Studio Renn is a Bombay-based jewelry design practice founded in 2018 by Rahul and Roshni Jhaveri.
Years spent in the company of artists — in studios, galleries and museums — studying and collecting art culminated in the Studio Renn, which was born out of the need to create and for self-expression. The precious wearables are beautifully imperfect – and are always a bit off-center.
True to the name Renn, which means reborn, or rebirth, the Studio explores concepts and perspectives, and recreates the world of abstract ideas, objects and feelings.
This is the philosophy that guides Studio Renn, in pursuit of a creative space for experimentation and development of works of art, including jewelry.
Rahul is a collector of contemporary art and design. He brings together his instinct and skill for the trade and craftsmanship of gemstones, with his love for art, and the creative process.
For Rahul, each creation is a leap of faith; it fuses art and imagination and exists to spark conversations. At the heart of each creation sits distinct design, serendipitous storytelling and imaginative points of reference. Using a material-agnostic approach, he creates with the desire to make the intangible tangible, and invites clients and collaborators alike, on a journey through the unknown.
Roshni oversees the jewelry design studio and its business operations. Responsible for forging partnerships and alliances, driving marketing initiatives and growth plans, she ensures that the brand keeps ahead of expectations while staying true to its vision. An alumna of Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Roshni has worked extensively in market and growth strategies across various and different industries.
Things are greater than the sum of their parts. This is the spirit with which Studio Renn approaches all collaborations – both internal and external.
The goal of all our collaborations is to allow us to explore the unknown. Because it is in that unknown that something groundbreaking can happen. Whatever stems from a collaboration should always be greater than what the individuals would have been able to achieve independent of each other. And what is created should have an identity of its own – a creation for creation’s sake – one that belongs to both and neither.
The goal of all our collaborations is to allow us to explore the unknown. Because it is in that unknown that something groundbreaking can happen. Whatever stems from a collaboration should always be greater than what the individuals would have been able to achieve independent of each other. And what is created should have an identity of its own – a creation for creation’s sake – one that belongs to both and neither.
Prashant Salvi looks at the world in (an)other way and expresses it through his work, which has a sordid sensuality to it. Over the past decade, we began to see things from his perspective, as we collected his works and spent time with him understanding his process. For our first body of work, (An)otherness, we invited him to the lend his interpretation to our study. The chosen subject – a spark – was a conduit to fluid conversations that evoked inspirations of our own, rendered by Salvi in a series of sketches for the Studio. And it is through these sketches that the jewelry was conceptualized. The jewelry is no more than a snapshot – a physical manifestation of that study and exploration.
Prashant Salvi is a visual artist who lives and works in Mumbai. Salvi pursued his lifelong passion for art at Sir J.J. School of Art in the city. A contemporary artist, his mixed media compositions are united in their unwavering attention to dramatic tension filled with unpredictable explosion of emotions and happenings. The strange and unique way of juxtaposition of images in the works of Salvi is intentional. His virtuosic works have been exhibited at venues such as Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, and Busan International Art Fair 2017.
Our philosophical and conceptual conversations with Nitin Barccha on serendipitous atrophy, the perceived and assigned value of materials, the transient nature of a city, the impermanence of what we assume isn’t, the creative force of destruction – sparked the collaboration. The results were explorations of juxtaposing the banality of concrete with rarified materials like diamonds and gold.
Our first work was a commissioned piece, the Transient ring – an acid-treated solitaire ring made of concrete, reinforced with gold and diamonds. This idea evolved into the Strangler ring.
Material Immaterial Studio is an experimental design practice based in Mumbai. Headed by architects, Nitin Barchha and Disney Davis, their approach at Material Immaterial Studio has always laid focus on the ‘idea’ – with materials becoming a mere medium of expression, whether it is for their architecture projects, products or objects. At its heart, the practice is driven by a minimalist sensibility – of both form and material. Their love and bias for concrete stems from the influence the material has had on modern architecture.
The art of plique-a-jour (vitreous enameling) is practiced only by a handful of artisans in India. It is through two years of relentless determination to find that art that this collaboration was forged. The nature of our collaboration was based on a mutual understanding that we should make things that allow us to evolve with them. The Gossamer earrings was one such work, where Ankit Malpani lent his experience and expertise – saw things from our perspective – and pushed his own technical and aesthetic sensibilities. And we all walked away with a lot more than what we had when we started. That, for us, is the true nature of a collaboration.
Ankit Malpani is a Jaipur-based jewelry designer who creates distinct hand-crafted works all of which bear his signature aesthetic. There is an innate experimental streak about him, which stems from his curiosity.
A design practice that is material-agnostic, Studio Renn presented works made using conventional materials in unconventional ways and unconventional materials in conventional. Gold in blackened matt, unpolished grey and reflective finishes, special-cut free-form diamonds, rotten wood, weathered riverbed limestone and acid-treated concrete – all ongoing material studies – showcased through five distinct explorations in fine jewelry.
The exhibit was designed in collaboration with Bombay-based architecture and design practice, Case Design, whose approach to indigenous materials and techniques further extended the material studies into the presentation as well – using bamboo fixtures, placed atop basalt rocks and reclaimed wood.
The works within [Prime]al II express the importance of complex ideas through simple abstracted forms in gold, diamonds, and gemstones. Ideas of protection, abundance, myths of creation and perceptions of time and space are interpreted through the Studio’s lens.
The exhibit has been designed in collaboration with leading architecture practice, Case Design. Interpreted using indigenous materials and techniques such as reclaimed wood, rock and bamboo, the space be transformed into an immersive environment to express the idea of [Prime]al.
The show was presented by Malvika Poddar at the gallery at 1AQ in New Delhi and by Czaee Shah at The Stands in Mumbai.
The exhibit has been designed in collaboration with leading architecture practice Case Design. Interpreted using indigenous techniques and materials such as hand-rammed earth blocks, bamboo and pools of rice, the space will be transformed into an immersive environment to express the idea of [Prime]al. The show has been conceptualized with a unique perspective on cyclicity and transience – ideas that are central to the Studio’s ongoing studies.
The show - presented by Czaee Shah - was held at a 140-year old converted ice factory IF.BE in Ballard Estate, Mumbai
The exhibit morphed into an engaging platform to experience not just the jewelry but also how the Studio approaches design through its myriad multi-disciplinary collaborations, which are an integral part of the Studio’s creative ethos – reflected both in the jewelry as well as its presentation.
The show – presented by art patron Czaee Shah – was held at The Stands, Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
The exhibit allowed the viewer to transition between stability and transformation, order and entropy, reality and dreams — brought together through site-specific installation, sound design, sculptures and movement art. It was conceptualised and designed by The Space at 9/2.
The show was held in association with Raw Collaborative at 079 | Stories, Ahmedabad.
Conceptualized by The Space at 9/2, the site-specific exhibit was designed as an environ for deep and authentic integration – depending on where you stand, determines what you see.
The show was held at the amphitheatre in the Kolkata Centre for Creativity, Kolkata.
The seven enclosures cocooned one’s thoughts as the journey of Studio Renn – from inspiration to fruition – unfolded, while a congregation of 20 displays showcased the entire body of work.
The exhibition was held at Gallery Maskara – a converted cotton warehouse in Mumbai.