The Art Jewelry Forum (AJF) has released its comprehensive bi-monthly jewelry news report for October 2026, highlighting an extensive array of international exhibitions, prestigious grants, upcoming artist residencies, crucial industry conferences, and significant literary releases. As a global platform dedicated to advancing the field of art jewelry, AJF continues to invite its members and the broader creative community to contribute news, upcoming events, and fresh perspectives to its ongoing digital chronicle.
This edition captures a vibrant period for the contemporary jewelry community, spanning from major museum acquisitions and historical retrospectives to urgent conversations around sustainability, labor, and the intersection of traditional craft with modern technology.
Open Calls and Major Grants
Among the prominent announcements is the opening of applications for AJF’s 2027 Solo Exhibition Award. Open to jewelry artists of any age and nationality, the prestigious $20,000 grant aims to support the realization of a solo exhibition designed to advance an artist working within the sphere of art jewelry, broadly defined. Interested practitioners have until November 15, 2026, to submit their proposals.
In addition to the AJF grant, several international institutions have issued open calls for upcoming exhibitions and residencies. The organizers of the Israel Biennale of Contemporary Jewelry have invited artists and designers worldwide to engage with this year’s compelling theme, “Silent Resonance—Between Independent Thought and the Movement of the Masses.” The biennial encourages makers to explore jewelry not merely as an ornament, but as a political and social statement capable of sparking dialogue regarding individual freedom versus collective momentum. The submission deadline is set for November 1, 2026.
In Germany, the “Designers in Residence” program at the EMMA Creative Center in Pforzheim has opened its application window for young artists specializing in jewelry, fashion, accessories, industrial design, and graphic arts. Three selected designers will embark on a three-month residency from April 1 to June 20, 2027, receiving fully equipped workshop spaces, free accommodation, a monthly stipend of 1,000 euros, travel cost coverage, and a dedicated exhibition to showcase their residency work. The deadline to apply is November 2, 2026.
Furthermore, the organizers of KORU9 have announced their open call under the theme “Traces of Labour,” inviting artists to examine the intricate connections between jewelry, physical labor, societal identity, and economic structures by the November 15, 2026 deadline. Meanwhile, Cluster has launched its remote one-month jewelry artist-in-residence program, offering peer mentorship, material coverage, a guaranteed press feature, and a funded solo exhibition in London complete with shipping, travel, and accommodation provisions.
AJF Live and Educational Programming
AJF’s ongoing digital programming continues with the next installment of AJF Live on October 23, 2026. The virtual event features jeweler and enamelist Aaron Decker in conversation with Emily Banas, associate curator of decorative arts and design at the RISD Museum. The discussion, titled "Collecting with Purpose," will examine how museum acquisitions shape institutional collections and influence artists’ careers. Drawing on specific purchases made by Banas for the RISD Museum, the speakers will explore the philosophy and practical decision-making behind acquiring contemporary jewelry, building supportive relationships between makers and cultural institutions, and introducing fresh perspectives to museum audiences.
Virtual and physical educational opportunities are expanding elsewhere in the community. Metalwerx has scheduled a specialized online class titled “Melting with Purpose: Developing Rich Textures with Torch-Fusing Techniques,” taught by AJF member Kristin Shiga. The sessions, held on November 3 and 10, 2026, instruct participants on utilizing torch heat to selectively fuse surfaces and create organic textures for one-of-a-kind metalwork and jewelry pieces.
Member News and Exhibitions
Members of the Art Jewelry Forum are leading numerous exhibitions and project launches around the globe as the autumn season unfolds.
In Santa Fe, Patina Gallery is currently hosting Where the Land Meets the Sky, a spotlight exhibition featuring works by Brooke Marks-Swanson through October 31, 2026. Marks-Swanson weaves clay, stone, shell, pearl, oxidized silver, and gold into meticulous, tactile landscapes that reflect a lifelong connection to the natural world.
In Philadelphia, Gravers Lane Gallery has officially launched a newly redesigned website designed to improve inventory management and offer collectors enhanced artist pages, updated inventory photography, and streamlined browsing capabilities. The gallery is also preparing for an exclusive preview event featuring Barbara Heinrich Fine Jewelry by appointment only on November 4, 2026.
As New York City Jewelry Week 2026 approaches, local schedules are filling rapidly with community events, lectures, and exhibitions. Among the highlights is Earrings Galore, an annual juried exhibition hosted by the Heidi Lowe Gallery that showcases a diverse array of earrings crafted by 60 emerging and established studio jewelers, offering the public expanded access to contemporary jewelry collecting.
