Foreign Artists Love Amber

Why Did Foreign Artists Fall in Love with Baltic Amber?

“Rod, we are giving you the most valuable thing we have, that is Gdańsk amber” – said Mayor of Gdańsk Paweł Adamowicz as he presented the well-known British singer Rod Stewart with an amber bracelet during his concert in Gdańsk in 2007. Gdańsk generously shares its most valuable treasure with foreign artists in many different ways.

One of them is presenting diplomatic gifts to well-known personalities visiting Gdańsk. Another is encouraging participation in the International Amber Jewelry Design Competition AMBERIF DESIGN AWARD, organized since 1996, where golden lumps are also given as prizes. Yet another is organizing amber exhibitions with the participation of foreign creators and workshops during which they learn about its properties and the basic principles of processing it.

Experience shows that this is actually enough to… fall in love with amber. To be so strongly enchanted that you can no longer work without it, that it settles permanently in your studio, and that subsequent works for competitions, exhibitions or sale are made with Baltic amber in the leading role. History knows many such “love stories”. Here are a few of them:

Ruudt Peters – Dutch visual artist and jewelry designer

His amber brooch from the “Suctus” collection was created for the exhibition “Amber & Leonardo”, which presented works by invited creators from around the world, inspired by Leonardo da Vinci and amber (the idea came from Wojciech Kalandyk, owner of the company ART7, and the curator was the well-known Gdańsk artist Giedymin Jabłoński). “I agreed to accept the exhibition organizers' invitation on condition that I receive ready, polished amber – in my hands it broke immediately, I thought I would go mad,” recalls Ruudt Peters. The condition was met. The polished amber also did its job – the artist was immediately delighted with it, especially with the way light passes through it. This is how one of his most recognizable works came about – the “Suctus” brooch, which has also had further variants with other gemstones.

Philip Sajet – Dutch visual artist who makes jewelry

As he himself admits, he fell in love with amber in the classic way, at first sight. It was in 2002 in Gdańsk, when for the AMBERIF DESIGN AWARD competition he made his first work with amber, titled “Burning Necklace”. What were his first impressions? “Amber is fantastic, it is a golden stone. Delicate, though fossilized resin. Its color is obsessively beautiful. For me it is very important to preserve the surface of the stone while allowing a view into its interesting interior,” he said.  

Since then amber has been a constant presence in his studio – the artist has created nearly 20 objects with the gold of the Baltic in the leading role. Among them – one of his most recognizable works with amber – is the “Tube Ring” made in 2004, for which he received the Grand Prix at the International Amber Biennale in Frombork, “Amber and Astronomy”, in July 2007. The ring is in the permanent collection of the Amber Museum in Gdańsk.

Alain Roggeman –jeweler, goldsmith, lecturer at the Jeanne Toussaint Institute – Parure & Bijouterie in Brussels

In 2012 he took part in the International Amber Workshops organized on the initiative of the Office of the Mayor for City Promotion of the Gdańsk City Hall. Their aim was to inspire with amber designers from around the world who had never before used this noble resin in their work. In this case too the goal was achieved 100 percent – Cupid's amber arrow struck the Belgian jeweler straight in the heart! “Already during my first visit to Gdańsk I discovered a fantastic material with its wide range of colors and structures, the pleasure of working with it, and I gained workshop skills – all of this to this day gives me unlimited possibilities for creating,” summed up Alain Roggeman.  

As a jewelry maker he remains faithful to amber to this day, and as a lecturer he passes on his creative passions and enthusiasm to students. In recognition of his achievements to date in promoting amber and Gdańsk, Alain Roggeman was honored in 2024 with the Mayor of Gdańsk Medal.

Gisbert Stach – German artist creating jewelry, objects, installations and video art

“For me amber is like a fascinating mystery, much stronger than in the case of other stones. Shrouded in legends, with numerous myths about its formation and origin reaching back even further than antiquity. It is like a delightful journey into the past, evidenced by all kinds of inclusions – insects, spiders and even air bubbles –preserved in the stone more than 40 million years ago,” he says. He got to know Baltic amber in 2005, taking part in the AMBERIF DESIGN AWARD competition. In 2009 he got to know it better during amber workshops (he made works inspired by Polish dishes, which he liked very much), and in 2011 became the winner of the main prize. In 2013 he sat on the jury of this competition.

Heidemarie Herb – jeweler, artist creating jewelry

She first encountered amber in 2011, taking part in the AMBERIF DESIGN AWARD competition, and then in amber workshops in Gdańsk. When they ended she summed up: “What is fascinating is that it was enough to see and touch a lump of amber for the magic to work. That is how I came to know the famed power of attraction of amber. That is also how my adventure with it began – I am convinced that these Gdańsk workshops are only the beginning of an acquaintance that promises to be interesting…”. And she was right! She took part several times in the AMBERIF DESIGN AWARD competition as a participant and in 2016 as a juror. In 2015 – out of love for amber – she organized the exhibition “Amber Chamber. The Amber Room”, which was presented until the end of 2016 around the world, including in Legnica, Luxembourg, San Francisco, Gdańsk, Rome, Vilnius and Vienna. Amber is constantly present in her work – one piece can be seen at the exhibition “Amber 2024 > Other Criteria”, which has so far been presented in Legnica, Gdańsk, Bucharest and London, among other places.

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