Silvia Rossi is a wisp of a woman whose creativity bubbles, breaking the surface and it is barely contained by the walls of her tiny atelier at the foot of Castello San Giusto in Trieste.

I first met her on a freezing cold winter day at a market organized by Barbacan Produce (a group of local artists and artisans who hold an open-air market 4 times a year) in Piazza Barbacan, a hip hotspot that has sprouted up in the shadow of the ancient Roman Arco di Riccardo. On her display table were cascades of colored creations; earrings, necklaces and rings of varying sizes and designs. Her distinctive creations are mainly made of crystal acrylic, a material that combines lightness with transparency and color that recall precious stones. 

Immediately it is clear that Silvia is an artist first, whose medium of expression is jewelry, producing pieces that are veritable body sculptures. Silvia explains, “creating body ornaments is one of the oldest human activities, creating with my hands reconnects me to my primordial side. For me making jewelry represents the search for proportion, scale, sense of balance, harmony of shapes, and beauty. Mankind has always tried to interpret elements we constantly find in nature through the arts.”

One almost gets the sense that she struggles to restrain herself in order to produce a more mainstream line. She confided that she dreams of traveling to Africa to be inspired by the colors and light and nature there to create larger, brighter pieces.

Silvia studied as a goldsmith in Italy where she honed her technical skills. Later she attended art classes at Studio Primateria in Milano,  F.I.T. and Parsons School of Design in New York and the Haystack School of Art in Maine. Silvia cut her teeth as a designer in the New York fashion world working alongside Wendy Mink, whose designs are also colorful, using semiprecious stones. Silvia took this as a departure point and never looked back. Her designs range from elegant, muted pieces to exuberant, exploding starburst celebrations of color.

The jewelry is manufactured with a material exclusively produced in Italy and handcrafted at Silvia Rossi’s studio. The collections are sold in selected boutiques and department stores throughout Europe, U.S. , and Japan, you can see here if there is one near you.

I recently spent a magical morning with Silvia in her studio where we chatted and she showed me her creative process at work. I was able to order several pieces as Christmas presents for family members and friends in NY (whom, I might add, were THRILLED with her one-of-a-kind creations).

In Trieste, you can find her designs at Crevatin Jewelers in Via di Cavana or by appointment at her studio.