Roque Jewelry + Giveaway

Luisa is the amazingly talented artisan behind Roque Jewelry. Luisa makes earrings, pendants, rings and necklaces with an eco conscience. She's able to translate life's natural beauties into such special pieces. I really, enjoy her pieces because they have such a raw vibe! She uses an array of materials, aluminum bronze, silver, copper, brass and recycled materials too!

1) When did you first discover your ability to make such beautiful and unique pieces? First, as a matter of a brief background, I have always been drawn to art- by means of drawing... since I was probably 10 or so. I loved drawing everything and everywhere. But right after High School, that ability sort of got frozen in my first 'wrong choosing of career': Chemical Engineering! Yes, at first I thought this was the thing for me, don't ask me why. Later on, my inclination for certain aesthetics and other artistic venues led me towards a different path (Communication) which somehow opened up again the art vein in me.

In 2009, a group of fab woman friends of mine decided to get together and promote a social gathering that provoked us to make our own Christmas gift. You name it- decoupage, collages, clothing, and of course jewelry. I inlclined towards jewelry and found myself inmersed in a very interesting process: balancing out how the necklaces or earrings looked at a first glance. I loved it!!! Then, my dear friend Rosamaria from Santa Monica, CA introduced me to a jeweler in the area that noticed my “eye for design” and invited me to take his 'lost wax' technique workshop so I could have an 'up and close' encounter with the 'real jewelry making'.   

This is exactly when, by constructing and deconstructing wax and then having the piece transform into metal, I discovered my ability to make pieces that kept on pushing my everyday jewelry learning experience and life knowledge in itself.

2) What is your favorite piece and can you describe its process? Actually, my favorite piece is METROPOLI Silver Ring. I still remember driving down the Santa Monica freeway, stuck in traffic trying to be on time to my 'lost wax' workshop. Frustrated, I started looking around me and taking mental pictures of my surroundings... Have it, buildings, sounds, people, airplanes... A big city full of good and not so good energy. Of excitement and frustrations. Dreams and hopes. A city of opportunities and failures... Yup! 

And of course, this required that I pushed myself further in my jewelry learning experience since I was trying to built up on wax. I had to try to form cylinders that then conformed all together 'the grand metropoli'. I first drew my initial concept and then from the original concept I started dissecting the ring in phases or parts. Once all parts were handmade in wax, I started waxing all the pieces together to finally form my structural ring in fine silver.      

3) Where do your ideas come from? It's interesting because although I always say nature is my major force of inspiration (I live in the countryside), I guess anything and everything does inspire me. I see things transforming into shapes. If an object or situation provokes me, alters my state somehow, I transform it into a shape whereas it is round, pointy, triangular, square... A even then, these shapes can start pairing with each other to form my unique pieces. 

4) What themes do you pursue? I have a tendency to pursue Utopian themes. Themes that are ideal in nature or interpret nature in a raw form... Universal themes, these might be? Love. Moon. Motherhood. Nature. Recycling. Friendship. 

Then, whenever I have a chance, I inspire myself in those situations that afflict woman. So, you can see that a lot of my pieces are described as for a Goddess or Queen. As if this would alleviate the pain and empower us (or me) to be who we truly are.  

5) What do you like about your art? I like that my art does not respond to an 'establishment'. That I still feel free from rules and regulations an that this allows for a certain naiveness that I truly enjoy. 

6) Any words of advice/tips for people who want to express their creativity, but don't know where to start? For those of you that don't know where to start... I say take a class of 'anything' that you feel will help you  express that hidden creativity. A drawing class is always good since it aids in the process of designing- expressing figuratively what you eventually want to produce at a bigger scale. But bottom line, if naturally it does not come, just take a class, a course, a workshop of your interest... This will eventually lead you somewhere. It will open doors. It might not even be the class or workshop perse but then, the instructor or the new friend you make will then lead you into that new destiny of yours. Dare to explore!  

Luisa has an amazing new Eco-Friendly line, and is going to give FOUR lucky Nina on the Moon readers, each an Anjana Hook Eco-Friendly Symbol necklace (pictured above)!!

giveaway runs for the month of july, a winner each friday!