Peer-review of Julia Maria Künnap exhibition

The First Peer-Reviewed Project of Doctoral Theses “Playing with Fire: Possibilities for Designing Four-Dimensional Gemstones by Combining Traditional Faceting and Free-Form Engraving. Time as a Design Element.”

Travelling Light. A Study on the Movement of Light in Experimentally Cut Gemstones.
Exhibition at the Library of the Estonian Academy Of Arts  21 Oct.- 4 Nov. 2025

Peer-review: 4 Nov. 2025 12:00 at the EKA Library

Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Krista Kodres
Peer-Reviewers: Prof. Dr. Virve Sarapik and Prof. Theo Smeets (Trier University of Applied Sciences)

The starting point of this doctoral research is the hypothesis that by combining traditional faceting with free-form carving, it is possible to create innovative reflection patterns within gemstones  – patterns that can be experienced not only in space but also in time. The creative research explores how to make jewelry four-dimensional by consciously using time as a design element, presenting jewels not as static objects but as dynamic works in continuous transformation. Reflection from curved surfaces enables the smooth modulation of reflected light intensity, linking rhythms into a fluid, variable whole.

This experiment provides an overview of the basic principles of faceting – refraction and reflection of light – through the combination of faceted and freeform elements. The aim is to demonstrate how individual reflective elements, through mutual interaction, form the brilliance of a gemstone. To illustrate the experiment, the exhibition held at the EKA Library presents, in addition to transparent test objects, both works in progress and completed jewellery set with cut gemstones.