OONA Gallery<\/a> on Auguststra\u00dfe is a gallery for contemporary jewellery, exhibiting beautiful jewellery crafted by carefully selected international artists. Though Anna herself doesn\u2019t create the jewellery, it seems like she\u2019s pretty much in charge of everything else; from connecting and communicating with the artists, to running the gallery and curating and setting up the displays. Despite her multitasking abilities, she is firm in the fact that she’s not a jeweller; \u201cI would never be able to make jewellery, I come from the theoretical background and so I consider jewellery a huge spectrum of human culture.\u201d<\/p>\n Anna goes on to explain how prior to studying science and art history, she worked in several museums around Berlin, which is where she grew to love the art of curation.<\/p>\n She explains how the \u2018real\u2019 art world is tough, but that art jewellery provides the perfect balance between, design, craft, art and even fashion.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve ever strolled down Augustra\u00dfe and peered through the windows of OONA, you\u2019ll notice a strikingly clean, minimalist aesthetic. This is something Anna works hard to achieve and is what defines the space as a gallery; \u201cI come from East Germany and we didn\u2019t have much design, we had designers who made industrial and product design. They created very minimalistic products that can be produced in mass production, I liked this very much. You could say this is where my minimalist taste comes from.\u201d<\/p>\n The artists Anna works with each have their own \u2018minimalistic language\u2019, though they are all different due to the range of materials they adopt. This year, OONA has had success with several artists, from Berlin based Christian Metzner<\/a>, to Noon Passama<\/a> in Thailand, to more recently, Helen Friesacher<\/a>. Anna explains how each of their unique works, exist in harmony in the gallery, and compliment one another.<\/p>\n This is something I notice when I browse the gallery, each piece is so carefully placed it becomes a statement with its own autonomy. Anna explains how the jewellery in OONA looks just as beautiful on as it does displayed, \u201cthe artists I work with love to make jewellery that can be worn and they love the craft, but if it\u2019s not worn, it also works as its own object. It\u2019s a small subject that is free, so you have these little works of art that you can move around. You can move display your bracelet on the coffee table or in the bathroom, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n While art jewellery might sound niche to the rest of us, Anna has to be very selective with the artists she works with, attending exhibitions, art academies and awards to seek out artists. Once she\u2019s established a connection with one though, it remains strong; Anna has worked with \u2018Master of Minimalism\u2019,\u00a0Marc Monzo,<\/a> for more than fifteen years. Marc is exhibiting his work currently in the gallery, where you can view and shop his simple, essential pieces. \u2018Level\u2019,<\/a> the exhibition title, relates to the theme of balance and some of the angular, strict pieces that will be for sale.<\/p>\n Since the YUN Journal often refers to balance, Marc\u2019s exhibition lead our conversation conveniently towards the theme. I asked Anna how she keeps her balance, between raising three girls, running a gallery and communicating with artists, she simply tells me: I love to swim.<\/p>\n Her second down-time ritual is classical music. \u201cWe are so close to all of these fantastic places where talented musicians play, I\u2019d really recommend the Pierre Boulezsaal which is a small audition hall with a private atmosphere and really beautiful architecture. It\u2019s pretty hidden but central, it\u2019s a very special place.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018Level<\/em>\u2019 is open now to the public, so do swing by the gallery for a look around ahead of christmas.<\/p>\n\u201cI loved the part of setting up objects and seeing how the objects relate to each other, this part was very exciting to me and provided me with the inspiration and knowledge to start my own gallery.\u201d<\/h6>\n
\u201cOne very important thing for me is to swim, in the Garten Stra\u00dfe, Stadtbat in Mitte. It provides me with the balance of relaxing and being focused on rhythm and speed. It\u2019s super important for me. Afterwards, you feel full of energy and while I\u2019m swimming I can think of things ahead of my day.\u201d<\/h6>\n