ATELIER MAUREEN CENTEN
LÖVENDAHL and Maureen Centen have many things in common! We both appreciate good craftmanship, we are attracted to beautiful and dark things and we are absolutely obsessed with music. And music is the reason we met!
LÖVENDAHL attended the festival Roadburn in Holland year after year, and every year we saw this young, amazing jeweler selling her jewelry
at the festival site.
When we decided to open our dark store, Maureen was one of the very first designers we asked to join our dark adventure.
Luckily for us, she was game!
See our amazing collection by Maureen Centen:
INTERVIEW WITH MAUREEN CENTEN
We asked the beautiful Maureen Centen to answer some questions about her work and inspirations, that will
let us get to know her and her way of creating better. Dive into the interview and find out what is important for this young, talented jeweler in her creation process.
WHO IS ATELIER MAUREEN CENTEN?
Atelier Maureen Centen is my sole proprietor in Eindhoven, Holland.
The range is raw but classy jewelry, for everyday wear. Each piece is sustainable and handcrafted with great passion to last a lifetime.
And beyond.
WHO ARE YOU AND WHY DID YOU START ATELIER MAUREEN CENTEN?
My name is Maureen. Born in 1989. My atelier is based in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. At the age of 16 I started my studies in gold & silversmithing. I graduated and decided to continue my studies at the Maastricht Academy of Fine Arts and Design to develop and wide my creative abilities more. After 8 years of studying, meeting expectations of teachers and bosses I started working on my own jewelry collections. I finally felt free to work intuitively, based on my own aesthetic preference.
I found out there is a certain atmosphere visible in all my work. Not on purpose, it just arises by working intuitively, combined with listening to atmospheric music while I design and create.
In a short time, my work reached a lot of (like-minded) people that felt attracted to my work.
I realized that a piece of jewelry is more than just an accessory, it is an extension of your body and character.
This motivated me to make Maureen Centen jewelry official and to give people the piece of jewelry that belongs to and grows with them.
WHAT WAS THE INSPIRATION FOR YOUR JEWELLERY?
My designs are inspired by geometric shapes, art, and occult symbolism etc…. During the process of making, I create structures inspired by rough natural structures as found on our planet earth and the moon.
WHAT IS IMPORTANT FOR YOU WHEN YOU CREATE JEWELLERY?
I use hand-tools, fire, timeworn hammers, and anvils to create jewelry and rough structures. These structures are inspired AND created by natural elements, like fire, earth, water, air and spirit. I like to get surprised by what emerges during the process and leave some traces of craftmanship visible. It gives each piece its unique character.
Another thing that is important when I design and create jewelry is to make sure that the piece of jewelry is ethically handmade by me, using eco-friendly methods and using recycled precious metals as much as possible. Mass production scares me. The heavy impact on our environment and the health of people who make our cheap “fast fashion” under unsafe living and working conditions makes me so sad. I want people to look at my jewelry and feel that this piece of jewelry is taken care of by a real person who crafted each piece with passion and great care for sustainability and high quality..…to treasure for the rest of your life.
