working firstly for Tom Dixon and then as a design curator and producer, Alice had seen at firsthand the superlative quality of work that can be achieved by individuals who have dedicated their lives to sustaining the highest possible quality in their work, and to realizing their craft with a poetry that is unmatched by machines. After five years living in India and working alongside other curators, designers and artisans, she began to truly understand that the survival of these traditions was not just a “nice to have” but a critical part of social as well as cultural sustainability.

Alice Cicolini is a designer and creative commissioner, as well as a curator of several international touring exhibitions on design and a published author, including The New English Dandy, for Thames& Hudson. She is a Research Associate at Central St Martins, where she graduated in 2009 with a Masters in Jewelry Design, the Design director of heritage pearl company Winterson, and is formerly the Director Arts & Culture for the British Council in India. Alice has exhibited at the V&A, Somerset House, and Sotheby’s. From 2012-2015, Alice participated in the British Fashion Council’s celebrated Rock Vaults initiative, curated by Stephen Webster. Her work has been featured in books by Melanie Grant (Coveted), Kyle Roderick (Bejeweled: The World of Ethical Jewelry), Olivier Dupon (The New Jewellers) and Carol Woolton (Drawing Jewels for Fashion).