Yeena Yoon

2021 QEST William Parker Scholar - Jewellery Design
London

After initially training as an architect Yeena made the transition to jeweller, and in 2016 established Yeena Yoon Studio. As a goldsmith, she has a keen interest in fine gold wirework and lapidary in gemstones and the architectural influence of her former career is clearly visible in her work.

A QEST Scholarship will enable Yeena to further enhance her skills in two key crafts: fine wirework in gold and advanced gemstone carving. She will learn more about gemstones and minerals, carving and hollowing and using gold and platinum to enhance the stones, with QEST Scholar and jeweller Charlotte De Syllas. Next she will attend a bespoke one-to-one course with master jeweller Giovanni Corvaja, in Todi, Italy, in fine gold wirework skills as well as innovative bonding techniques. Finally she will spend time with the lapidary experts Mike and Sandra Walford to learn about criteria for choosing minerals for particular designs, how to cut and polish different types of stones, and advanced intricate carving techniques such as engraving, inlaying and faceting.

Yeena’s ambition is to create fine jewellery that explores the juxtaposition and use of composite parts with innovative techniques to realise the potential of the materials. She aims to create series of works that reveal her training, and to showcase her work at exhibitions and galleries in the UK and abroad.

I explore the idea of preciousness, leading me to use stones and materials in different, unexpected and less traditional ways. Fusing my background as an architect with my jewellery practice, my fine jewellery is dynamic and a true expression of self, designed for those with a passion for art and design.