Textile jewelry design is gaining popularity worldwide, and there are LatinAmerican artists who take it to levels beyond our wildest imagination. Take Luis Acosta, for example: WOW!

Luis Acosta: bracelet

Luis Acosta is originally from Córdoba, Argentina and lives in Holland. He studied weaving techniques at the Textile Department of the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam, where he graduated in 1988, but later committed his weft designs to paper. He made his first necklace in 1996 and, although it looked quite different from his present designs, it too, used the base of a relatively simple basic shape as starting point.

What he likes best about working with paper, is the infinite possibilities of combining colors and the different ways of working with paper sheets or paper threads. 

When asked where he gets his inspiration, he answers:

Luis Acosta: brooch

—”From simple forms I see daily everywhere. I develop a technique, draw a shape, and repeat, cut, and sew it.”

Luis Acosta: necklace

He has participated in group and individual exhibitions in most European countries, Argentina, USA, Japan and South Korea. There are works by Luis Acosta at the Museum of Arts and Design (New York, USA), Costume Museum (Buenos Aires, RA), Centre for the Arts Utrecht, The Textile Museum in Tilburg and in private collections in Argentina, Finland, India, Norway, Spain, Venezuela, USA and Netherlands.

Necklace by Luis Acosta

Luis is part of the circle of members of the LAKMA, Latin American Art Museum of Netherlands. We first met as affiliates to an association we both joined in 2008. At that time, he was volunteering a lot of time to see the Latin American LAKMA wing become a reality.

He teaches courses in textile design and designing women’s accessories in Argentina, USA, Spain and the Netherlands.

Also designs, weaves and creates three-dimensional textile works and installations in (handmade) paper; tapestries and fabrics;  women’s accessories in various materials, and paper jewelry.

Luis is one of the semifinalist recipients of Contemporary Art and Craft Awards in Barcelona. Finalists will be announced during the ArtFad award giving ceremony on July 5, 2011. These awards are part of FadFest—an event organized by FAD (Fostering Arts & Design organization). See more at http://www.bellevuearts.org/exhibitions/current/think_twice/index.html

Luis Acosta: necklace

Contact the artist:  http://www.luisacosta.nl

—Silvia Piza-Tandlich, translation