Miniature Painting

Mesmerized by the works, Furmanovich later embarked on a 40-day artistic pilgrimage through India, including New Delhi, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Jaipur and Pushkar. In Udaipur, the designer encountered artisans who have since the 16th century specialized in the painstaking tradition of miniature painting. Their art form evoked the vividly colored works Furmanovich encountered in the New York exhibition.

Furmanovich regularly commissions artisans from Udaipur to create dreamlike natural sceneries, intricate figures and vibrant patterns on scalloped pieces of wood and bone. The pieces are painted with brushes of just one or two squirrel-tail hairs, utilizing mineral-based pigments made of crushed gems such as blue lapis lazuli and green malachite, as well as yellow sulfur, black carbon and red iron oxide. Rendered in silhouettes reminiscent of Mughal architectural elements, the works are then mounted into statement earrings with gemstones echoing the hues of the paints, including emeralds, rubies, sapphires, tourmalines, diamonds and South Sea pearls.

In subsequent collections, Furmanovich has further explored the technique to portray finely detailed compositions which draw from other cultural traditions, such as Egyptian frescoes, Persian miniatures and Japanese textiles.