The Brand · About us
Where
“Dream of fascinating ancient worlds with the timeless elegance of our jewels”
Every piece of your Transparent Jewelry is completely designed and made in Barcelona, in the classical Eixample neighborhood. Our aim is to provide our clients with exclusive artisan jewelry that not only will lift their outfits and their own beauty but also, give them an emotional way of living the past in the present while dreaming of fascinating ancient worlds. We work giving a special relevance to lay on our jewels unique textures to make them look like archaeological pieces that have just been unearthed, from the past, with the will to bring ancient elegance to your contemporary lifestyle with our one-of-a-kind jewels. In TRANSPARENT Jewelry, we believe that the real luxury is exclusivity, to feel you are wearing a special jewel created and handcrafted with love only for you and will see nobody else wearing.
Meet the designer
“Marta Roura Castelló and her travels through time with Transparent Sculptural Jewelry”
Marta Roura Castelló took us through the ancient Mediterranean world, its peoples, and their “treasures” of art and jewelry with its Transparent Jewelry.
I started designing my first jewelry in 2004 when I was pregnant of our baby, and I was forced to rest. I made them initially for myself since I couldn’t find jewelry I really liked, because I wasn´t interested in mass-produced jewelry. But my brand was really born in 2012, when, after going one step further and learning ancient jewelry techniques, I started to make my own collections. Nowadays you can find my work on Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook, and on my Transparent Sculptural Jewelry online shop.
My name is Marta Roura and I’m an architect, interior designer and contemporary glass artist, living in Barcelona. I’ve been designing furniture, stained glass, textiles and wall art ceramics for my clients in architectural, and interior projects as well as for design exhibitions. During the last years, I started designing and making jewelry, activity which allows me to connect several passions as: archaeology, ancient jewelry, sculpture, love for gemstones and nature. My jewelry has been shown and can be purchased, in art galleries, as well as fashion stores, designer jewelry stores and at pop-up events.
I’ve always loved creating since I was a little child! I’ve always drawn and painted and later on I studied stained-glass design, which is not far from jewelry, working with light in gems and metals. Since young, I’ve traveled and lived in different countries in Europe, America, and Africa. Studying and working abroad left experiences that have had a great influence on me and have allowed me to appreciate different cultures and their unique art manifestations while visiting archaeological sites, architecture and museums. That is at the core of my interest on revisiting those cultures and transferring them into my creations, in a creative and personal way & very especially into my collections inspired by ancient Mediterranean cultures.
My client is a special one, with personality, who knows exactly what they want and as well can dress chic & casual, as sophisticated & elegant depending on the occasion. A romantic person who feels love for modern and contemporary jewelry but also has a passion for ancient cultures. A bohemian free soul who loves to travel to far-away lands and learn about exotic places and peoples. A sensitive person, who respects and enjoys her/his time surrounded by the beauty of nature. An ethical buyer who prefers to buy less, but things that feels an emotional connection to and make her/him feel happy regardless the trends.
I imagine Marta: the elegance, the open and wide culture, those exact features distinguishing her creations combined by an innate curiosity. Transparent Sculptural Jewelry lines are vibrant and precious thanks to their message and unique character as stones veins. Waiting to embark myself on a new journey, this time toward the East, with Dragón y Fénix and Ephesos, I keep dreaming while browsing the Transparent Sculptural Jewelry interactive board and Marta’s inspirational collages..
INTERVIEW: Original BY VALENTINA CHIRICO
Archaeologist, Egyptology graduate & jewelry blogger
See complete interview at: Indie creations: Marta Roura Castellò and her travels through time with Transparent Sculptural Jewelry – (valentinachirico.com)
Archaeologist, Egyptology graduate & jewelry blogger
Style & Unique features
“When archaeology meets fashion with unique handmade accessories”
Archaeologist, Egyptology graduate & jewelry blogger
Marta’s passion for jewelry and ancient peoples comes from her previous studies as architect, interior designer and glass artist. She conveys her special love for arts, the natural world, and gemstones into her precious jewelry. Her collections have been featured in magazines and exhibited in art galleries, shops and pop-up events. Her creativity and taste for fashion go beyond the handmade creation itself since it seems she has some fun creating collages showing her inspiration sources and at the same time inspiring her clients. How to mix and match accessories and clothes for the perfect elegant or trendy outfit is an artistic game, if done by Marta.
Ancient cultures have always fascinated people as a mystery, thick fog still surrounds them thanks to those unique features and artistic evidence: architecture and arts, what a better inspiration for a jewelry collection? Transparent Sculptural Jewelry by Marta Roura brings us to the exotic coasts of Phoenicia and enigmatic Minoan Crete with handmade jewelry, created with selected materials recalling or connected to those cultures. Fenicia Collection tells us the history of sea people, sailors, and merchants. Marta, has crossed the Mediterranean sea and arrived in an island; she re-discovered ancient Minoan Crete: the house of the Minotaur where silent palaces still stood with their stunning red columns.
The Akrotiri Collection features jewels with that typical red hue reflected in coral beads But Phoenicia and Minoan Crete aren’t the only places revisited by Marta: she’s immersed herself into the luxury of Imperial Rome with her Perla Nova Collection; she jumped far and wide among Greece, Alexander the Great’s Empire and Rome while revoking the elegance in her Antic Tresor Collection; she’s captured the majesty of the Near East cultures and Mesopotamia with her Gold Collection. The bright colors of the Ishtar gate (575 BC), the sublime beauty and linearity of the Parthenon (447-432 BC) or the hardness of a lorica squamata worn by an anonymous Roman legionary are the core of high-quality handmade pieces with a long study beyond, making them unique.
These jewelry collections are based on a careful selection of stones and metals; the archaeological and artistic-historical inspiration joined the “experimental archaeology” with the adoption of the lost wax casting technique for the reproduction of ancient Greek and Roman coins. In her works, I see passion, creativity, and curiosity for the past. Our past whispers her something and she tries and does recreate the spirit of a certain culture: sea men’s lucky pendants or the beauty of a lonely girl painted on a desert wall. Transparent Sculptural Jewelry is an emotional way of living the past in the present and dreaming of fascinating lands with eyes wide open.
Commitments
1. Health
Safe metals
Our jewelry is free from nickel and lead
2. Client & Supplier
Fair price
Our jewelry offers fair prices to our clients according to the value of the materials and the product and that we also offer fair commerce prices to our local suppliers
3. The planet
Recycled metals
Our jewelry is made with previously recycled sterling silver and gold in all of our castings and findings and we recycle our own metal waste. Recycled gold and silver have the same characteristics as new. We purchase all our gemstones in Barcelona to expert family artisans, mineral suppliers and gem-cutters. So that we can keep our carbon footprint in low levels.
4. The planet
Packaging
Our jewelry wrapping is made with recycled paper and nontoxic ink
5. Social & Environmental Causes
Donations
A percentage of our benefits, goes to plant trees and another part is donated to support social causes to provide food to children and families in need
