The Concrete House Ring is an elegant and audacious piece of jewelry designed by Linda Bennett, founder and author of archi-ninja.com. The ring is a hand casted concrete and resin composite moulded within a sterling silver, satin finish inner and outer piece. The icon of the house enunciates to the memory of home, where families grow and contract, habitual routines are developed, and our notions of safety and placemaking are formed.
The Concrete House Ring is also the evolution of its own design process, the shifting of scales, intimacy, and a personal narrative. The ring seeks to reduce the scale of architecture into something more comprehensible and accessible for the user. The complexity of the home is captured in a simple and recognisable image.
The reduction of scale and use of symbolism seeks to heighten the users experience, interaction and understanding of the rings meaning. To bring the ring into focus allows the user to notice its intrinsic details, the imperfections of the concrete, its movement, colour, texture and weight.
The ring design draws on the notion of intimacy. It is connected directly not only to the body but to the hand, as a part of the body that constantly exchanges and engages with our surroundings. The ring can be twisted around the users finger, drawing on Linda’s own personal habit associated with stress. As she continues the habit with the Concrete House Ring it takes on a new poetry by an architect (in training) twiddling the design of her own making.
The concrete house ring reconsiders the notion of ownership not as a commodity but through personal authorship. Its meaning is connected to transforming Linda’s role as a recent architecture graduate. The Concrete House Ring is a productive and personal exploration of creativity that seeks to connect its narrative into that of the user. The ring serves as a reminder of Linda’s recent relocation from Sydney to Melbourne. The symbolism of home represents the pursuit of change.
The Concrete House Ring initially connected to the memory of safety through place will evolve as the user connects with unique memories and interpretations of home. The connected narrative of the ring seeks to further evolve during its lifespan as the ring begins to take on its own story through the users pattern of everyday wear. The ring will begin to fade, crack and chip as it creates a dialogue about its use and misuse.
For more information about the Concrete House Ring check out an interview Linda. The Concrete House Ring is available globally and can be purchased via Linda’s website.