Andi Gut

Andi Gut is known for his works in nylon, that, while an inorganic material, must be carved, coloured and handled like an organic material to render the biomorphic forms he wants to achieve. As in the animal world, where camouflage is effective through its deception of the enemy, Andi Gut's pieces initially confuse viewers and deceive those trying to read them. In a similar way they are reminiscent of a modern microphone worn directly attached to one's collar, a roll of thin cable or an anti-theft device attached to one's jacket pocket.

Gut manipulates this synthetic material to re-present such familiar, alluring and yet abstract forms, such that they take on the appearance of an organic form – is it the flotsam of the beach, an enlarged microorganism, or a trembling vine? His combination of nylon and precious metal lends them an otherworldly appearance, almost like alien fibers, peeping from the reverse of a jacket, and making them the perfect complement for a classic suit.

These mimeses are a clever seduction of one's gaze into the wide world of associations and, once again, Andi Gut has cleverly expanded the current definition of jewellery.

Born, educated and trained as a goldsmith in Zug, Switzerland, Andi Gut has been an influential jewellery educator and exhibitor across Europe for over twenty years. His whimsical, fantastic and yet technical jewellery artworks have instructed and influenced generations of jewellers and object makers. The recipient of numerous and repeat awards, Gut has exhibited in dozens of solo and collaborative shows and his works are included in museum and private collections internationally.

To coincide with the Design Museum's survey show Unexpected Pleasures: The Art and Design of Contemporary Jewellery, GALLERY S O London presents Chamber of Wonder.

While the term 'cultural resistance' has become synonymous with the world of social sciences in the 1970s, new energies emerged elsewhere. From the sub, counter and resistance cultures exciting developments in contemporary jewellery blossomed and a fresh identifiable movement among designers and makers of the day was born. The work asked questions about the cultural meanings of gender, material value and the intimate relationship between the object and body. Wearable pieces were made to rethink social rituals and stereotypes and queried the notion of how and why we adorn ourselves.

Following in the spirit of this movement Chamber of Wonder shows the work of current designer makers united by their irreverence of traditional notions of luxury jewellery and a curiosity for reinterpreting objects found and fashioned to wear. From Bernhard Schobinger's choker of hexagon rock crystal slabs linked with fine gold to Hans Stofer's renovated skipping rope necklace with timeworn handles, or David Bielander's silky, silver garlic bulb pendant, the works in the show celebrate the diverse expressions of the genre and offer fresh alternatives to the 'proper' function of jewellery.