HANS MEEVIS

Housing nearly fifty thousand pieces of rare paintings and sculptures the Netherlands’ Rijksmuseum is a haven for historical information on the country but it is also a place to find exquisite artifacts collected from the Far East and Southeast Asia.  The Netherlands is also the ancestral home of featured jewelry designer Hans Meevis.

14-Karat Gold and Titanium Amethyst Bangle Bracelet

So far the Netherlands has been the premier location to find the unexpected in jewelry design.

Designers Sasja Saptenno and Thea Tolsma respectively fashion remarkable pieces of jewelry with the inner tubes of bicycle tires.

Joke Schole’s unique work with porcelain and pearls mixes humor with social commentary; and Iris Eichenberg’s designer jewelry collections are informed by the plight of 19^th century immigrants building new lives in the United States of America.

While Meevis, and his wife Anne, create stunning collections of ready-to wear fine and custom jewelry the explorative spirit of contemporary jewelry is characteristic of many of their gorgeous jewelry pieces.

Variegated metals such as palladium, titanium, 18-karat gold, copper and sterling silver are readily incorporated into cuff bracelets, watches, and earrings.  Distinctive gemstones including gorgeous aqua larimar, blue amber, and purple charolite provide gorgeous accents.

Born in Pretoria, South Africa Meevis is the progeny of famed Dutch clockmakers.  Consequently with such an upbringing he developed a love for “taking things apart.”

18-Karat Yellow and White Gold Motion Ring
with Green-BlueTourmaline and Diamond

“Since I have a long lineage of family who were and still are clockmakers it was only natural to be interested in gemstones and jewelry,” he says.

“My wife Anne, who is German, moved to Pretoria with her parents, and she started work with an insurance company. After a few years she knew this was not her chosen field, and when she and I met she had already made the decision to resign.

In our early days we naturally slotted into roles that we were good at; at the same time unifying yet separating tasks,” he recalls.

Based on the island of St. Maarten in the West Indies, the couple takes a no-holds barred design approach implementing techniques like repoussé, casting,  plique-a-jour (enameling), and Japanese lamination process Mokume-game.  The flexibility of design styles and artistry is superb.

There are organic colored titanium bangle bracelets—in cobalt blue—outlined in 14- or 18-karat gold.  There is a double-sided pendant necklace composed of 14-karat gold and blue titanium with enamel accents.  There is also an innovative 18-karat gold ring in which the single band is actually three, interlocking rings that can also be worn separately.

18-Karat Yellow Gold Enamel Elephant Pendant
 with Smoky Quartz and Diamond

 The work is a testament to Hans and Anne’s unyielding desire to be inventive, daring and unique.  “Jewelry is a medium that allows me to combine my artistic ability and technical skills. 

I use goldsmithing, silversmithing, wax carving, casting and gem carving.  No material has any limits for me.  I merge any and all materials into a fused unit.  Jewelry is my passion.”