Interview with Ekaterina Korzh
Ekaterina Korzh, a second-year MFA student in Jewelry & Metal Arts, received her first masters in Socio-Economic Geography at the University of Northern Iowa and Saint-Petersburg State University.
Designer of the Day Interview
18 May 2019
I graduated from the University of Iowa with an MA in Jewelry design and 3D design. But my first jewelry making classes took place five years ago in Colombia in a private school. Now I am doing jewelry and 3d visualization on a daily bases.
My first professional background was not of design. I spent around 8 years on studies and research in geography when I realized that I need to admit that I need to switch my career path and to do product and jewelry design. It didn't occur in an empty place, of course, because of all my life of learning and practicing different crafts and arts. At that moment, five years ago I started studying silversmithing in a small town of Tabio in Colombia during my research project. In two years, I was already admitted to the School of Art and Art History at the University of Iowa. There I took my first classes in product and furniture design. I established my own brand "korzhstudio" during these studies. Now I don't see my life without designing a new object every day.
Informed by my background in geography, my work employs an observational and inquiring perspective on the world that I retained from this education. In my jewelry, I create micro-landscapes by combining metal work with found stones, objects, and precious materials. But my priorities are still aesthetics and comfortable wear of my products
Complete calm. It's almost like a meditation. But it also important to stop at the right time or you will start ruining everything because you are tired or stuck. It is never a good idea to enforce yourself when you are designing something. The right design will come soon or later.
Everything in my pas shaped me as a designer: studying geography, craft classes, travels, international experience. I think the main skill that helps me to reach this point is my curiosity for life, nature, and world in general.
In korzhtudio, I am mainly producing jewelry based on my designs. In the future, I plan to widen the assortment to other products that I like to design such as furniture and lighting design. Also, I want to shift my production on outsourcing to have more free time for design ideas.
I am practicing both goldsmithing and 3D technologies right now. They do not intercept yet in my work but I hope it will happen in the future. So, I would say I still love to use traditional metal work but at the same time I design a lot of interior products in Rhinoceros and Fusion. I think these platforms are the best.
I am practicing both goldsmithing and 3D technologies right now. They do not intercept yet in my work but I hope it will happen in the future. So, I would say I still love to use traditional metal work but at the same time I design a lot of interior products in Rhinoceros and Fusion. I think these platforms are the best.
Sketch, sketch and sketch even if you don't have an opportunity to develop your project you should draw it on paper. That was major advice from my first jewelry teacher Francisco Jose Pineros.
Just keep going, practicing and learning.
I wake up and usually do yoga or run. Then I have breakfast and check my to-do list and schedule. After that, I spend most of my day in my metalwork shop developing my jewelry. In the evening I work on social marketing and photography of my final products.
I think the design trends create some atmosphere in culture and people feel that today's environment consists of some particular elements. It all affects contemporary designs and styles. Trends exist and change just because of human history evolve.
Aesthetics and usability should be balanced
When I feel that aesthetically it is balanced
A set of furniture made of plywood and fabric. It was a set of one coat rack, a chair, two stools, and a side table.
Iris van Herpen, Zaha Hadid, Ilgiz Fazulyanov, René Lalique, jewelery house Hemmerle
I love to travel and to get to know new people and places. After backpacking trips, I have the biggest inspirations for my designs.
I'm producing my products myself and just sometimes use outsource to develop some parts of my projects. I just can say that I am lucky to be surrounded by such good makers and people
In my designs, I use recycled silver and trying to be eco-friendly with all materials and resources that use. No excessive use of materials or energy
It gives your lots of new experiences within the design world
Interview about Traditional Parure Jewelry Set Design Interview
Designer Interview
28 October 2025
My journey began in geography. Just in my mid-twenties, I finally got a chance to study jewelry and visual arts. Studying metalsmithing, sculpture, and embroidery, I was still interested in socio-economic geography and was exploring themes of displacement, cultural memory, and sustainability. I discovered jewellery as a medium that could encapsulate intimacy, heritage, and material experimentation all at once. I earned an MFA in Metalsmithing and Jewelry from the University of Kansas, and my thesis show was devoted to the conversation of cultural heritage, immigration, and personal search. I’ve always been drawn to objects that carry meaning and story, and jewelry naturally became my chosen language. It bridges personal expression with public symbolism, and I believe I was always headed toward this intersection.
My studio practice operates as a hybrid between a jewelry atelier and a conceptual art space. While I produce wearable pieces, I also develop large-scale installations and sculptures centered around jewelry. My work is currently represented by Phoenix Gallery, and I often collaborate with institutions, curators, and craft centers for exhibitions, workshops, and residencies. I design and fabricate everything myself, using a mix of traditional and unconventional materials—from recycled plastics and glass to natural fibers and precious metals.
For me, design is storytelling through structure. It’s the ability to shape emotional, cultural, and material experiences into a tangible form. It’s not just about how something looks or functions—it’s about what it communicates and how it affects people. In my practice, design is also a form of activism and healing—a way to recover erased narratives and celebrate overlooked traditions.
I’m most passionate about creating jewelry that transcends decoration—pieces that evoke ritual, identity, and memory. I love designing works that feel like modern relics, embedded with stories and contradictions. Jewelry that uses sustainable materials to reference historical forms especially excites me—it feels like creating a time-traveling object.
The Traditional Parure Jewelry Set is one of my favorite and most meaningful works. It blends archival research, personal narrative, and experimental material practice. It was also a technical challenge and a spiritual journey—reviving cloisonné methods, weaving and knotting cotton, fusing glass and metal, all to tell a story of cultural loss and reclamation. Winning the A’ Design Award for this set has been incredibly affirming.
