The goal of this project was to create jewelry that was inspired by nature. As both jewelry and nature are broad categories, this project required a comprehensive ideation process. I decided that I first needed to settle on the area of inspiration for the project. Nature contains an enormous amount of variety in terms of forms, so I felt it was important to narrow this down.
My first area of experimentation was with insect-inspired forms. These involved more angular, geometric designs. The angular insectoid forms didn’t fit the “classy” look I was going for though, so I kept thinking.
After exploring that idea, I moved to seashells and coral. These creatures often feature complex patterns and textures that I found interesting. Although I discovered countless unique patterns in this area, I wanted a stronger inspiration for my overall form.
Finally, I settled on stingrays as my design inspiration, as I felt inspired by the way their fins and tails contort and bend. I drew a few different species as a kind of form study.
