Mio Harutaka - (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

One of the hottest independent jewelry designers to come out of Tokyo, Harutaka has amassed a following in Japan among influential creatives and is steadily growing an audience in the West. This book presents her most innovative fine jewelry designs, engaging a youthful yet sophisticated sensibility.

Harutaka founded her Tokyo-based jewelry firm in 2011, learning the craft from her mother at a young age. Her first pieces were created for Seijin no Hi, a celebration honoring the coming of age of girls and boys. Inspired by the natural world, her fine jewelry is at once whimsical, chic, and timeless. Sculptural rings, earrings, and pendants arrayed in a rainbow of precious stones--meant to be passed down through the generations--take the shape of plants and animals that hold great significance to the artist.

Cats, penguins, sea turtles, flamingos, and serpents populate her menagerie, vying with a garden of flowers and fruits fashioned from gold and the finest pavé diamonds. Her childhood pet rabbit and favorite flower, the daisy, inspired enduring motifs that continue to take pride of place in her collections.

This book reveals her close relationships with the artisans who craft her designs and the diamond miners in West Africa who extract the diamonds that are a hallmark of her work. Sustainability, social responsibility, and exceptional design combine to create one-of-a-kind works of lasting beauty.

About the Author