Additionally, the Turkish House in New York will present Hand to Form from November 16 to 22, 2026. Bringing together eight contemporary jewelry artists from Turkey, the exhibition explores the relationship between material, craftsmanship, and the human hand, complemented by an artist panel and Q&A session scheduled for November 18.
International gallery exhibitions are similarly robust. In Brussels, Hectare Gallery presents Trouble Parfait (Perfect Trouble) through November 28, 2026, featuring the work of 2026 Young Artist Award winner Benedict Haener and Jiro Kamata. The exhibition examines a contemporary pop aesthetic infused with nostalgic and fantastical elements. In Vevey, Switzerland, Espace Borax is preparing for the group exhibition Everything’s Under Control, running across weekends from late November through mid-December 2026, featuring contributions from fifteen international contemporary jewelers, including David Bielander, Jorge Manilla, and Shilpa Gupta.
Museums and cultural institutions across Europe and North America are rolling out major retrospective and thematic presentations. At the Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art in Oak Brook, Illinois, The Art of Transformation: The Jewelry of Mark Schneider opens on November 7, 2026, and runs through March 28, 2027. Guest-curated by Elyse Zorn Karlin, the exhibition highlights 40 pieces by Schneider, whose creative process frequently begins with a gemstone dictating its own design over years of contemplation.
In Hanau, Germany, the Deutsches Goldschmiedehaus Hanau will open On Friday. Vivi Touloumidi on November 1, 2026, running through April 11, 2027. Touloumidi’s work investigates jewelry as a medium for social and political commentary, touching upon resistance, historical memory, and the elimination of boundaries between craft, art, and activism.
In Japan, The National Museum of Art in Kyoto hosts Reflections in Jewellery: Memory and Identity from October 24, 2026, to January 17, 2027. This large-scale public presentation features approximately 350 post-war masterworks from the Hiko Mizuno College of Jewelry collection, bringing works to Japan from Germany after a 50-year absence and examining jewelry as a powerful form of wearable spatial art.
Meanwhile, Museum Arnhem in the Netherlands is set to launch Bezieling (Inspiration) on November 21, 2026, celebrating more than 50 years of boundary-pushing work by renowned contemporary jewelry innovator Ruudt Peters. In France, the Musée du Bijou Contemporain in Cagnes-Sur-Mer is presenting L’Art de la Citation, curated by Elsa Vanier, which runs from October 24, 2026, to January 31, 2027, and features 11 designers inspired by the masterworks of celebrated fine artists.
Industry Events and Publications
The broader professional landscape is gathering for several major convenings. The Chicago Responsible Jewelry Conference marks its tenth annual gathering on October 23–24, 2026. The landmark event convenes jewelry industry leaders, human rights advocates, and environmental conservationists to discuss critical issues such as artisanal mining impacts, mercury reduction in gold processing, ethical gemstone sourcing from conflict regions, and the socio-environmental implications of artificial intelligence within the supply chain.
In the United Kingdom, the Turner Contemporary in Margate will host the Silver + Form – Contemporary Jewellery and Silverware Fair 2026 on November 21–22, bringing together 26 independent makers, silversmiths, and metalsmiths. Looking ahead to next year, preparations are underway for the inaugural Birmingham Jewellery Biennial, scheduled for May 1–30, 2027, across the historic Jewellery Quarter and the wider city of Birmingham, featuring open studios, exhibitions, and public installations.
Finally, the literary landscape for art jewelry has been enriched by several significant book releases. Bodyworks: The Jewelry of Art Smith, written by Joanne Hyppolite and AJF member Toni Greenbaum with a foreword by Joyce J. Scott, has been published by Penguin Random House. The volume features 160 images—including newly commissioned photography and previously unpublished sketches—documenting the fluid, modernist creations of 20th-century pioneer Art Smith.
Arnoldche has published Sammlung Bollmann, the first comprehensive catalogue of the late Dr. Karl and Heidi Bollmann’s extensive private collection, which spans 1,748 avant-garde pieces amassed between 1970 and 2022. Additionally, Thames & Hudson has released The Portrait Miniature: A New History, authored by V&A scholars Damiët Schneeweisz, Rosalind McKever, and Adriana Concin, exploring the intimate history linking miniature portrait painting, fashion, and personal identity.
