Ashka Dymel was born in Warsaw, Poland, and lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. After Studies in Liberal arts and foreign languages in Poland and Czechoslovakia, Ashka moved to the United States where she earned a Bachelors degree in Environmental Design from Parsons School of Design in New York City. After several years of working in the field of architecture, Ashka began to work in metal and create jewelry. She has been running her own design studio since 1990. She has been teaching Design and Design History at Parsons School of Design and at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.
Ashka’s approach to jewelry making and design is informed by her architectural training. Modernist movements such the Bauhaus School, Russian Avant-Garde art and mid-20th-century design aesthetics are her main inspirations. Ashka achieves harmony in modular repetitions and variations on geometric forms. Her work is recognized by unique method of capturing stones within metal frames creating negative space as an integral part of composition. Use of thin wires to hold the elements together is another non-traditional technique allowing for movement and structural flexibility. Combination of unique materials and methods results in a joyful piece of wearable art.
All the work is handmade in Brooklyn using sterling silver, 18k gold bimetal and semi precious stones and minerals.
