Jewelry Designer and Illustrator Wooa Kim.
At Phillips Jewels, we are committed to championing and paying tribute to contemporary talent in the art of jewelry design. Last December, we met jewelry illustrator and designer Wooa Kim when she created a beautiful rendering of a necklace for our New York Jewels Sale - An Important Fancy Diamond, Colored Diamond and Gold Necklace (Lot 179). Originally trained in fashion design and later jewelry design, Kim’s innate artistic abilities, attention to detail and determination, have opened many doors. She has collaborated with the high-end jewelry brands, including Tiffany & Co., DeBeers and Mikimoto, to name a few. Associate specialist Anne Mock recently spoke to Kim about her background, design process and her advice for young aspiring jewelry illustrators and designers.
Always do your best and doors will open.
An Important Fancy Diamond, Colored Diamond and Gold Necklace. Sold at Phillips New York for $500,000.
ANNE MOCK (Associate Specialist, Phillips): When did you first realize you wanted to pursue a career as a jewelry illustrator/designer?
WOOA KIM: In college, while studying fashion design in Korea (where I am from), I started to make my own hand-made jewelry. With the encouragement of friends, I began selling this work at a nearby shopping center. Sales were good and I did quite well. One day a stranger passed by and gave me his card. He ran a jewelry business! So, I started freelancing for his company. After graduating from school, I worked as a fashion buyer, but eventually, I wanted a more creative job. Remembering how happy I was working in jewelry, I quit this job. I’ve always been a very detail-oriented person, and jewelry design suited me perfectly!
AM: How did you get started in the industry?
WK: I always dreamed of coming to NYC. Ten years ago, I quit my job, left my family and came to New York City where I enrolled in the Fashion Institute of Technology’s one-year jewelry design program. The teachers were very encouraging and complementary and soon I was given opportunities to work as a tutor and do freelance design. It was here that I learned an important lesson: always do your best and doors will open. And I was motivated to do my best!
Hand drawn in colored pencil & graphite, finished with water color & gouache.
AM: Who have been your biggest mentors and what is the best advice they have ever given you?
WK: My mentor and role model is Sandrine de Laage, the former creative director for Harry Winston, and now a design consultant and owner of her own brand. I’ve known Sandrine for over 6 years, during which time we have collaborated on design projects. She is extremely creative, hardworking and understands beauty as a woman. I try to follow her example – to embrace both life and work.
I love to create, and to create something that people will cherish for generations, it’s fantastic!
Hand drawn in colored pencil & graphite, finished with water color & gouache.
AM: What is your design process for illustration?
WK: I normally start the design process with a stone or with a general concept from the client. I ask the client if they have a vision for the design, what is the purpose of the jewelry piece and what is their fashion taste, lifestyle, appearance, favorite artist and so on.
I then do my own research for inspiration. I enjoy doing research, focusing on things other than jewelry – like architecture, sculpture and street fashion. Often I find these different genres give me just the right creative inspiration.
Once I have ideas, I always start with hand sketches in pencil. Even though I am well versed in 3D modeling, I find hand sketching always leads to more sophisticated curves and well-defined proportions. I then play with different color combinations to decide which stone or color to use. I usually submit three options for initial review, then depending on the client’s feedback, revisions can be made.
Hand drawn in colored pencil & graphite, finished with water color & gouache.
AM: Who is your dream client?
WK: My dream would be to translate someone’s life story into jewelry and do so in a beautiful way. This could be interpreting someone’s life experience, emotion or items that they value into objects to share with loved ones and heirs.
AM: What advice would you give to young designers who look up to you and want to enter a career in jewelry design/illustration?
WK: You must be very versatile – and have many abilities, like hand sketching, 3D modeling, 2D technical drawing and bench skills. Having these different abilities broadens your design perspective.