BETWEEN JEWELRY AND CULINARY GOLDSMITHING IN CHICAGO
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Time to read 4 min
Some encounters open up unexpected horizons, where gestures and materials resonate with one another.
In Chicago, at chef Nicolai Mlodinow’s restaurant Class’Act, one of these rare collaborations was born, at the crossroads of gastronomy and the creation of art objects.
FROM NATURE TO MATERIAL: THE GENESIS OF A TABLEWARE CREATION
It all began with seaweed—a living, fluid, and moving form—whose lightness inspired the first sketch.
From these sketches came wax models, then metal pieces, crafted with the constant concern of preserving this organic breath, this initial movement.
From this research emerged a piece of tableware, designed to hold one of the chef’s creations, a suspended moment for the diner to savor in a single bite.
An object that is both functional and sculptural, where the hand of the chef and that of the artisan meet in a shared balance: that of taste and form.
This collaboration did not end at the table.
These metal seaweeds also gave rise to a bracelet and brooches, worn by the restaurant staff as a discreet symbol of unity and shared creativity.
Chef Nicolai Mlodinow works with Laminaria saccharina seaweed, nicknamed "sea sugar," for its silky texture and its flavor, which is both sweet and briny. Rich in minerals, it evokes the purity of Nordic coasts and infuses his creations with a marine note that is both delicate and nourishing.
Finally, a burnt-wood structure, where several seaweeds unfold in a fluid movement, symbolizes the transmutation of jewelry into tableware. An installation that celebrates the encounter between the culinary gesture and jewelry-making expertise.
Between our workshops in Lyon and the kitchens of Chicago, this encounter has given birth to a true creative alchemy: one where the object becomes an experience, and where every detail celebrates the art of the sensible.
FROM GESTURE TO MATERIAL: THE METAMORPHOSIS OF KNOW-HOW
Beyond the creation itself, this project examines the concept of transformation, at the heart of contemporary jewelry and goldsmithing. In our workshops, the material transitions from wax to metal, from design to tangible form. In the kitchens of Class’Act, ingredients undergo the same passage: from raw to cooked, from gesture to flavor.
Two practices, two rhythms, but the same quest: that of precision and emotion.
The object is no longer just a medium; it becomes language. The metal, patinated and hand-worked according to the codes of goldsmithing, captures light like a surface of water.
It reveals, without ostentation, the beauty of the gesture. This silent dialogue between the chef and the artisan places the piece within a sensory space, where the hand, the eye, and the palate are in accord.
Each element of the project—the dish, the jewelry, the burnt-wood structure—tells a facet of this dialogue between jewelry-making and goldsmithing. Metal evokes solidity and permanence. Wood symbolizes transformation and the memory of fire. Together, they embody this idea of passage, of transmutation, at the very heart of our creative approach.
Seaweed, the central motif of the project, connects all these elements. Sometimes a sculpture, sometimes a piece of jewelry, sometimes an architectural form, it expresses the continuity between the arts: the same energy that enlivens a dish, an object, or a work of exceptional craftsmanship.
FROM FIRE TO MATTER: WHEN GESTURES RESPOND TO EACH OTHER
This project highlights the proximity between two professions that seem completely opposite. Yet, the jeweler and the chef share a common discipline of movement: patience, precision, and mastery of fire—values essential to both goldsmithing and haute gastronomy. Their work often begins with an intuition—a texture, a form, a fleeting idea—which they refine until they find the perfect balance.
Working with chef Nicolai Mlodinow meant accepting a different temporality: that of service, the rhythm imposed by the kitchen, and a direct connection to living elements. Conversely, the jewelry and goldsmithing studio is a place of slowness, listening, and meticulous transformation. Between these two speeds, a fertile tension and a shared breath were born.
This work also illustrates a conviction: creation takes time. In a world of instantaneity, restoring value to the slow gesture, to the shaped material, becomes almost an act of resistance. Each stage—sketching, modeling, casting, polishing—requires attention and patience. It is in this duration that coherence is formed, and intent is engraved.
In the same way, a dish cannot be summarized by its ingredients alone. It is born from a sum of balances, adjustments, and instincts. This is the same balance we sought to convey in the bowl: an object born to be contemplated, then used, then passed on.
" TRUE ART BEGINS WHERE THE HAND, THE HEART, AND THE MATERIAL BECOME ONE. "
In Nicolai’s kitchen, every plate tells of an emotion, a season. His collaboration with The Black Alchemy extends this narrative into matter: the plate becomes an extension of the dish, and the form becomes a memory of taste.
THE ALCHEMY OF THE GESTURE: FROM JEWELRY TO CULINARY GOLDSMITHING
This collaboration between Lyon and Chicago marks a natural extension of our approach: creating a dialogue between skills and abolishing the boundaries between the arts. The Black Alchemy does not just seek to create objects, but to spark correspondences—between metal and flame, between gesture and matter, between the useful and the beautiful.
Culinary goldsmithing becomes here a form of contemporary alchemy: an exploration of the sensible where the chef's hand and the artisan's hand meet in the same momentum. Each piece preserves the memory of the movement and reflects the light of a shared moment. Hidden within this dialogue between creation and tasting is true beauty: that of a lived experience.
This project has also opened a reflection on perception: how does an object derived from jewelry and goldsmithing influence the way one tastes? How do the texture of the metal, its weight, and its temperature modify the guest's experience?
The simple touch of a material shaped by hand transforms the way one approaches a dish. The gaze becomes more attentive, the movement slower, almost ceremonial. The object, through its presence, invites a different rhythm—that of contemplation.
In this bowl, the polished surface reflects the ambient light, while the hollows retain shadows like a marine relief. Through these contrasts, we wanted to capture the sensation of seaweed carried by the water, free but guided by an invisible movement.
This search for balance between function and emotion defines the essence of our work. Beauty does not impose itself: it reveals itself through use, contact, and the repetition of the gesture. And when an object succeeds in evoking an emotion, even for a moment, it becomes more than a work of art: it becomes a memory.