Look Book

www.thejewelrybook.com 45 In just one year, a single tagua palm can produce as much ivory as an average African elephant can in its lifetime and can offer a real solution to help stop the senseless killing of elephants. Every artist in Bali strives for "Taksu", a term that stands for divine perfor- mance energy. Taksu is the moment when the artist surrenders to the form of their craft and God appears. For fine jeweler Alexandra Mor, discovering the Tagua seed during her time in Bali brought out her Taksu. Upon watching a moving documentary and discovering that elephant ivory is still being commonly used for jewelry, Mor set out to create a more meaning- ful, spiritually connected, and eco-con- scious practice. She was compelled to research a sustainable way to substitute elephant ivory. Through her research, she came across the tagua seed, a sus- tainable, botanical alternative nearly identical to elephant ivory. In just one year, a single tagua palm can produce as much ivory as an average African elephant can in its lifetime and can offer a real solution to help stop the senseless killing of elephants. Mor set out to design and produce a capsule collection of her signature brand highlighting the tagua seed. Through this capsule collection, Mor brings awareness to the tragic reality of species on the brink of extinction, the preservation of native forests, and the people and culture that depend on their survival. While Mor is continuing work on her Signature Collection, which always used ethically sourced gemstones, she is intent on using her voice in the jew- elry industry to initiate conversations about sustainable and mindful luxury. The Tagua Seed Capsule Collection incorporates traditional and handcrafted Balinese workmanship and heritage with the use of wild-harvested tagua seeds, and heralds an evolution of Mor's signature design aesthetic through its unique and unexpected combination of new materials discov- ered on her 2017 artistic journey in Bali, Indonesia. Artisanal, hand-carved tagua seeds, black and red Balinese wood, Sumatran pearls and 22 karat yellow gold work, unite alongside unmistakable signature Alexandra Mor brand details of rare and beautiful gemstones and Diamond melee. Each carving in the collection is also inspired by Balinese art and culture. Found in temples all over Bali, the Padmasana, or Lotus flower, is the representation of the cosmos. In Buddhism, the lotus symbolizes purity of the body, speech, and mind. The Mala necklace was inspired by Mor's journey to Buddhism. Mala prayer beads are a traditional tool used to count the number of times a mantra is recited, breaths while meditating, counting prostrations, or the repeti- tions of a Buddha's name. Alexandra Mor remarks, "There is so much about my Balinese experience that connects with my spiritual and personal story as a woman and a designer; so it was only natural to make my new collection entirely crafted and designed in Bali with my local team. I'm honored to be able to share this creative journey and collaborate with both local craftsman in Bali and other fine jewelry designers on the annual Vogue US Protagonist event, to inspire and bring more awareness and empower my collectors, retailers and colleagues alike with extraordinary, and more meaningful jewelry." Mor shared her ideas with Vogue Italia and together they initiated a call to action among fine jewelry designers to produce a tagua collection. Mor's and the other designers collections will be presented during New York fashion week at Vogue Italia's annual US Protagonist on September 6th, 2017. 20 percent of the proceeds of Alexandra Mor's Tagua Seed Collection will go to an elephant organization.

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