Jordan Askill's jewelry is the stuff of fairy tales. Galloping crystal horses, china swallows, and amethyst hearts sound like they come from Hans Christian Andersen stories, not East London. But that's where our friend and photographer Harry Carr found the auburn-haired Aussie at work. All-white and full of clean, modern lines, Jordan's studio is the perfect foil to his ornate creations.
Jordan was born and bred in Sydney, where he developed his own ready-to-wear line before moving to Paris to work at Dior Homme. Growing up, Jordan's early creative projects were homemade movies, shot by and starring him and his two brothers. He's still working with them today (they're both filmmakers now), art directing short films and videos for the likes of Acne and Phoenix. And when you look at Jordan's personal work—glass sculptures and hand-carved amethyst necklaces—you can see it's a continuation of their weird and wonderful shared world: the spring collection stars a flying unicorn.
Shop all Jordan Askill here.
All photos by Harry Carr
Alice Newell-Hanson: There is something so magical about your pieces: flying horses, birds, and hidden gem stones, for example. What were your favorite stories and movies growing up?
Jordan Askill: A mix of fantasy with a touch of the dark arts: Poltergeist, The Neverending Story, The Wizard of Oz, Moonwalker, The Dark Crystal, Oscar Wilde, The Velveteen Rabbit, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Hitchcock's Rebecca, and Daphne du Maurier.
ANH: I love that you still collaborate with your brothers on film projects. What were your early movies like?
JA: We used to play music and make lo-fi thrillers together. Both our parents are also in the arts and helped us make little movies. The garden was always our main location.
ANH: What is your dream collaborative project?
JA: To create a feature film with my brothers, with fine jewelry and collectibles. And to start up an animal charity through my Jordy by Jordan Askill heart rings and fair trade gems—that would be amazing.
ANH: How does your creative process usually work itself out? What's the relationship between your sculptures and your jewelry?
JA: I like to begin with a sculpture: a collection of detailed representational objects, in a shape that is organic yet constructed. Then I create jewelry that can be part of that world, but more portable, accessible, and sentimental.
ANH: I've never seen anything like the 3-D effect on the Amethyst Swallow Necklace. Can you tell me about the technique?
JA: Oh, thank you! This piece was made using hand-carving and faceting techniques. The swallow itself is based on the taxidermied swallow I used in the original sculpture and had scanned in 3-D. Hand-carving pieces offers a real, historical feeling to pieces that also use very technical elements. That's really important in my jewellery.
The faceted heart gives a feeling of understanding; it's an iconic image from growing up, the idea of a "jeweled heart". The swallow flying out of it blends these two very iconic references together, and to me makes them feel as though they are coming alive. The amethyst is from a fair-trade Gemfields mine in Zambia. It is completely tr
Jordan was born and bred in Sydney, where he developed his own ready-to-wear line before moving to Paris to work at Dior Homme. Growing up, Jordan's early creative projects were homemade movies, shot by and starring him and his two brothers. He's still working with them today (they're both filmmakers now), art directing short films and videos for the likes of Acne and Phoenix. And when you look at Jordan's personal work—glass sculptures and hand-carved amethyst necklaces—you can see it's a continuation of their weird and wonderful shared world: the spring collection stars a flying unicorn.
Shop all Jordan Askill here.
All photos by Harry Carr
Alice Newell-Hanson: There is something so magical about your pieces: flying horses, birds, and hidden gem stones, for example. What were your favorite stories and movies growing up?
Jordan Askill: A mix of fantasy with a touch of the dark arts: Poltergeist, The Neverending Story, The Wizard of Oz, Moonwalker, The Dark Crystal, Oscar Wilde, The Velveteen Rabbit, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Hitchcock's Rebecca, and Daphne du Maurier.
ANH: I love that you still collaborate with your brothers on film projects. What were your early movies like?
JA: We used to play music and make lo-fi thrillers together. Both our parents are also in the arts and helped us make little movies. The garden was always our main location.
ANH: What is your dream collaborative project?
JA: To create a feature film with my brothers, with fine jewelry and collectibles. And to start up an animal charity through my Jordy by Jordan Askill heart rings and fair trade gems—that would be amazing.
ANH: How does your creative process usually work itself out? What's the relationship between your sculptures and your jewelry?
JA: I like to begin with a sculpture: a collection of detailed representational objects, in a shape that is organic yet constructed. Then I create jewelry that can be part of that world, but more portable, accessible, and sentimental.
ANH: I've never seen anything like the 3-D effect on the Amethyst Swallow Necklace. Can you tell me about the technique?
JA: Oh, thank you! This piece was made using hand-carving and faceting techniques. The swallow itself is based on the taxidermied swallow I used in the original sculpture and had scanned in 3-D. Hand-carving pieces offers a real, historical feeling to pieces that also use very technical elements. That's really important in my jewellery.
The faceted heart gives a feeling of understanding; it's an iconic image from growing up, the idea of a "jeweled heart". The swallow flying out of it blends these two very iconic references together, and to me makes them feel as though they are coming alive. The amethyst is from a fair-trade Gemfields mine in Zambia. It is completely tr