Slovenian Jewellery Week 2026
Substance // Transformation
From 26 March to 18 April 2026, Slovenia hosted the 5th edition of Slovenian Jewellery Week (SIJW 2026), bringing together 152 artists from 38 countries worldwide. Celebrating its jubilee edition, the festival presented contemporary jewellery as a powerful medium of transformation, innovation, cultural exchange, and storytelling.
Under the central theme Substance // Transformation, artists explored the relationship between material, meaning, identity, and process, revealing how contemporary jewellery can transform matter into narrative, emotion, and artistic expression.
Three Main Exhibitions – Three Perspectives on Transformation
SUBSTANCE // TRANSFORMATION | Center Rog, Ljubljana
The central exhibition of SIJW 2026 featured 110 Slovenian and international artists and offered one of the most comprehensive overviews of contemporary author jewellery in the region. Through an international open call, artists responded to the theme Substance // Transformation, while an expert jury selected the works that interpreted it most convincingly and originally. The exhibition brought together established creators and emerging talents working across traditional craftsmanship, experimental materials, digital technologies, and conceptual approaches.
Special international curated sections included guests from Romanian Jewellery Week, Joyeros Argentinos, PIN Portugal, ULUPUH Croatia, Preziosa Young, and Birmingham School of Jewellery, creating a vibrant dialogue between diverse cultural and artistic perspectives.
SERENITY | DRAT Gallery, Izola
Curated by Luis Acosta, the exhibition Serenity explored calmness, balance, and inner reflection through contemporary jewellery. Thirty-two international artists presented works inviting visitors to slow down and reflect on the emotional and poetic dimensions of adornment.
The exhibition offered a thoughtful counterpoint to the fast pace of contemporary life, presenting jewellery as a medium of connection, awareness, and personal expression.
FIVE YEARS OF BRILLIANCE | Carinthian Regional Museum, Slovenj Gradec
This retrospective exhibition celebrated the first five years of Slovenian Jewellery Week through a selection of award-winning and prominent Slovenian artists from previous editions. It showcased the festival’s development and its growing impact on the field of contemporary jewellery in Slovenia and beyond.
Alongside the retrospective, visitors could also view IDentity, an exhibition featuring students from the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering, University of Ljubljana. Their works explored themes of sustainability, identity, and the future of jewellery design.
The programme in Slovenj Gradec was further enriched by the SIJW Museum Evening, featuring a discussion with master jewellers Hubert Široka and Christoph Steidl Porenta, recipients of the SIJW Special Achievement Awards for their contribution to jewellery design.
Across Slovenia
SIJW 2026 expanded beyond its main exhibition venues with a rich programme of exhibitions, workshops, and educational activities throughout Slovenia.
In Rogaška Slatina, students of the Rogaška Slatina School Centre, under the mentorship of Zinka Kobula Kamenšek, presented jewellery made of glass. In Slovenska Bistrica, visitors could explore a retrospective exhibition by Vesna Plavec alongside works by participants of the Creative Academy. In Maribor, Mineralfest connected contemporary jewellery with the world of minerals, fossils, and natural materials through exhibitions, presentations, and educational programmes.
In Kranj, the Gorenjska Museum, in collaboration with Nataša Druškovič, organised a copper jewellery-making workshop. In Vrhnika, Vila Melyn opened the studio of Katja Benevol Gabrijelčič, hosting polymer clay jewellery workshops.
In Miren, the Oskar Kogoj Gallery presented the exhibition Aurelian, which, in dialogue with the artistic photography of Luciano Bonacini, revealed the timeless beauty of Oskar Kogoj’s jewellery inspired by classical heritage.
In Izola, Salsaverde Gallery hosted an exhibition by students of the Department of Textile and Clothing Design at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering, University of Ljubljana, exploring innovative intersections between traditional ceramics and 3D metal printing.
Extensive Accompanying Programme
Throughout the festival, Center Rog became a vibrant hub of knowledge, creativity, and professional exchange, hosting lectures, masterclasses, demonstrations, panel discussions, guided tours, and workshops.
Highlights included a filigree masterclass and technical demonstration by Biljana Klekachkoska (North Macedonia), the lecture The Organic Power of Metal by Japanese artist Arata Fuchi on contemporary Japanese jewellery, a lecture by Nichka Marobin (Italy), the presentation of Hubert Široka’s monograph accompanied by a round-table discussion, guided tours of the SIJW 2026 central exhibition, and demonstrations of traditional goldsmithing techniques.
The programme provided numerous opportunities for visitors to acquire new skills, engage directly with internationally recognised artists, and exchange experiences with fellow creators, students, and the wider public.
Festival activities also extended to other Ljubljana venues. At Center Rog, visitors could explore Lencia – From Sketch to Creation, showcasing the jewellery design process behind the Lencia brand by Zlatarna Celje, as well as the pop-up exhibition Dimensions of Jewellery, featuring 14 established precious-metal jewellery designers.
EHO Studio hosted Taiwanese artist Pei Wu, while Japanese artist Arata Fuchi presented a solo exhibition at Martina Lončar’s studio. Additional events took place at Vila Melyn and Poligilda, while educational and creative activities were organised at Rudnik Library.
Closing Ceremony and Awards
The festival culminated in an awards ceremony at Grand Hotel Plaza in Ljubljana, celebrating outstanding achievements in contemporary jewellery. An international jury honoured works distinguished by creativity, technical excellence, and compelling interpretations of the theme Substance // Transformation.
Best Slovenian Jewellery Designer
Arijana Gadžijev (Slovenia)
Her textile jewellery collection Not Everything That Glitters... questions conventional ideas of luxury and value. Through printed textile necklaces that imitate precious materials, she addresses contemporary obsessions with appearance, status, and self-image while raising questions about what is truly valuable.
Best Young Slovenian Jewellery Designer
Nina Podobnikar (Slovenia)
Her work explores transformation through material and process. Starting from a series of glass cups, she created a brooch, a ring, and an autonomous object, establishing a dialogue between function, form, and artistic expression. Together, the works tell a story of transforming an everyday object into contemporary jewellery.
Best International Jewellery Designer
Yuxin Song (China)
Drawing upon the rich history of enamel, the artist reinterprets the medium through a contemporary design language. By combining six enamelling techniques and developing numerous experimental surface effects, she creates works that honour tradition while opening new possibilities for contemporary jewellery.
Special Achievement Award in Contemporary Jewellery Design
Žarko Ognjenovič (Serbia)
The award recognised his exceptional contribution to the development of contemporary jewellery, his artistic innovation, and his long-standing dedication to jewellery design.
Young Emerging Jewellery Designer Award
Tia Štefančič (Slovenia)
The award was presented in recognition of her promising creative vision and fresh approach to contemporary jewellery, representing a new generation of artists shaping the future of the field.
Partners and Supporters
SIJW 2026 was realised in collaboration with and supported by Center Rog, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia, Zlatarna Celje, the Carinthian Regional Museum, DRAT Gallery Izola, and numerous national and international partners.
Contemporary Jewellery as a Space of Transformation
SIJW 2026 once again demonstrated that contemporary jewellery is a dynamic artistic discipline that connects craftsmanship, innovation, culture, and critical thinking. Strong interest from both Slovenian and international audiences, together with excellent attendance at exhibitions, lectures, workshops, and festival events, confirmed the festival’s growing significance and visibility.
Through exhibitions, educational programmes, and international collaborations, SIJW further strengthened Slovenia’s position as an important meeting point for contemporary jewellery in Europe and beyond.