Towards a Metamorphosis of Diamond
A Manifesto
Reimagining Nature’s wonder
Allows for moments of inception.
Listen carefully, and you’ll hear it:
Something new wishes to be born.
In the old world, Diamond appeared in a single way: a finite stone.
We call for new dimensions of Diamond: an infinite raw material bringing forth an entirely new knowhow — a new artistic expression. New forms, new concepts, new values. A new fire.
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Diamond as a Social Construct
Diamond is a social construct.
Its value is defined by an ethos: a shiny stone, a thing of beauty born from the Sisyphean, dusty task of mining. An imagined scarcity is attached to it, a mythology of human labor in faraway lands, Man entering the bowels of the earth to emerge with its most magnificent treasure: a rough promise, to then be cut and polished to reveal its spectacular qualities. Then, after being graded and inspected for “impurities”, it is evaluated according to strict financial tables, trading hands based on predetermined value systems.
In this cultural ethos, a polished diamond represents the very definition of Perfection. A frozen fragment of eternity: A timeless token to embellish mortals.
2. A New Era
We offer a definition of Diamond as a new raw material bearing new values. In our view, technology alights on humanity in order to truly innovate. The case of Diamond is no different: technology can bring forth “profound changes in the ancient craft of the Beautiful” (Walter Benjamin), scientifically and ethically - but also aesthetically, artistically and culturally.
3. Extraction vs. Growth: The “Lab-grown Problem”
The sparkle of a grown stone
seems audacious to the old world's eyes.
How dare it shine? By what right?
No dust was cleared from its surface,
No holes that can be seen from space were dug to reach it,
No sweat, no tears were shed to obtain it:
How dare it shine?
Fact: Diamonds can now be created in coexistence with nature, without leaving irremediable traces. However, because Diamond is not merely a stone, but a structure of meaning relying on an extensive mythic background, this innovation is conceived as a deviation. A shattering of a dream. So much so that grown diamonds are considered by some to be un-real, when the fact that they are no different, chemically or physically, than mined diamonds is well known. What makes a diamond “real” then? Or rather, what makes it desirable?
No amount of marketing can resolve this dissonance. The old story is deeply ingrained: It is powerful, all-encompassing. Born from a culture that had all the power to sustain it, and reinforced by its zeitgeist.
We are the outlaws. We are here to defy the old limitations, to discover new horizons. We are here to play. Ours is a journey not into the depths of Earth to extract its treasures, but into the depths of our soul to emerge with its purest expression. We seek not perfection, but reflection. A sense of value from within.
The old world's exploration into the mysteries of our existence can be likened to mining the earth with pickaxes to get a better look. In this day and age, however, technology’s advancement allows us to inspect the universe at the atomic level. From microscopes to telescopes, we now have the tools to study the most complex mechanisms that compose it. Rather than 300 meters into the earth, we can glance into the remains of distant galaxies 13 billion light-years away. At the intersection of physics and chemistry, diamond growth is a delicate, highly accurate, human-led scientific endeavor. It requires an absolute control of conditions, as a minor change of 1/1,000,000 atoms during growth is enough to completely change a diamond's attributes. A delicate equilibrium is required among the plasma, the overall temperature and pressure, the diamond seed, the wavelength and resonance– all to be kept in perfect harmony throughout an evolving process.
In our view, the key to desirability lies in self-expression. Joining forces with nature in new ways, rather than trying to replace or replicate it. In this new paradigm, it is the human creativity instilled in these creations that accord them a new-found rarity. A vitality that eludes a spotless imitation.
4. New Dimensions
Dimensions in which we call for innovation:
I. New Forms, New Stories
II. Non-Gendered Diamonds
III. New Generations’ Demand for Transparency
I. New Forms, New Stories
In a world in which originality is a fleeting concept, creativity and innovation are indicators of value. Rather than imitating mined diamonds, boasting that “nobody will be able to tell the difference,” we call for new forms and phases to be conceived, allowing for an entirely innovative movement of creation. New forms are to be born in Diamond, and, together with them, new stories are to be told of Diamond.
The fall of the old ethos is so colossal because it no longer resonates with the era in which we are living.
Therefore, minor adaptations of the narrative will not do. We call for something new entirely.
II. Non-gendered Diamonds
Diamond as we’ve known it is a gendered concept: to be purchased by a man, to be worn by a woman, and to symbolize institutionalized love and social status. Rules about how much, when, how, are passed, unquestioned, from generation to generation. We call for a new dimension of Diamond to shatter the construction of love as belonging to one possible setting only. Love is for everyone. Hers. His. Theirs. The new diamonds are genderless.
III. New Generations’ Demand for Transparency
In an era in which knowledge is as readily available as air, the old, self-serving myths perish, giving way to a fresh energy. Harsh realities can no longer be repressed. Mining diamonds imposes a dramatic tax on nature and humans. Contemporary consumers demand to remain in harmony with their values.
5. Diamond is Calling: A New Dream
We are designers, scientists, artists, engineers - all explorers of this terra incognita - joining forces to experiment with this ancient/new material. The possibility to do so marks the beginning of a new era in design, art and fashion. Together, we are writing a new rule book, playing a new game.
Diamond is calling us: Create. Innovate. Reveal. We are Inspired to get reacquainted with this material, to experiment, discover its new phases, to watch the new ways in which light moves within it. Through this quest, we discover an even deeper calling: Dare to dream a new dream, unearthed from the ashes of the old one. Renounce imitating the single way which we were told is right, logical, valuable. Dare to stop molding ourselves in the image of preconceived paradigms, into the deep discomforts of inauthenticity. Dare to accept the parts within us which they tell us are flawed. Embrace the beauty of imperfection - the living, breathing, decaying aspects of our journey as humans, and by that very act - reflect those parts which come from a deeper source - offering — perhaps — a glimpse of infinity.