Shifting Perspectives, earrings, 2017, silver, plastic, resin, ± 78 x 25 x 10 mm




Shifting Perspectives, rings, 2017, silver, plastic, paint, ± 40 x 30 x 30 mm





Shifting Perspectives, earrings, 2017, silver, plastic, ± 65 x 35 x 13 mm





Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, 35 x 85 x 105 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, 40 x 80 x 110 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, resin, 35 x 70 x 60 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, resin, 35 x 85 x 55 mm




Shifting Perspectives, necklace, 2016, silver, plastic, silk thread, length 450 mm, 45 x 55 x 30 mm




Shifting Perspectives, necklace, 2016, silver, plastic, silk thread, length 450 mm, 45 x 55 x 30 mm





Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, 20 x 90 x 105 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, paint, 30 x 70 x 90 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, paint, 50 x 50 x 70 mm





Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, resin, 15 x 75 x 80 mm




Shifting Perspectives, necklace, 2016, silver, plastic, silk thread, length 450 mm, 120 x 45 x 30 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, 25 x 90 x 110 mm





Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, paint, 10 x 90 x 90 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, 30 x 95 x 60 mm





Shifting Perspectives, neclace, 2016, silver, plastic, silk thread, length 450 mm, 20 x 55 x 60 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, 30 x 50 x 70 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooch, 2016, silver, plastic, 20 x 80 x 90 mm




Shifting Perspectives, necklace, 2016, silver, plastic, silk thread, length 450 mm, 35 x 60 x 65 mm




Shifting Perspectives, necklace, 2016, silver, plastic, silk thread, length 450 mm, 15 x 60 x 100 mm




Shifting Perspectives, brooches, 2016, silver, plastic, paint,resin, ± 50 x 60 x 30 mm




Shifting Perspectives, rings, 2016, silver, plastic, paint, resin, ± 40 x 30 x 30 mm

Shifting Perspectives


Since quite some time now, I'm fascinated by the interaction between the human body on one side and mechanic devices, (medical) technology and industry on the other side.
How do these 2 things, the human and the artificial, relate to each other?

This new body of work is referring to architecture, groundplans, technical drawings, our urban surroundings and cityscapes with their technical realm, and the shifting of perspectives and/or scale in between.
But also think of personal perspectives that have been shifting over time and a look that's been shifting away from the body, going from inside to outside.
All this derives from being fascinated by the fact that Man, and more in particular his body, is the measure of all things that we build, create and surround ourselves with.

Katja Prins, September 2016

Man can use a little help in order to survive in the world. Through the ages the tools to accomplish this got ever more complex, from sewerage systems to medical equipment. Katja Prins is immensely interested in such technological schemes: closely following scientific research, she even found herself, the past few years, associating on a molecular level.

In her new jewellery the source of inspiration isn't that elusive anymore, she choose something familiar to everybody: our build environment. Even so, houses and high-rises aren't as unambiguous as you might expect. To get started Prins filled her workshop with pictures showing everyday walls and common architectural details, yet, the selected photographers had managed to turn them into a unknown, alienated world. Prins was intrigued by the visual codes that define our cities and homes. She constructed her jewellery pieces by combining recognizable shapes and outlines made from silver and plastic, connecting them with expressive lugs. In every piece subdued colours and commonplace textures were mixed with confusion and estrangement.

For Prins isn't aiming at nostalgic romanticism: the ideas behind her brooches and necklaces always arise from issues concerning the interaction between the human and technical realm. Such as, for instance, the question if high-tech 'cityscapes' will be able to function as a hospitable environment.

Ward Schrijver, art historian and architect, Amsterdam, NL
(© Galerie Rob Koudijs)
Photography: Merlijn Snitker