Hendrike Barz-Meltzer is a designer & maker based in Hertfordshire working with various materials, including precious & non-precious metals.
Born and grown up in East Germany these experiences shaped her character and work. What permeates the many strands in her life is a curiosity about a diverse range of subjects. It is a desire to understand how things work. History, for example - being an important aspect to her - is to know how humanity got to this point in time and the subject of human rights is to understand where it went wrong. These two subjects add a much-valued counterpoint to her creative work.
However, her main area of interest is the vast field of making - anything - a cake, a ring, a tool or a pair of slippers. It has fascinated her since childhood – then an ever-present necessity brought about by the shortages of the East German economy - it provides for her today a sense of satisfaction when demystifying another subject or technique thus far unknown.
Trying to analyse the roots of that certain aesthetics in her work, a tutor at St Martins once commented how ‘German’ her work was. It surprised and puzzled her then, as it still does today. Whilst her heritage is German, Hendrike is often drawn to Japanese aesthetics and strives for well-designed pieces, mostly abstract, with an element of the unexpected: the off-centre, the unequal, non-matching and the odd.
The pieces are outcomes of different approaches. It can be a design process: of lines or shapes drawn on paper, then transferred onto the human body, altered and later translated into materials. Paper or metal models frequently serve here as design aids. Working with the human body though, is an essential part of both processes and the pieces fully come to life when actually worn.
Hendrike’s current work is very much influenced by patterns and by the wish to create jewellery that is ethically produced. You can read more about her efforts in this area in the Vision, Mission, Values section.
She is fascinated by all sorts of patterns, made up of lines and shapes and the Korean technique of Keum-Boo allows for the creation of gold patterns on silver. Her 2020/2021 collections focussed on patterns created by multiple lines and she remains intrigued by the stripy effect on her pieces.
Hendrike believes that an ethical working practice should not be a novelty but the norm for every business and this aim informs all other areas of her work. Working processes as well as materials and their origin are carefully selected to ensure a minimal impact on the environment. This is an ongoing process and the search for alternatives continues.
Since 2018 Hendrike has also been teaching in a variety of fields. Having worked for over a 20 years in different capacities in a British charity, Hendrike took her passion and expertise in the craft field to teach various craft courses to vulnerable adults, children and refugees. She has also been teaching jewellery making skills for a number of years in different settings.
Hendrike’s work is exhibited by a number of highly respected galleries in the UK and her work features throughout the year in various fairs and exhibitions.
Hendrike Barz-Meltzer makes jewellery from precious and non-precious materials using different techniques. The pieces are made from recycled silver and gold – the gold patterns are created in the Korean Keum-Boo technique – and combined with further elements, such as Kumihimo braids or other materials. Her works have an understated, minimal feel and influences are often found in lines, patterns or geometric shapes.Over the last few years her work has focussed on the ethical and environmental aspects of jewellery making. Her aim is to make beautiful, timeless pieces of jewellery that were created responsibly.
