An absolute gem: A glittering display of gemstones

PIFD VC says it is important to promote export of products

LAHORE: As many as 15 students from the Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design’s (PIFD) Jewellery Design and Gemological Sciences department showcased their work at an exhibition called Stone as a Material, Stone as a Concept.

The exhibition was held on Monday after a two-week workshop with Patricia Domingues, a German-based contemporary jeweller. The event was inaugurated by PIFD Vice Chancellor Profesoor Hina Tayyaba and Professor Dabir Ahmed.

Students went on a site visit to Khewra Salt Mines with Patricia Domingues and select faculty members of the Jewellery department. They explored materials in the context of geological processes and time.



Department of Jewellery Design and Gemological Sciences Course Coordinator Muhammad Aslam said the workshop was the first of its kind at PIFD. He said the objective was to teach open-ended and intuitional ways of studying and responding to the properties of materials such as gemstone or marbles by using diverse hand tools and lapidary machines.

“This was the first ever effort by students of PIFD to promote turning semiprecious stones into wearable jewellery elements. All the students’ processed different gemstones of their choice and shaped them into designs. The exercise was conducted under the supervision of visiting foreign jewellery designers,” Aslam said.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 6^th, 2016.