Actually, a staircase design
Found objects and textile-based components are my favorites because they invite imperfection and storytelling. I also deeply enjoy hand-painted enameling—a slow, meditative process that requires patience and precision. It feels like a ritual in itself.
I feel most creative when I'm in the midst of research or storytelling—reading folklore, handling archival objects, or experimenting with new material combinations. The studio becomes a laboratory, a sanctuary, and a time capsule all at once.
I prioritize narrative cohesion, material integrity, and emotional resonance. I want every part of the piece—its texture, color, weight, and construction—to feel intentional and communicative.
It ranges from curiosity and obsession to frustration and joy. Designing can be a deeply emotional process for me—it’s where I process cultural longing and personal memory. At times it feels like a prayer, at others, like a puzzle.
There’s always a mix of awe and vulnerability. Seeing a concept become a physical object is exhilarating, but it also feels intimate, like exposing a piece of my inner world to the public. The pride comes not just from how it looks, but from what it represents.
When it resonates emotionally, ethically, and visually. A successful design, to me, tells a layered story, respects its materials, and connects with people in unexpected ways.
I first look at intention and execution—what the piece is trying to say and how clearly and responsibly it communicates that. Material choice, form, innovation, and emotional impact also weigh heavily.
Designers shape culture, and with that comes responsibility. We must consider sustainability, inclusivity, and the preservation of tradition. Our work can perpetuate harm or spark healing.
Design is becoming more interdisciplinary and socially conscious. I see the future of design as circular, decolonized, and regenerative—focused not just on consumption, but on restoration and connection.
My most recent exhibition was “There Are More Fairies Further from Home...”—a solo show featuring large ceramic and jewelry-based sculptures. I’m currently planning my next solo exhibition around ritual adornment and Slavic mythology.
Folklore, memory, displacement, and ecological materials. I read mythology, study ethnographic archives, and experiment with discarded objects. My Slavic heritage is a wellspring of symbolic imagery.
My style is poetic, hybrid, and referential. It blends folk ornament, post-Soviet nostalgia, and contemporary eco-ethics. It's tactile, layered, and emotionally resonant—rooted in both research and intuition.
I don't live anywhere longer than 2-4 years. Then I keep moving. For example, I live in the U.S., but I'm leaving it soon. I always miss my home, but when I'm there, I want to travel again. Living abroad sharpens my awareness of cultural loss and belonging. It drives me to preserve and reinterpret my heritage through design.
I typically collaborate through limited-edition collections or concept development. I value creative freedom and alignment on sustainability and cultural sensitivity.
Trust the creative process and choose designers whose values align with your brand. Support slow design and ethical production methods—it results in deeper, more impactful work.
It begins with research—historical, symbolic, and material. Then sketching, prototyping, and slow, hands-on experimentation. It’s very iterative and emotionally driven. The piece reveals itself over time.
Vintage traveling chest
Pink porcelain tea cup from the UK
A ceramic artist's vase that celebrates a body-positive female body
A 3D-printed lamp I designed
A ceramic sculpture from my last exhibition
Pink porcelain tea cup from the UK
A ceramic artist's vase that celebrates a body-positive female body
A 3D-printed lamp I designed
A ceramic sculpture from my last exhibition
I start with quiet time—reading or journaling. Mornings are for studio work: fabricating, chasing, or enameling. Afternoons often involve research, grant writing, or teaching. Evenings, I sketch or walk for inspiration.
Stay curious and don’t be afraid to slow down. Follow what moves you emotionally. Learn your materials deeply. Design is a language—make sure you have something meaningful to say with it.
Positives: creative freedom, emotional expression, and the ability to influence culture.
Negatives: financial uncertainty, emotional exhaustion, and the pressure to constantly innovate.
Negatives: financial uncertainty, emotional exhaustion, and the pressure to constantly innovate.
Let the materials and the story lead. Never design for trend—design for truth.
Critical thinking, empathy, storytelling, adaptability, and patience.
Rhino 3D, hand tools for metalsmithing, enamel kiln, sketchbooks, Slavic mythology books, archives, and found material boards. Also, lots of experimental materials!
I work in focused blocks with long breaks for reflection. I’m intentional about rest—creative burnout is real. Lists and rituals keep me grounded.
Anywhere from two weeks to several months, depending on complexity and material exploration.
“Where did you find this material?” or “Is this piece wearable or art?”
Creating and curating my solo show during my MFA. It pushed every boundary—technical, emotional, and intellectual—and taught me to trust my voice.
Private collectors, curators, art galleries, and museums. Also, people who value sustainable, meaningful jewelry as wearable art.
Conceptual jewelry that ties personal history to collective identity. It allows for deep storytelling and material play.
Expand my parure collection, publish the relation between politics and jewelry art, and apply for international residencies to deepen my research.
Primarily solo, though I collaborate with other jewelers and historians for specialized skills or research support.
Yes—a series of enameled earrings that feature native Kansas rocks that are commonly used here at parking lots, but they carry tons of prehistoric fossils. I shape and polish them to install them into a fine jewelry шусуы
People can reach me via my instagram @korzhstudio, or through my email: e.s.korzh@gmail.com
Yes—jewelry is a political object. It’s never just about beauty. It’s about who gets to tell their story, and how we carry our past into the future.
Interview about Traditional Parure Jewelry Set Grand Interview