Octave Vandeweghe

Octave Vandereghe
Born 1988, Antwerp, Belgium
Lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium
Octave Vandeweghe (°1988 B) has studied as jewel designer and silversmith at Sint-Lucas in Antwerp with Hilde De Decker. Initially he shows little interest in gemstones. His interest lies in the evolution, meaning, form and function, the naming and the relation with the body and with the context,… of everyday utensils, design- or art-objects. “I want to go back to the moment at which society imposes on us the way we have to look at objects”, he says. “I wonder what the meaning is of a thing in regard to our everyday life. The potential of poetry which is the result of this attitude, leads me to the interpretation of objects”.

His fascination for gems grew when he noticed the similarity between prehistoric flint knifes and faceted gems. “That resulted in a project with the title ‘A Brilliant Cut’,” he tells. It is the technical term for the way in which most diamonds are cut. In my project ‘brilliant’ refers to the gem and the ‘cut’ to the knife. A knife is the first utensil that has been consciously made by man in order to survive. In that sense it is a necessary object. A gem is mainly an object of beauty. It is given facets in order to promote its glitter and beauty. The combination of faceted gems, knifes and cutlery combines notions like beauty and function. Beauty becomes function and function becomes beauty.”