Pamela Card doesn’t seek perfection. The Railtown-based jewellery designer travels across the world to find inspiration in ancient European artifacts, revelling in the storied history of it all. “Their jewellery isn’t perfect because it was all done by hand, and some of it was lost underground for many years—it’s lived a long life,” she explains.
Instead of being drawn to the pristine, clean-lined silhouettes common in modern jewellery, Card looks to art from all the hottest empires (Greek, Roman, Ottoman, Byzantine—you get it) and uses lost-wax casting to create her molten, heirloom-esque aesthetic. “I like to make the jewellery look like it’s been broken, buried and excavated,” she says. After snapping film photos and jotting down notes on her trips abroad, she heads back to her Vancouver studio to translate her findings into handmade, wearable art. A stunning Amalfi Coast lookout point inspired a necklace with textured links twisted into the infinity symbol, and Italy’s glam ’50s era influenced a flashy, elegant set of asymmetrical earrings.
Card’s latest collection, launching this summer, is a love letter to Greece (look for subtle nods to ancient deities, mythology, talismans and iconic buildings like the Parthenon). She’s solidified a style that’s almost as distinct as the artifacts that inspire her: “I want my designs to be very unique and specific to the brand—I want people to see it and say, ‘Oh, is that Pamela Card jewellery?’”
