Anu Kirkinen is a 54-year-old jeweler from Finland.
She has been working with art and design for over 20 years and is still very passionate about it. Her roots are Karelian from both sides of her parents and this heritage is seen in her art and design; especially in her late work with serie Ancestors.
She loves stories which are often based on experiences of her own and observations around her. She is inspired by materials which are ecological and timeless and which we might call useless.

Through her jewellery she wants to offer people feelings, thoughts and experiences no matter their age or gender. She wants to communicate, wake people up to question what they see, think and feel. She is very keen on dialogue between person and art.
She also designs jewellery for daily use and bigger events. She is fascinated by balance which is compared with symmetry, material, forms and colours as well as discrepancy between them.

“My practice explores the boundaries between function, value, and adornment. I work primarily with metal-cast textiles and hand-sculpted wax, often incorporating steel or iron nails and sapphires. My latest collection features non-wearable rings. Objects that echo the familiar form yet defy their traditional role.

Each piece, constructed in wax and then cast, is paired with a nail or precious stone, purposefully designed to seem damaged or impossible to wear. The gesture is not an accident of construction, but a deliberate denial of function. A ring that refuses the finger.

This series questions what happens to jewellery when it no longer serves its intended purpose: does its value, monetary or emotional, change? Can a ring still be a ring if it cannot be worn? By challenging conventional expectations, I seek complete creative freedom, detaching my work from monetary constraints and exploring jewellery as a space for conceptual, material and social experimentation.” - Anu Kirkinen