A Study of Form and Material
We are a studio dedicated to the study of material, structure and form. We work through ancestral techniques such as knotting, weaving and assemblage, reinterpreting them into contemporary objects. Form is not designed in advance. It is discovered through process The studio was built around a single conviction: that the most enduring objects are those that carry real knowledge inside them. Not trend. Not novelty. Knowledge — of material, of technique, of proportion.
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DESIGN
Every piece begins with observation. Ancient jewelry, archaeological objects, adornment systems that existed long before contemporary design had a language. We study what has already worked — what has survived centuries of use, of travel, of changing hands — and we ask why.
From that research come the sketches. Reinterpretations that try to keep the intelligence of the original without reproducing it. Forms simplified until only what is necessary remains. Nothing added without purpose. Nothing kept without reason.
But the sketch is never the final answer. When new materials arrive — a stone with an unexpected density, a cord that behaves differently than expected — the composition shifts. The material leads. The drawing follows.
PRODUCTION
We produce in small batches, conditioned by material availability. No speculative stock. No reopening a piece once it has sold out.
Collections are not defined by season in the conventional sense — but they are launched with intention, giving each group of pieces its own moment and context before the next begins. Some pieces exist once. Some return when the right material appears again. The difference is always indicated.
Scarcity here is not a strategy. It is a consequence of working with real materials, real hands and real time.
TECHNIQUE
At the centre of our practice is a body of knotting knowledge that is both inherited and studied. Techniques passed down through family, refined through years of repetition, expanded through formal study of ancient textile and maritime traditions.
These are not decorative techniques. They are structural — construction methods capable of holding weight, tension and movement while remaining flexible against the body. We have learned them slowly. We continue to learn them.
When demand requires it, we work with trusted local artisans in Barcelona who understand what the studio requires. Every piece that leaves IAMASSA, regardless of who touched it, meets the same standard.
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Every material we work with carries a history that precedes us. Stones formed over millions of years. Cord worked through techniques that existed long before contemporary design had a name. Vintage components that have already belonged to other objects, other moments, other people. We select each element individually — for its texture, its origin, the way it holds light or resists tension. Some pieces incorporate recovered and vintage findings, chosen when the right one appears. Not all pieces. But when it exists, we prefer to extend its life rather than replace it with something new. We come and go. The materials remain.
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NATURAL STONE
Every stone we use arrives untreated, uncoated and unaltered. No heat treatment, no resin filling, no surface coating. What you see is what formed — under specific conditions of pressure, heat and time that cannot be replicated.
We source our minerals through specialist suppliers, selecting each batch individually for texture, origin and structural potential. We do not search for uniformity. A stone formed over millions of years will never be identical to the next one. That variation is not a quality problem. It is the reason no two IAMASSA pieces are identical.
When a batch of stone is gone, the next will arrive different — another tone, another vein, another density. We work with what exists. We do not wait for a perfect match. We adapt the composition to what the material offers.
STERLING SILVER925
All silver used at IAMASSA is sterling silver 925, sourced through Europe's leading certified precious metal supplier. No plating. No silver-filled or coated components. Solid sterling silver 925 throughout.
Closures are either fabricated by hand in our studio or sourced as vintage findings — selected individually, never off-the-shelf. In both cases, the closure receives the same attention as every other element of the piece. It is not a functional afterthought. It is part of the object.
Silver ages honestly. It holds the warmth of the hand, develops a surface unique to the person who wears it. That relationship between material and person is what we are interested in.
ORGANIC
Not stone, not metal — but carrying the same weight of time. Amber is fossilised tree resin. Coral grew slowly in cold water over decades. Shell is the protective layer a mollusc builds around its interior.
We use these materials when the right batch appears. They are not always available. When they are here, we work with them. When they are not, we wait.
CORD & FIBER
We work with silk, nylon, leather and paracord. Each material is chosen for what it can do structurally and what it brings aesthetically — the tension of a knot, the weight of a stone, the way a cord moves against the body.
Some pieces are built through ancient net and weaving structures where the cord itself becomes the construction. Others carry a single stone through a technique refined over hundreds of repetitions.
The cord changes with wear. The piece adjusts. That is not deterioration. It is the piece becoming more yours over time.
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AMETRINE
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CRISTAL QUARTZ
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SILVER NUGGET
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LASPIS LAZULI
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PIRYTE
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NACAR
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OBSIDIANE
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HEMATITE
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Turquoise
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