Nadia Campbell - the sole designer and motivating force behind the Bahamian brand Nadia Campbell Jewellery - is known for her statement-making pieces through her use of innovative shapes and materials.
Now, after spending a year in Italy, she returns with a new collection of work which will be on display at the exhibition "Stones. Leather. Metal. Wood." this Wednesday, December 21, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Harry's Haven (Queen Street, past the U.S. Embassy).
Though she says her work aesthetic hasn't been totally influenced by Italy, she has noticed a shift in her motivation to strengthen her business and product aesthetic.
"With my time here, I realized I'm really a resort designer," says Campbell. "For me, Nadia Campbell Jewellery is lifestyle jewelry - and the lifestyle I identified most with is The Bahamas. It's the thing I know most intimately, so I always design with that in mind, with what feels appropriate within that climate and context."
Indeed, the pieces remain true to her innovative eye, with the materials - as the title suggests - taking center-stage in a well-rounded product offering of necklaces, earrings and bracelets. Yet in the variety of new materials she offers in sometimes unexpected combinations, Campbell still pays tribute to Bahamian materials.
"I didn't gravitate towards one color palette but I did find things grouping themselves," she says. "As always I have big love for the conch shell - there's something about that creaminess that feels really good to me in jewelry and the feel of it against the skin, so I have a group of pieces with that."
It's obvious, however, that her craftsmanship has been affected after just one year of her two year program abroad - which is exactly what the designer wanted when she set her eyes upon Italy. Coming from a place of casual, mostly self-taught study base, Campbell decided to do something more formal in her passion, embarking on a two-year study in Goldsmithing at Le Arti Orafe, a jewelry school and academy in Florence, Italy.
"I wanted to inform the jewelry with a different language and different set of
influences," she says. "I wanted to make myself grow the most that I could and I thought the best way I could do that was to put myself in the least comfortable situation that I could."
"Florence has such a rich history of craftsmanship and design work, so I felt I really could get rigorous training here. I thought my design would probably get a rich set of influences here too."
But Campbell had another motivation--she wanted to get serious about her business, Nadia Campbell Jewellery, and expand her knowledge in order to expand her design offerings.
She admits she's always had trouble balancing creativity with professionalism, but if there's anything her time in Italy has taught her so far, it's that there is power in being able to wear many hats as a self-employed artist--not only personally, but for the growth of The Bahamas as well. It's really the motivating force behind choosing to travel so far away in order to grow.
"I feel like we should be trying to grow the country and the best way to do that is to grow ourselves," she says. "Our only resource outside of sun, sand and sea--which is already being changed by pollution and development--is ourselves, so if we're going to be stronger we need to grow ourselves."
"So I wanted to get closer to become a stronger lifestyle brand, [with a] final goal of being more well-rounded as a designer."
With her already more clear professional voice and fresh perspective, Campbell's offerings are diversifying, maybe even soon trending into the accessories range in her next year of study.
But in everything she does, Campbell wants to stay true to her aesthetic and voice which always takes inspiration from her home and its people. Though she's loving her time in Italy, she continues to refine her practice towards that goal of Bahamian lifestyle--exactly where she feels Nadia Campbell Jewellery belongs.
"I feel like my jewelry has a definite personality," she says. "My dream customer is somebody with a definite sense of themselves and a sense of strength about them--whether they're quiet and they wear something delicate or whether they're loud and they wear something in-your-face."
"For me that is completely what our island lifestyle is about for me--Caribbean people at their best are a group of confident and self-satisfied people, and we really enjoy living, so if somebody could buy some jewelry and add to that living, I'm happy with that," she continues.
"I just want my jewelry to be the accessory that people wear when they're dressing up for the business of living their life."
New work by Nadia Campbell Jewellery will be on sale during the show "Stones. Leather. Metal. Wood." this Wednesday, December 21, from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Harry's Haven (Queen Street, past the U.S. Embassy).

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