MEET

Maria Thompson

London

WHY F&L LOVE
Maria Thompson

In the heart of Greenwich, I found Maria Thompson – the owner of Maree, London, a growing brand of designer jewellery. We met over a cup of tea one afternoon in her studio and she told me about her engagement ring commissions and her collections.

F was hooked by Maria’s interest in manipulating metal into shapes that challenge expectations of the material’s physical limits. Her style is based on the forms that arise from bending and twisting metal wires. It is almost as if the gold or silver has a life of its own that Maria teases out from the inner soul of the precious metal.

More Great Designs by Maria Thompson

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Maria Thompson

Maria Thompson & the Organic

Maria’s work embodies the sense of the organic in several ways. Her sculptural method in which the material guides her to find the outcome of the shape is just one aspect of this empathy for the natural.

The Flower Collection in its basic concept has connotations of the organic. The timeless beauty of these rings with their delicacy and elegance, reflects the ambiguous dynamic of a flower itself: dainty in appearance but resilient and strong in its survival. What better metaphor could apply to the symbolic meaning behind an engagement ring?

Maria’s rings are shrouded in mystery: with no obvious back, bottom or front, they challenge the wearer and the admirer with a captivating medley of curves and angles that enhance the sense of a three-dimensional piece of sculpture.

The Spirit of the Opal

While Maria Thompson’s collection work has a strong, dominating motif, her bespoke work is very eclectic and demonstrates her versatility and sensitivity to a client’s personal and unique needs.

She told me about a special engagement ring commission that she completed for a couple who had a family opal that they wanted to use for this piece. The groom-to-be plotted a surprise for his fiancée – a not unusual project in the engagement arena. What was unexpected was a layer of approval that Maria had never encountered before.

Being a New Age Traveller, it was important to the client that his Oracle approve the ring before it was completed. Maria gave him the maquette and held her breath until the spiritual value of the engagement ring was endorsed!