At the exhibition, we will see works by 21 artists from Poland and Austria, Germany, Finland, Great Britain, Mexico and South Korea. Among them are both creators who have been involved in artistic jewelry for years, as well as artists seeking their own language through form, material and technique.
The selection is very diverse. There are brooches, objects of sculptural and structural nature, but also works in which jewelry becomes a way of commenting on reality. Some can be worn, others are closer to small works of art. What they all have in common is that they were created with the intention of being more than just a decoration on the body.
The title of the exhibition refers to the fact that jewelry is not necessarily a necessary item for life. Yet for thousands of years it has had a place in culture. It tells us who we are, what is important to us, and to which group we want to belong. Contemporary artists use these meanings, but often go even further, using jewelry to tell their own stories or comment on issues that affect us all.
Unnecessary Jewellery it is a cyclical project – the first edition took place in 2025. This year’s edition was already presented during the Inhorgenta Munich fair, in the Frame section of the Handwerk & Design fair in Munich, and in Warsaw’s Gallery of Breakfast Rooms. Now it is heading to Gdańsk.
Among the participants were: Marcin Bogusław, Bogumił Bytomski, Norman Cherry, Bartosz Maria Chmielewski, Alberto Dávila, Slawomir Fijałkowski, Jolanta Gazda, Martyna Golińska, Eero Hintsanen, Pawel Kaczynski, Margaret Kalińska, Orsolya Karman, Jarosław Kolec, Adriana Lisowska, Konstanze Prechtl, Krzysztof Roszkiewicz, Anna Sikorska, Rose Stach, Gisbert Stach, Youjin Um, Arek Wolski
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Unnecessary Jewellery: jewellery that says more than it needs to
Designer jewellery from around the world at the Unnecessary Jewellery exhibition in Warsaw
Exhibition Unnecessary Jewellery
Gallery of the International Amber Association in Gdansk
Opening: October 3, 2026. 18:30
Organizers: Sławomir Fijałkowski, Arek Wolski, Anna Wójcik-Korbas
Exhibition as part of Gdańsk Jewellery Week 2026