Golpira

FOUNDER AND DESIGNER OF GOLPIRA, GISA GOLPIRA, WAS BORN IN GERMANY AND RAISED FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS IN THE RAINFOREST OF SOUTH AMERICA, AS HER MOTHER WORKED AS A GOLD DIVER. IN HER TEENAGE YEARS GISA MOVED BACK TO GERMANY TO COMPLETE HER EDUCATION AND STUDY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FASHION TECHNOLOGY IN DÜSSELDORF. DURING HER STUDIES OF FASHION MANAGEMENT SHE WORKED AS A MODEL ALL AROUND EUROPE AND LATER AS A FASHION BUYING ASSISTANT IN BERLIN. DISCOVER MORE ABOUT GISA AND WHAT IS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND HER JEWELLERY LINE IN OUR INTERVIEW.

1. What is your first jewellery memory?
I can picture my first jewellery memory quite well, it was very emotional for me. When I was a child I used to live with my mother in the rainforest of South America in Peru for several months, because she was looking for gold over there. So she is a gold digger or in her words gold diver, because she looks for gold in rivers. While we stayed in the beautiful rainforest my mother started to self educate me, but at age 7 my parents decided it would be probably the best for me to get a proper school education in Europe. So it was time for me to travel back to Germany and live with my dad. I remember back in the day when my mother and I separated she gave me a gold nugget necklace as a talisman. It was the first gold nugget she ever found and since then I am wearing it every day and night. Honestly its a very small gold nugget, it does not have a huge material value but it has a huge emotional value for me. By the way this necklace was also my inspiration to start Golpira.

2. What's the first piece that you designed?
The Loved & Found Ring.

3. What is your favorite stone? Why?
I have to say Gold. It feels so natural to say it. I guess its because of my family background. When I was 6 years old my mother taught me how to wash stone material with the pan to extract the gold and she explained to me everything about gold. From the gold history to its properties. Well, I wont forget the euphoria when someone found gold in the river, it was amazing! 

4. Do you have a piece of jewellery that you wear all year-round? 
I wear the exact same pieces of jewelry, pretty much every day. I will change out maybe an earring, or add a ring. But my gold nugget necklaces and bracelets never leave my body. 

5. Who are your favorite jewellery designers?
I am obsessed with Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe designs. Her pieces are timeless, chic and still modern. Also I am a big fan of Fernando Jorge, even though I do not see myself wearing his jewellery I totally admire his approach to realize his designs. General speaking I am into clean and modern designs, but I also love the Byzantine jewellery period. 

6. What are your greatest design influences?
Nature. Minimalism. Interior/ Architecture. Art. 

7. If you weren’t a jewellery designer, what would you do?
Most probably I would be a photographer working in documentary wild life projects and travel as much as possible.

8. What do you currently listen to in your studio?
Heaven- Rolling Stones / The Fade Out Line - Phoebe Killdeer & The Short Straws/ Mystery of love- Sufjan Stevens/ Fade into you - Mazzy Star/ Samba E Amor- Joel Virgel/ There is an end- The Greenhornes/ Truth- Alex Ebert/ Crucify your mind- Rodriguez.

9. What is your dream destination?
I have to say that Costa Rica was the most magical country I have been travelling so far. I felt in love with rainforest - all these beautiful plants and animals. I never felt so close and connected to nature as in Costa Rica. 
If my plan was not to see as many countries as possible in my life I would most def come back to this gem this year.